1203 Toyota Avanza and Toyota Veloz

Autodeal's already done an excellent comparison between these two vehicles. However there's something else I'm curious between these two vehicles.

The Toyota Veloz is listed under SUVs, while the Avanza is under MPVs. As far as I know they're exactly the same vehicle with one being more premium than the other. Here's an Autodeal comparison between the top-of-the-line Avanza and the entry level Veloz. The price difference is around PhP34,000.00. Top-of-the-line Avanza versus the top-of-the-line Veloz's price difference is PhP166,000.00.

I've always thought a 5-to-7 seater would be an ideal second car. The reason for this was having a bigger car that can carry either more cargo or more people. If you think about it though, maxing out the people in an Avanza or a Veloz would greatly reduce the cargo capacity.

So the solution for this is getting a roof rack and registering the vehicle for top loading. The Veloz already has roof rails, so all you need to do is get whatever cargo solutions you want, be it a roof basket, a cargo box, or both to use as needed. For the Avanza you would definitely need to get a roof rack and the cargo solution you want.

What I'm trying to say is that I'd still get an Avanza and whatever savings I have would be enough padding to get a roof rack system and whatever cargo solutions I'd want. Sure the Veloz might feel more premium and I won't need the roof rack system, but I think I'd rather get the relatively more affordable Avanza so I don't spend as much.

Out.

1202 - December

It's the last month of the year. I'm still somewhat surprised how fast time goes.

Plenty of things have happened this year, and to be honest I will say most of them have been positive moments. Or the good things more than outweigh the bad things.

I guess this is part of my continuing growth as a person, I'm trying to be more of a "glass-half-full" type of person. Still a realist, but trying to see the bright side of life. Like that Monty Python song in Life of Brian.

Out.

1201 Cars

Lately I've been watching a good share of car reviews. These reviews are for cars that are sold locally here in the Philippines. I have to be honest, there are a lot of cars that are catching my attention for different reasons.

I'm talking about the EVs and hybrids. I've blogged about these recently because the preventive maintenance service costs and charging costs for hybrids seem way cheaper than what you would spend on a traditional internal combustion engine vehicle, Wigo included. I saw a video on youtube about how much a couple spent for their BYD Seagull's annual PMS and it was definitely less than PhP7000.00. Add to that the relatively cheaper costs of using EV chargers and you can see why I'm interested in them. Same with hybrids and plug-in hybrids. They both might be a bit more expensive then full EVs but you will definitely feel the savings one way or another. The biggest issue with these types of vehicles is how much the replacement battery will be when the time comes.

And speaking of hybrids, I'm really, really curious about the Toyota Zenix Hybrid and the BYD eMax 9 DM-i Premium. They both look like really practical hybrids, although they also both seem a bit too massive for mall parking. Specially the eMax 9. There's also the MG 3 Hybrid+ and the Toyota Ativ on the opposite side of the spectrum. Smaller city cars that are also hybrids.

I would really love to be able to try and test drive all these cars. We'll see.

Out.

1200 Jogging Update

A few weeks ago I switched my increased my interval jogging from 3:1 to 4:1. Honestly I don't know why I chose to do this, I guess I was looking for something to break the "monotony" of my workout.

It has been a challenge. At first I was wondering why my pace was almost the same as my 3:1 intervals, and I realized it could probably be due to many things. The theory I feel is most plausible is that my body is more tired during the four minutes of jogging that when I do my one minute walk I'm walking slower than my walking pace during my 3:1 intervals.

The past two jogs I've done I've been a bit mindful of my pace and so far I've been averaging less than 8 minutes per kilometer. I've also noticed in my Tozo S3 smart watch and Tozo Health app that my heart range does reach the red zone (max heart rate zone) during my recent jogs. I'm hoping this is good because I'm pushing myself a bit more and my body and heart are adjusting so that eventually I'll be spending more time in in the aerobic zone than the anaerobic and max zones.

For now I'll keep aiming for being consistent in doing at the minimum three three-lap jogs a week. And one day of this kettlebell workout a friend of mine sent.

Consistency.

Out.

1199 Powering Through

It's been a relatively rocky few weeks for me. I'm just thankful I'm able to power through these things that are happening to me.

I'm allowing myself to feel bad about myself a bit but at the same time I'm telling myself enough is enough and just go on. There's nothing else to do but keep moving forward.

Out.