TOKYO, Japan—The 41st Tokyo Motor Show, which had its baptism of fire in 1954, officially closed its doors two days ago, on November 4, at nearby Makuhari Messe, Chiba Prefecture.

Willy Tee Ten, the jolly Ford dealer who is the Autohub Group president, said he had his own thrill as he caught the tail end of the show, braving Typhoon Santi to catch his Narita-bound PAL jet on October 31.

“I simply had to be there or forget calling me as a true-blue car nut,” said the man who also sells Nissan, Hyundai, BMW and Chery cars, not to mention Vespa motorcycles.

The day before he left, Willy played golf at Splendido, donating a Yamaha golf cart as a hole-in-one prize to fulfill a commitment with the organizing Heart Foundation of the Philippines (HFP) of General Mitch Templo.

The cart went with an Altis, another  hole-in-one prize from Toyota Alabang.  Unfortunately, none of the 60-man field that included, among others, General Charlie Tañega, Anthony Suntay, Emy Arcilla and the First Gentleman, the HFP chairman, scored an ace despite perfect golfing weather. But that’s another story.

Back to the Tokyo Motor Show.

Was I glad I was also there as one among an estimated one million visitors when the 13-day event, undisputedly the greatest motor show in all of Asia, had its Media Day the week last.

WHEN Ford launched an extended length version of the Expedition or “Exped,” as it is commonly called in local parlance, in 2009’s second quarter, it was apparent that many customers still couldn’t get enough of Ford’s biggest behemoth. Does it make a big impact on this writer?

The overall look may not have changed since the launch of the 2007 short wheelbase (SWB) Exped, but it still calls attention that parts seas of vehicles wherever it goes—thanks to a common association with politicians or high-ranking military personnel. A view of its full side profile makes you see the extended length and wonder just what can fit inside the third row/rearmost area when the hatch is opened. 

With an extended length, having the ability to store people and things should be a given. The Expedition does so, and in copious amounts. The center console storage is arguably as deep (or large) as that of the Mazda 3 glovebox—it can fit items such as a .9mm handgun and three to four more clips of ammunition. Very generous amounts of legroom, kneeroom and headroom abound for all rows. The second row folds and tumbles forward, and its latches are easy to see because they have visually appealing instructions on the base of the seats, facing the windows (where the backrests meet the thigh cushions). The third row has power-assisted folding (via buttons on the right rearmost part of the cabin), and the seats fold flat and flush to the cabin floor for extra loading space. You sit low in the third row, though.

The 5.4L V8 is more than adequate for town tooling or highway cruising. You’re into the powerband at 3,500 to 3,750 rpm, and the A/T is willing to kick down at three-fourths to full throttle. The tranny takes sometime, though, to select a gear for acceleration or emergency lane changes.     

As expected of vehicles with long wheelbases, ride comfort is exceptional. It’s not as supple as that of the Lexus LX 570, but you don’t feel floaty or dizzy as a passenger. Traction breaks at 80 kph (with traction control off). When the traction control electronics do wake up, it’s in such a way that you’re slammed into the seatbelt, there’s a tone that pops up in the cabin (which sounds like a stick jerked through water) and much stronger braking force is applied. Steering feel is light, but feedback is sloppy. You have to apply a few more degrees of motion in the direction of the turn to get the correct line. Also, the SUV can be cumbersome to maneuver in tight city streets. You have to take an outside line when entering and exiting 90-degree turns and U-turn slots. At least the side mirrors are wide, but have lateral sight until 1.5 lanes on either end. More good news:  putting the unit in reverse activates a camera right under the chrome strip beneath the rear hatch Ford logo. Once that’s done, the viewfinder (located within the leftmost part of the rear view mirror) is turned on. It’s very helpful in long backing and parallel parking, as the large dimensions of the unit make it tough to move around in certain parking spots (like building basement parking slots). It would be nice, though, if the unit had front bumper-mounted parking sensors and the rear bumper-mounted parking sensors weren’t that sensitive (like 0.9 feet onwards).   

Brake grip is strong; just a tap on the middle pedal and you can feel deceleration quickly. The same cannot be said of the footbrake; you have to get the pedal millimeters close to the floor to get decent bite on incline. At least exterior lighting is bright, and the foglights can take over for the headlights anytime.

Just when you thought nothing could get bigger than the Ford Expedition, the Blue Oval decides that its biggest behemoth gets bigger. In short, it’s a supersized American whopper.

Photos by EPS 

IN the current Mercedes-Benz C-Class, there are all sorts of characters. You have the big brother C63 AMG, wicked and large on performance from the get-go. You have the C350, second-tier yet snazzy amid a sinewy 3.5L V6. You have the C280, a middle child with a balance of poise, muscle and grace. Then there’s the C180 Kompressor or C180 K, the runt of the litter.

And then you have the C200 Kompressor or C200 K. But what is it amid its C-Class siblings?

Inside is a cabin that evokes relaxation, but still retains a businesslike feel. The black upper and the light khaki lower colorways combine to give all occupants a soothing ambiance. The gauge cluster is similar to that of its C180 K sibling, with the fuel and temperature gauges at the left, the tachometer on the right, and an arcing speedometer with a menu screen incorporated into the dial. Everything within the cabin shows excellent fit and finish, down to the various buttons and knobs for the Blue­tooth-ready Comand (Cockpit Management and Navigational Device) system. Speaking of the Comand system, it rivals that (in terms of sound quality) of the Bose unit on the Chrysler 300C. The Comand toggle setup is easy to use and reach for the driver, and you can key in your preferred radio station via the large aluminum knob southwest of the A/T stick, or the numeric keypad to the right of the CD insertion slot. A seven-inch screen in the middle dashboard has large fonts and white backlighting to make all occupants see what’s going on with regard to audio entertainment.

As with most variants in the current C-Class line, the C200 K can be somewhat lacking when it comes to taking in people and things. Put two six-footers in the front and there’s comfortable room for just one in the rear. The cupholders can only hold a C2 250-ml bottle, yet the glovebox can swallow two Bibles and two 250-ml C2 bottles. Fortunately, storage for bigger items is a plus, as the rear backrest can fold flat to swallow two golf bags. 

Despite toting a 2.0L straight-four, the C200 is mighty fast. You get into the powerband at a notch past 3,250 to 3,300 rpm, with partial boost from the supercharger at a notch under 4,000 rpm and full boost at around 4,500 rpm. The five-speed A/T upshifts when you need to, usually at roughly one-half to three-fourths throttle. But there’s a one- to two-second delay when using the lateral-moving Touchshift manual mode—just toss the A/T stick to the right to upshift, move it to the left for downshifts. It would be better to put the A/T stick on “D(rive)” and toggle the transmission setting to “S(port)” (via a button at the seven o’ clock side of the A/T stick) for quicker powerband entry. The results don’t lie—a 9.31 zero- to 100-kph time, a 242-kph top speed, and 6.70 km/l.

The C200 K exhibits a great compromise between ride comfort and handling. There’s little body roll, and the Pirelli P7s deliver grip up to 110 kph. The tires and the Agility Control suspension also prevent occupants’ backsides from experiencing any sort of road undulations, and the seats do a tremendous job of helping out as well. The steering response is surprisingly sharp, given the light feel. You find yourself constantly correcting the wheel on sweeping turns, but the front end obeys immediately. The braking is strong; just a motion of your big toe on the middle pedal and the stoppers bite.       

Although this C-Class variant is suited more for boulevard and highway rather than spirited driving, the C 200 Kompressor’s overall driving dynamics combine with top-tier features and kit to elicit a classy compromise.