CAR WISH LIST FOR 2025
The Philippine car market is thriving and is becoming increasingly diverse in terms of car models, but somehow, looking out the window and seeing the same rotation of 20 cars can be quite dull.
We know that some of the cars available from some of our popular car brands can liven up the local car scene quite a bit. Knowing that numerous overseas markets enjoy the privilege of having these 10 highly innovative models, we are hoping that the product planners, marketing gurus and CEOs of the Philippine car distributors see fit to introduce these, and soon:
Toyota Sienna
The quintessential person hauler in the USA, the stylish Toyota Sienna boasts a Swiss Army Knife of family-friendly features, with features like kick-sensor power sliding doors, a cabin coolbox, and a built-in vacuum cleaner.
This minivan also seats 7-8 passengers depending on the configuration, cementing it as an ideal choice for families. The Sienna’s hybrid 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine (meaning no coding) gets about 15 km/l, making it a highly attractive alternative to competitors like the Kia Carnival and Toyota’s own Hiace.
Toyota Noah
Also seating 7 passengers is the Toyota Noah. Positioned below the Alphard in Toyota’s lineup, the Noah shares a number of extremely practical traits with the Alphard, including a hybrid system, dual power sliding doors, numerous high-tech safety features, and excellent fuel consumption.
The Noah, although completely boring, is a completely competent family friendly car with the means to take you (and your family) anywhere — and back. With prices starting at 2.6 million yen (P970,000), the Noah would make for an extremely practical addition to the Philippine market, especially with its generous fuel consumption figures of 13.4-14.2 km/l.
Toyota Corolla Wagon
A more practical wagon version of the beloved Toyota Corolla, this rendition with its slightly longer wheelbase makes 169 horsepower coming from a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine. It also seats five — however it offers 598 liters of trunk space with the seats up and 1,606 liters when the fold-flat seats are folded; over 100 liters more than its sedan variant.
This makes simple everyday tasks such as taking the kids to school and hauling luggage to the airport much more doable; if you want a handsome wagon alternative to a minivan, that is.
BYD Shark
BYD’s already expansive lineup in the Philippines would benefit greatly from the BYD Shark, a plug-in hybrid pickup truck with a 1.5 liter dual electric motor turbocharged engine that makes 435 hp and 650 Nm of torque, making it extremely capable both on and off the road.
With a range of up to 840 km, the BYD Shark could potentially serve as a highly attractive competitor to the omnipresent Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux – if priced properly.
Nissan Sakura
The Sakura is Nissan’s venture into the compact electric-vehicle market. It is also the most popular electric vehicle in Japan due to its city-friendly size, affordable price tag of 2.5 million JPY (930,000 PHP), charging speed of 8 hours from 0-100%, allowing the Sakura to run for 180km on a full charge, while still offering a number of essential safety features that make the Sakura such a desirable city cruiser.
Running costs are also reported to be under 5,000 JPY per month (1,872 PHP), making the Sakura an extremely economical pick for the busy streets of the Philippines, if Nissan does opt to sell it.
Honda Freed
The winner of Japan’s 2024-2025 car of the year award, the Honda Freed is one of the best cars to come out of Asia in recent years. The only problem: it’s only sold in Japan and Singapore, seemingly the only two markets Honda deems to be worthy of the hybrid MPV.
Seating 6-7 passengers, boasting features like dual power sliding doors, and prices starting at 2,508,000 JPY (P930,000), the Honda Freed would undoubtedly be an excellent addition to the Philippine market, particularly for families looking for practicality without an absurd price tag to match.
Toyota Crown
With a Lexus-like interior and design cues, the Toyota Crown is one of the most stylish and technologically advanced additions to the global Toyota lineup. Boasting practical city-related features such as Toyota’s safety sense system, with driver abnormal time response assists, lane change assist, lane departure alert, and radar cruise control.
The top variant of the Crown makes 340 horsepower and is priced at 6.7 million JPY (2.5 million Php), making it an excellent contender in the midrange market that provides a Lexus-esqe experience without having to pay a massive premium.
Xiaomi SU7
Xiaomi’s gadget arsenal now expands into the motoring world with the SU7, a handsome electric performance sedan with design elements from the likes of Porsche and McLaren, and the performance to back it up.
The SU7’s Ultra trim delivers a combined power output of 1,526 horsepower and accelerates from 0-100 km/h in 1.98 seconds, benchmarking it against Porsche’s own Taycan and Tesla’s Model S. The SU7’s base model (delivering 295hp and a range of 700 kilometers) starts at 215,900 in yuan in China or 1.7 million Php, which would make it a highly attractive EV contender for the Philippine market.
Honda Odyssey
The new hybrid Odyssey has tragically not seen a return to Philippine shores despite being a previous mainstay in the minivan market. A larger, slightly pricier alternative to the freed, the Odyssey brings an assortment of features that position it amongst the very best of family haulers on this list, with a fuel consumption of 19.9km/l, a godsend considering the recent consistent hikes in fuel prices.
It brings with it features such as a foldable center table, USB-C chargers galore, flat-folding seats, and four-way power seats for the second row. From a technological standpoint, the Odyssey comes with Honda’s new Sensing*1 safety and driver assist system, providing the driver with increased collision detection, auto high-beam headlights, and unintended acceleration mitigation.
Honda Jazz Hybrid
Compact cars being as big as they are in the Philippines gives Honda zero reason to not release the Honda Jazz hybrid. With an all-new version that was recently released, prices start at 1.7 million yen (or 630,000 Php), which is an absolutely bargain considering the array of features it comes with, including LED headlights and tail lights, parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, and a 122hp engine that achieves up to an impressive 550 miles on a full tank, making the perfect buy for the practical consumer.
Ford Mustang Mach-E
Already considered a modern icon by Ford, the Mustang Mach-E takes a celebrated name and branches it into the performance SUV category, competing with the likes of the Tesla Model Y Performance and the Audi Q4 E-Tron.
Retaining the performance figures that the Mustang name has come to be associated with, the Mach-E is capable of doing 0-60 in 3.4 seconds —- all while seating up to five people, allowing it to form a perfect two-car garage with the Mustang GT already available in the Philippines.
