A waiting list

I love it when a car distributor is honest.

With hardly any drama or build up, Albert Arcilla, President and Managing Director of The Covenant Cars Company Inc. (TCCCI) advised members of the media that there is an average waiting list of 50 orders per dealer for the 2013 Chevy Trailblazer. In spite of the waiting list, Arcilla reassured his audience that January deliveries have arrived and that Chevrolet has allocated and committed to supply the forecasted requirements of TCCCI for the 2013 Trailblazer for the first quarter of the year.

If the waiting list surprises you, it might help to know why. To begin with the 2013 models are powered with the 2.5 or 2.8-liter diesel engine, matched with a 5-speed manual 4x2 or a 6-speed automatic transmission 4x4, has all the advanced feature of luxury model SUVs such as Hill Climb or Hill Descent Assist, meaning you don’t have to worry about going up or down VERY steep grades that rattle many drivers.

The Trailblazer is also set up for riding comfort and stabilizer controls seen only in the luxury high-end models. In addition, the 2013 is no Hobbit or Halfling, it’s a big boy that can carry lots of toys as well as 7 adult passengers. Given all these features and more, what’s grabbing people’s attention is the competitive pricing of the Trailblazer. The 2.5 manual 4x2 is listed at P1,368,888 while the 2.8 6-speed Automatic is listed at 1,718.888. This is barely half the price of high-end models that starts at 3.6 million and up.

One of the reasons the 2013 Trailblazer has an average wait list of 50 orders per dealership may have something to do with who is ordering them. Just this morning I got an unsolicited query on Facebook from a friend who knows my addiction for cars. He wanted to know my opinion on the Trailblazer, particularly the performance of a manual transmission versus the automatic. He’s not a city slicker, lives in Batangas, but spends a lot time on the road and moves around with a lot of stuff.

He is typical of the emerging market of suburban-provincial vehicle buyers. They are the people who are behind our quiet countryside development. They have both savings and capital, and they study their options before they make their purchases. This growing market has slowly recognized the practicality of vehicles such as the Trailblazer, which combines the creature comforts that one finds in a car and the tough practicality of an all-terrain vehicle. Adding to this market shift are the women entrepreneurs who predominantly drive automatics and want the safety of a large vehicle and cargo space.

Slowly but surely, the market is beginning to adjust and mature. More and more people outside Metro Manila are going for SUVs while the city slickers are now recognizing the undeniable practicality and fuel efficiency of compact cars.

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I also love the honesty of the man from Chevrolet because experience has taught me and my friends better. In 2012, other car companies launched several new models and they promoted specific models so much that people were literally pulling out their checkbooks at the very product launch. For some strange reason, the purchases were not closed on site and were being referred to dealers.

Three to 4 months later the prospective buyers along with several of my personal friends were still waiting for their units. As it turns out, there were very few units available and all of them had been portioned out to favored customers and dealers. The guilty parties were mum about the whole thing while others pretended to be doing something about the supply problem.

To make matters worse, some dealers who managed to get an allocation would refuse to accept spot cash purchases and would try to convince buyers to use their in-house financing. This of course meant that the buyer would end up paying more in interest payments. This scam reminds me of another dealer of another brand who would take 50,000 pesos “add-on” just to prioritize a unit to a rich but desperate buyer.  All this may bring in added profit to unethical dealers but ultimately it backfires.

A well-off car enthusiast reportedly got so pissed off being given the run around that he purchased 3 units from the US of a popular sports car. Other people I know simply bought from the gray market. Now whose fault is it? Just because you own the brand or carry the dealership does not mean you control the playground.

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They call it the 3rd wheel wonder.

They claim it can do 30 to 36 kilometers per liter of diesel. It is exempt from number coding in Metro Manila and supposedly can run up to 55 kph. You can use it for transporting light goods around the farm, you can use it for doing patrols around the barangay, you can use it as a mini delivery van for food, catering requirements or small products around large communities.

So what has 3 wheels, converts to a pickup, a wing van, a patrol “car,” or a mini transporter? It’s the PIAGGIO ape’!

For almost half a year, I’ve stared at this strange-looking vehicle and I’ve always been curious why a guy who lives in a mansion near us would have the 3-wheeled vehicle in front of his house. It seemed odd and out of place on a street lined with SUVs, America vans and sports cars. Now I know why. They use it for “service” to drive the staff outside their village, deliver air conditioners and as a service vehicle for technicians going around the village. Instead of buying a minivan or pickup, Mr. Millionaire opted to buy the ape’ which is almost equivalent to a 500cc trike or three-wheeled motorcycle that is styled as a “mini me” utility vehicle.

I have not personally tested the unit nor do I know much about it, but it turns out that Autoitalia Philippines are behind the distribution of the ape’ and are now marketing it as the practical and presumably cheaper alternative for small business owners who need a small vehicle designed for small business. I find the concept worth considering and the only thing would-be buyers have to worry about it is who drives and maintains the ape’.

Many people buy such alternative vehicles but carelessly leave them in the hands of bad drivers and don’t pay attention to proper use and maintenance or service. If you think this solution fits you, pay attention to its care and chances are it could last longer than you imagined. If not you will go Ape!