Rides

The rainy season is back in full force here in Manila. And once again seeing all the flash floods and bad roads it got me thinking again about modes of transporation.

Used to be I had eyes on the Honda Jazz or Toyota Yaris as a perfect car for Manila. But then the rains came and I realized that while those two cars would be good city cars which you can take on out-of-town excursions it still wouldn't do that well once the rains came coming down. Not that I pass by any flooded roads on the way home or to work, thank God. But still. You never know when the route you pass by gets flooded.

So, while I still wouldn't mind owning a Honda Jazz or Toyota Yaris (in that order, of course - the Jazz is still more practical in my eyes) I have a new vehicle which I would think would be the best option for Metro Manila.

The Toyota Avanza. Top of the line. Sure its' base model is being sold as a replacement to the FX but think about it. It's pretty high off the ground, perfect for flash flooded areas. It has a modern 1.5L engine. Some people may say having a 1.5L engine on a vehicle of that size makes it underpowered, but come on. With the advances in today's technology that 1.5L engine can do the job. Besides where do you plan on running your Avanza at over 120kph consistently here in the Philippines? Not even in the expressways can you do that. You'd be suicidal (or most likely an idiot) to run your car that fast in the city streets, be it C5 or some other long stretch of road.

Come to think of it there are a lot of idiots on the roads driving and cutting people off like they were racing for Ferrari in the Formula 1 championships. Twits. But I digress.

Yes, I've realized owning the humble Avanza would be perfect for Manila. Good size and space, enough ride height to tackle floods and not have the bottom scrape the roads on really bad roads. Plus you can carry more gear on road trips.

Out.