Wow, it only took a day and I already have an alternative pair of cars I have in mind. Yes, I'm writing yet another blog post about what cars I would pick if I had a two car garage.
Don't worry, I'm still following the rules I set yesterday. The cars should still be available here through a local dealer, they should be practical, and they should not be the same brands. So here we go.
Suzuki Ertiga GL AT - Yup. I'm switching this alternative edition to something more practical. As of writing this Ertiga variant costs less than PhP900,000.00 and it can seat maybe seven or so adults, depending on their height. Powered by a 1.5L engine it may not have as much power and torque as the BR-V I chose yesterday, but with how I drive I don't think that will be too much of an issue.
Honda Jazz 1.5 V CVT - My practical dream car. This one also costs less than PhP920,000.00 according to their website as of writing. I've always wanted to own a Honda Jazz because of the fact that the seat configuration is just so damn practical and amazing. Folding the seats the right way can allow you to still have one passenger and maybe a load of cargo.
These two cars are the cheaper, and possibly more practical, alternative to yesterday's choices. Between the Ertiga and the BR-V you have nearly the same amount of seating and cargo capacity, with the latter only having higher ground clearance and better engine power and torque figures for roughly over PhP100,000.00 more.
As for the Jazz and the Jimny, the Jazz wins in cargo and seating capacity. The Jimny wins if I decide to go off-roading. Both are cars I want.
So why don't I just pick the Jazz and the Jimny for my two car garage? Why do I keep picking a 7-seater as one of the cars?
Practicality. While there are only three of us, I still consider having extra seating a key since there will be times we will be going out with my parents, or possibly go out with my wife's mom. Plus that huge cargo space with the rear-most seats folded will allow us more space to pack stuff should we decide to go on a road trip.
Anyway here are some other two car combinations in case you were wondering. I'd prefer all of them to have automatic transmission if possible.
- Honda Jazz and Suzuki Jimny. Two of the cars I've always wanted. Sacrifices cargo and people carrying capacity.
- Heavily retro-modded classic Beetle and a BMW E30 Touring. Two German cars. Two cars I've also always wanted to own, or in the E30's case, always wanted to own since 2014.
- Subaru Levorg 2.0GT-S EyeSight and Jeep Renegade. Too expensive, I have no idea how much it costs to maintain both, I have no idea how much they will both re-sell. Too uncommon that they will both stick out on the roads when I'd rather blend in.
- Toyota Innova Diesel and Subaru WRX. The Innova was too expensive to be the main choice but is still very practical. The WRX is just a practical sports car, not that I can unleash the beast except if I go on track days.
And those are some other car combinations I'd want for a two-car garage. Sure I can mix and match any of them but just to write down the reasons why I chose to pair them this way or that is a whole other post.
Out.
It's that time of the year again where I start daydreaming about what cars I'd like to own here in the Philippines.
As usual my categories for the two cars I'd love to own should be:
- The car should be legally sold here. Meaning you have to buy it from a legit dealer here.
- Practicality. I could say I'd love two own a Ferrari and a Lamborghini here, but both would be highly impractical. Bad roads, not enough passenger seating, cost of gas, cost of maintenance, size, etc also plays a factor.
- The two cars can't be the same brand. Why? I read a few months ago one of the ideas to help ease traffic in Metro Manila would be to ban specific car brands during a specific day of the week. I don't think this will happen but you never know in this country.
And that's it I guess. Three things I considered. Surprisingly I chose two rides that cost a little over PhP 1 million. So without further ado, here are the two cars I'd love to have for my two car garage 2020 edition.
Honda BR-V 1.5 S CVT. Looks good, can seat seven (if needed, I'm guessing it can seat five comfortably), decent space for cargo if you flip the rear-most seats. This may be the one of the most expensive choices among what I consider it's peers (namely other 1.5L MPVs like the Suzuki Ertiga, Toyota Avanza, Toyota Rush, Honda Mobilio, and the Mitsubishi Expander) but the BR-V also has the best power and torque output among them. Plus the ground clearance is also one of the highest. I don't have to worry about overtaking in the highway with the BR-V nor do I have to worry if it can climb inclines if it is fully loaded. Plus it has decent clearance that you don't have to worry about accidentally scraping the bottom of the car in deep potholes.
You may be wondering why I didn't choose the Suzuki Ertiga GL AT as the first car. The Ertiga is actually my "If I could only have one car for the Philippines what would it be" choice. This post isn't about owning one car, it's about owning two. So the reason why I'm not picking the Ertiga now is because I'm picking this Suzuki as my second car.
Suzuki Jimny GLX (Monotone) AT. A three-door, smallish true four-wheel drive vehicle. This would be the back-up, color coding car. Or if my wife learns how to drive, this will be my car and she can use the BR-V. Yes, it's small. Yes, it's cramped. Yes, it doesn't seem very practical. But for a city driving, occasional off-roading vehicle? Yes please.
Finally, what colors would I want both cars? Simple, white or silver. Reason being that they don't get as hot as dark colored cars if they stay long under the sun. Plus they hopefully will be easier to spot both in the morning or in the evening.
Anyway that's it. Two practical cars I would love to have in my garage. I didn't choose the Innova since it's really pretty expensive, and the latest model is massive in size. With the traffic and tight parking spaces you'd need smaller rides. Plus both the BR-V and the Jimny have good safety features.
Makataya nga sa lotto.
Out.
I've been dreaming up of things I would do to my theoretical dream car, any classic Volkswagen Beetle (meaning either regular Beetle or the Super Beetle). Yes I've been daydreaming a lot about it, but honestly there's an alternative vehicle I could do my theory crafting on -- my dad's Suzuki Samurai.
It's old, rusted, and needs work done. It could also be something I could work on with my dad instead of a classic Beetle. So what's the difference, why don't I focus on that?
They both have just two doors. The rear seats are both a bit tight. I guess I could do my research on the Samurai. I've seen some DIY things to do on it from youtube.
My biggest concerns with the Samurai would be stability and ride quality.
I don't know if it's available in the internet but during the Samurai's run there was an article in a magazine about it failing the moose test. Basically that means it tipped over when doing relatively high speed slaloms. Of course you could counter this with the following arguments: a) the Samurai wasn't build for speed, and b) if you drive carefully enough it won't happen.
If I do decide to take the Samurai on long trips how safe would it be when we get to the highway? I won't be surprised if we could hit maybe 70 kph to 80 kph since my dad told me it was capable of going at that speed when he brought it to Lucena from here in Manila.
The ride quality is my second concern because unlike the Beetle, the Samurai is a legit off-roader with high ground clearance. I was able to ride in it a few times and sitting in the front is okay, it's sitting at the rear that's concerning. It is a bumpy ride. I don't know if there are ways to improve ride quality.
To be honest I've also been talking to my dad about what we can do to the Samurai. We haven't done anything yet since we don't really have too much funds to buy the mods I want and we're not really sure what the plans are for the Samurai. We might end up selling it or something.
Out.
