"OH LORD"
Absolutely, the average Filipino when asked which possessions he needs to have in his entire lifetime would provide two answers: his own house, and his own car. Of course such wishes, particularly for a car, will be tempered by the income that he gets, and the other needs to be spent on for his family. Hence, some of them will not even think of the most audacious and most incredulous automobiles to purchase, and might settle for any brand new, economy car. Heck, probably, he even would get by with just repossessed secondhands. But still the Filipino appreciates and gets excited about the newest and poshest cars, to come out from the delearships. If only the average Filipino can come to Michigan, be in awe of the jawdropping, unbelievable, next generation of automobiles, while he attends the Mother of all Carshows – the North American International Autoshow at the Cobo Hall, at Downtown, Detroit.
- The whole Cobo Center which used to be the arena for the Detroit Pistons has been a veritable red carpet to the assembly of stars, made up, of course by cars, trucks and vans. From Asia – Toyota, Honda, Kia, Mazda, Hyundai. From Europe – Volkswagen, Mercedes Benz, Mini Cooper, Audi, Volvo. From the US – Ford, Chevrolet, Chrysler, General Motors. From up and coming companies like Tesla and GEM to real deal manufacturers like Porsche and Ferrari. It is every Filipino boy’s fantasy. It is every Filipina’s dream gift from her future mate.
- Every square inch of the hall is a chance to ogle and peek in the future of automobiles. To many of the Filipinos who have no access to the leaps on comfort and styling in the new editions of vehicles, changes within the interiors of automobile are exciting to watch. There are monitors that give the drivers accurate satellite information regarding position anywhere in the United States. This helps the drivers meander their way to their destination through the interstate expressways and neighborhood streets. There is no excuse of getting lost here in the US. (But in the Philippines, our own tricycle drivers that ply within villages and barangays will guide lost drivers, to where the exact place is. That’s our own tracking device!)
- Backseat passengers will not just settle with movie videos or television right behind the front seats. They will be able to fiddle their computers and ipads as they connect to plugs that energize such gizmos. Some passenger cars even offer tables so that users will be able to employ such consoles.
- However aside from the use of mapping device and the internet, there is one sure thing about many of these cars that showed up at the autoshow. Manufacturers have tried to be more efficient with the utilization of petroleum. Others have increased mileage with the use of gasoline and diesel or have used other sources of energy such as electricity. It is the way of the future. Electric car charging stations will be as common as gasoline stations. Such change will significantly lower pollution, and decrease dependency on petroleum which has become less affordable through the years.
- Electric cars and Hybrid cars have rolled out from Tesla with its Roadster. Other industry leaders have also produced such viable vehicles for the future like the Nissan Leaf, Toyota Prius, and Volkwagen Golf E-Motion. Luxury brand Mercedes Benz has joined the bandwagon with its own E-Cell.
- The change is a function of need more than want – increasing transportation demand and depleting fossil fuel or crude oil resource. In this car exhibit, kudos to them, the few and elite car engineers and designers are paving the way for such transition to the next generation of cars for everyone – including the average Filipino.
let's go pinas!! 