It was an event that tested the mettle of the vehicles and the driving skill of the participants. Motor Image Pilipinas Inc, the exclusive distributor of the Subaru brand in the country, put their best foot forward and invited the motoring media to drive their AWD variants at the Segovia River in the lahar land that is Pampanga.
After remaining dormant in the past couple of months, Subaru is out to regain lost ground and once again become a major player in a small, yet highly competitive domestic auto industry. “Our aim is for the media to test the fuel efficiency of our cars and to experience the All Wheel Drive capabilities of the Outback, Forester and the XV. Our vehicles were built and designed to take the punishment of any off-road adventure,” explains Bob Palanca, the head honcho of MIPI.
Dubbed as the Subaru Eco Adventure Drive, the event kicked off at the Subaru showroom in Greenhills, where the participants topped up with Shell Nitro V-Power at the Shell gasoline station along EDSA-Mandaluyong. From there, the convoy drove through a mix of city and highway driving with the different variants of Subaru such as; the Forester, the XV, Legacy, Outback, BRZ, WRX and WRX STI. The goal was dial-in the actual fuel consumption of each vehicle. Once we got to our destination at the Shell Gas Station in Clark City, Angeles, Pampanga, the results were tallied with officials from MIPI, Shell and certified by the Automotive Association of the Philippines (AAP).
After a sumptuous steak lunch at the Widus Hotel and Casino, the real fun began with an off road adventure through the lahar bed at the foot of Mt. Pinatubo. Leading the convoy was the off-road master himself Beeboy Bargas, which led the convoy as we drove through treacherous terrain, some uphill and downhill slopes; and deep water crossings. Our jaws literally dropped when the XV river crossed unfazed by the deep raging waters.
As the convoy approached the Pinatubo lahar beds, slippery slopes and soft wet sand from the heavy rains was waiting to challenge the vehicles and the drivers. With the power of the Boxer engine and Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive System of the Subaru vehicles, the Pinatubo drive became exciting with all the Foresters and XVs driving through slopes effortlessly with the help of the X-Mode and Vehicle Dynamics Stability technology. With the help of the Marshals and Instructors, each participants experienced Subaru’s technology and its functions as they passed each challenging with both Subaru’s Compact SUV and Crossover variants.
As the rain started to fall, the convoy headed back to the Widus Hotel for safety reasons. “I am surprised that the XV can take the punishment,” said Alvin Uy of the Inquirer who rode shotgun with me in an AWD Forester. The day ended in true Subaru fashion, raffle prizes were given away, and the guests went jamming to the tunes of local band True Faith. The boys from the stellar brand are back with a vengence.