IN 1986, the Aquino government took over after the first peaceful Edsa “People Power” revolution, and the Marcos dictatorship was toppled.
In the automotive industry, we also saw the taking over of several brands. These visionary companies used this period to reorganize and plant their seeds to see their vision to fruition. These are their stories.
1985: From motorbikes to cars
Suzuki has been in the country since 1959 under the management of Rufino D. Antonio and Associates which handled the nationwide distribution of Suzuki motorcycles.
This became Antonio Suzuki Corp. in 1975 through a joint venture between Suzuki Motor Co. Ltd. (Japan).
But the economic crunch in the 1980s pressured Suzuki Motor Co. to take over the operations from Antonio Suzuki Corp. in February 1985 to become Suzuki Philippines Inc.
By 1999, the company also took over the automobile operations of Suzuki in the country from Pilipinas Transport Industries Inc.
This laid out the groundwork for its foray in the automotive industry. In July 2000, Suzuki Automobile launched its flagship automotive vehicle, the Grand Vitara, then the APV van with a seating capacity of eight passengers, followed by its much-anticipated Swift hatchback.
1987: Mitsubishi lives on
Mitsubishi can be considered as the longest staying undisrupted car brand that was established in the country.
It was established in February 1963 as Chrysler Philippines Corp. It became Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (MMPC) on Jan. 30, 1987 after parent company Mitsubishi Motors Corp. took over the Philippines’ second-biggest automotive brand.
It commemorated its 50th anniversary in 2013, and it is one the brand’s four manufacturing facilities outside Japan.
Locally, it assembles the Mitsubishi Adventure and L300 FB Van models.
1988: New partners
On August 1988, Toyota reappeared in the local auto industry replacing the defunct Delta Motors.
Toyota Motor Corp., Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. and Mitsui & Co. Ltd. established Toyota Motors Philippines.
It was a great start for Toyota, since the market was hungry for new model cars, and the ubiquitous Toyota Corolla 16-valve model rolled off the showrooms and into the hands for customers who were willing to queue on a wait list that took several months.
In 1995, the Toyota Sta. Rosa (Laguna) industrial complex was declared as a special economic zone.
This expansive 82-hectare Toyota Special Economic Zone houses Toyota’s manufacturing plant and head office, and is a haven to a number of manufacturers that export of automotive products to the Asean, Japanese and other global customers.
Toyota has since then become the biggest automotive company in the country, with a lineup of 17 models and 28 dealers nationwide. Market share in 2014 was almost half of the entire market.
In 2015, TMP sold its one millionth vehicle, making Toyota the first in the Philippine automotive industry to achieve this feat.
1989: Crosswinds of progress
In 1971, Isuzu Motors and General Motors had a joint venture and created GM Philippines.
In 1989, Isuzu Motors Ltd. Japan went on its own to create Isuzu Motors Pilipinas Inc. It was later in 1995 renamed Isuzu Philippines Corp. with a partnership with Isuzu Motors Ltd., Mitsubishi Corp., Ayala Corp. and Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.
The Ayala family would later venture into other automotive brands.
Isuzu Philippines assembles the Crosswind AUV, D-Max pickup, along with its light- to heavy-duty trucks and buses. It has also recently introduced the mu-X SUV, which replaced the popular Alterra SUV.
1993: Expanding to luxury
The walls of Berlin fell in the last 1980s, and this signaled the entry of another German marque in the country. The Alvarez-owned Asian Carmakers Corp. (ACC) was appointed by the BMW Group as both importer and service provider of BMW cars in the country in 1993, and took over BMW’s distributorship responsibility in 2009.
ACC is a Filipino company under the Alvarez Group of Companies, headed by ACC chair and former Palawan Gov. Jose Ch.
Alvarez. Today, BMW is the leading luxury vehicle.
The company also has the widest dealership network in the luxury vehicle segment—with eight dealers working closely
under the ACC helm.
1994: Korean ‘invasion’
Columbian Autocar Corp. (CAC), the assembler and exclusive distributor of Kia vehicles in the Philippines, was incorporated in May 1994.
It was in 1996 that CAC found itself in the No. 4 spot in the Philippine automobile market. CAC first participated in the Car Development Program of the government and introduced the first ever “People’s Car,” the Kia Pride.
To date, CAC has 32 dealerships and 10 sales outlets nationwide.
1996: More players
PGA Cars Inc. was incorporated on Feb. 9, 1996, under the initiative of Robert Coyiuto Jr., chair and CEO of the Coyiuto Group of Companies.
PGA Cars is part of the Coyiuto Group of Companies, which is renowned for its insurance, real estate, securities, air transport, oil exploration and publishing ventures.
It initially started off as a BMW dealership and eventually ventured into being the country’s distributor of Audi and Porsche vehicles, then later on it also put up a Lamborghini and Bentley dealership.
1997: Ford ‘re-enters’
Ford Motor Co. Philippines Inc. (FMCP) is a Philippine-based automotive distributor and subsidiary of Ford Motor Co. (FMC), which is focused on manufacturing automobiles for local and regional markets.
FMC builds the Ford Escape, Ford Laser, Ford Lynx, Ford
Focus, Mazda3, and Mazda Tribute for the local market, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Currently, Ford Philippines imports vehicles that are sold in the Philippine market. These imports come mostly from Thailand and the United States.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the company introduced the Laser, Telstar, Econovan and Courier into the local market. When the company changed its name to FMCP in 1997, it
proceeded to introduce US-made vehicles such as the Expedition, F-150, Clubwagon and Lincoln Town Car in the Philippine market.
Ford announced the consolidation of manufacturing operations in Southeast Asia and the cessation of plant operations at its Sta. Rosa plant, citing the “lack of supply base and economies of scale” as the main reasons why the decision was made.
Ironically, FMCP has been the most successful exporter of completely built-up (CBU) vehicles from the Philippines. For over a decade, the company said it had exported more than 80,000 vehicles worth $1 billion over to Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia since 2002.
Ford Philippines also had a banner year in the Philippines in 2014, making Ford the fastest in terms of growth, landing fourth spot in terms of sales, and currently has the third-best-selling car brand in the Philippines. It opened 12 new dealerships in key locations around the country.
Ford closed its original Philippine assembly plant in 1983 and reopened a new plant at a cost of P4 billion in 1999 in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, citing improved political stability.
1999: Autohub entry
The new millennium saw another car mogul in the making. Engineer Willy Tee Ten controls the Autohub Group of Companies, a synergy of automotive dealerships and distributorships that started with just one Ford dealership in 1999.
Its Ford Makati started it all, and the subsequent years saw its dealer networks expand to Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Manila (Otis).
Its Makati dealership was transferred to Global City in 2005. Aside from Ford, it also has two Nissan dealerships and further ventured to distributing motorcycles and other boutique European car brands.
In 2010, the group got MINI Coopers. The following year, it acquired another brand, and Mazda dealership in Cagayan de Oro started.
In 2013, the group successfully got the official distributorship of the ultraluxury car brand Rolls-Royce under British Bespoke Automobiles Inc. known as Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Manila.
2001: More Korean brands
Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (Hari) was awarded the official distributorship of Hyundai vehicles by Hyundai Motor Co. (HMC) based in South Korea in August 2001.
Hari has rapidly become one of the distinguished market leaders in the Philippine automotive industry today. Led by its chair Richard Lee, it initially just had one product, the Hyundai Starex, that was sold in its first four dealerships.
Today, Hari has a total of 36 dealerships.
2006: New image for Subaru
Motor Image is the authorized distributor of Subaru automobiles in Singapore. Established in 1986 and headquartered in Singapore, the company has since set up vehicle sales and distribution networks in many Asian countries.
Motor Image is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Tan Chong International Ltd. (TCIL), which has partnered with Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. for the local assembly of Subaru vehicles in Malaysia.
In 1996, Subaru entered the Philippine operations under the Columbian Motors Philippines ownership. Although it was withdrawn later on in 2000, the ownership had exposed the
Subaru brand name to the Philippines market.
2006: Chinese breakthrough
Foton Philippines was established in 2006 through the United Asia Automotive Group Inc.
The group was primarily focused on importation of used commercial vehicles in the 1990s but chose to go mainstream by the turn of the millennium with an ambitious goal to manufacture its own line of commercial vehicles to be marketed locally and exported to the Asean region by utilizing the Philippines as its strategic export hub.
That someday had come this year as Foton Philippines quietly started its operations in an assembly plant located somewhere in Clarkfield, Pampanga. It is an ISO-certified assembly facility for its line of passenger vehicles, light-duty and heavy-duty trucks, and heavy equipment, with a sizeable workforce of local engineers and technical personnel.
Aside from serving the market with its 22 showrooms nationwide, the Foton brand is a well-accepted brand for commercial and government fleet vehicles.
2009: Chevrolet joins fray
According to the Lee family, who runs The Covenant Car Co. Inc. (TCCI), it is nothing short of an answered prayer to be able to represent the Chevrolet brand in the country.
On Oct. 1, 2009, TCCCI was appointed by General Motors Southeast Asia Operations led by its chair Jose L. Cuisia Jr., Philippine Ambassador to the United States and Management Association of the Philippines’ 2007 Management Man of the Year.
Chair emeritus Richard L. Lee is the family patriarch who lends his four decades of automotive expertise and keen financial and business sense to the company.
TCCCI’s management team is led by its current president and managing director, Alberto B. Arcilla.
With more than 20 years of automotive experience, Arcilla has led the company to reignite the passion for Chevrolet in the Philippines, hence, becoming the solid, customer-oriented Chevrolet distributor in South East Asia today.
TCCCI has made great strides in achieving this goal. In point of fact, Chevrolet Philippines has emerged as the leading brand for vehicle aftersales services in the Philippines for two years in a row (2011 and 2012) in the annual survey among all the major automobile brands in the country conducted by independent award giving body, JD Power Asia-Pacific.
Chevrolet Philippines distributes a full line of Chevrolet products from the Chevrolet Spark, Spin, Sonic, Cruze,
Malibu, Orlando, Camaro, Tahoe, Captiva, Suburban,
Colorado and Trailblazer.
As of September 2015, Chevrolet Philippines had 25 dealer partners in operation all over the country.
2012: Peugeot returns
The brand with the lion badge is back. Peugeot, Europe’s second-largest automotive marque, is officially available in the Philippines once again.
The French brand is now under the distributorship of Eurobrands Distributor Inc., a member of the Columbian Group of Companies.
The group is an established player in the auto distributorship business under the helm of its chair emeritus, Jose Ch. Alvarez.
Alvarez is no stranger to high-end European brands, having
also BMW under his stable, as well as the increasingly stylish Korean brand Kia.
2013: Berjaya comes to PH
Berjaya Auto Philippines (BAP) Inc. became the new distributor of Mazda in the Philippines on Jan. 1, 2013. The major shareholders of BAP are Bermaz Motor International Ltd., an indirect subsidiary of Berjaya Corp. Berhad, and Berjaya Philippines Inc.
As of June 30, 2014, there were 14 full service authorized Mazda dealership throughout the country.
2013: Volkswagen relaunched
Automobile Central Enterprise Inc. (ACEI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ayala Automotive Holdings Corp. (AAHC), the automotive arm of the Ayala Group of Companies, was formally appointed by the Volkswagen Group as the official importer and distributor of Volkswagen cars in the country in October 2012.
Under the leadership of its parent company, together with ACEI president and CEO John Philip Orbeta, formally relaunched the Volkswagen brand back to the Philippine market on Sept. 27, 2013.
2014: One Nissan inspires
Global auto giant Nissan Philippines Inc. is now actively boosting Philippine market presence towards the realization of One Nissan—that is, offering a consistent brand experience across all touch points, in every showroom and service center in the country.
NPI was formed when Universal Motors Corp. and Nissan
Motors Philippines were consolidated.
NPI is headed by president and managing director
Antonio Zara.
The Filipino executive has over 24 years of experience in the automotive industry, having held several positions in Thailand, South Korea, Japan and Indonesia, before finally coming back to grow the Nissan brand.
Nissan topped the JD Power 2014 Philippines Customer Service Index study with a score of 844 points, making it the highest in customer satisfaction with aftersales service among new vehicle owners in the country.
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