⌛ Expats I need some advice/ Transportation

Steve = as usual, good advice on this forum. I was in the same situation when I moved to Baybay, Leyte, early July. Having visited Dumaguete 3 times and planning to move to the area in the foreseeable future, I have to agree that you would be well served to make any decision once you are there and get a lay of the land.

As for me, after much research online and talking to about 15 Mitsubishi owners (only one an expat), I decided to buy a new 4X2 Strada GLX about three weeks ago. There are no Toyota dealers on the entire island province of Leyte but two, associated Mitsubishi dealers - Tacloban and Ormoc. There are a lot of stradas on the island, many more than 10 years old and they are running great for the most part. Superb low-end torque from the small diesel. To date we love it and have made many trips to Tacloban and Ormoc and now have over 1,700 km's on the vehicle. The Mitsubishi dealer in Dumaguete is part of Fast Autoworld of Cebu - same group that I bought mine from. If they are as good as the bunch in Tacloban and Ormoc, you'll enjoy the experience. By the way, the Strada is the most popular pickup in the Philippines, which surprised me since the Hilux is one heck of a good truck. (Index of /) Good luck.

Mike Waters Baybay, Leyte hopefully soon to Dgte. area

 

Thank you Mike

Thank you guys for giving me some advice on the Hilux and the Strada. One big concern I had if I bought the Hilux and was living in Dumageute, I would have a big problem if i needed to get it serviced and there are no Toyota dealers in Dumaguete.

The good thing about buying the Strada is that I can get my service needs on the truck in Dumaguete. They both sound like great trucks to own and have not heard of any complaints on any of them. I heard one owner that owns a Hilux express an interest to buy the new Strada modal. I guess every truck has its cool features.

It was nice to hear Mike say that there are some Strada trucks still on the road after 10 years. Thats what I wanted to hear.

My goal is to get a decent quality pick up truck that would last a long time. I also wanted to get something that has a good reputation with the locals cause I'm sure you know how people talk in town about everyone.

I'm still trying to decide which one, but I'm kinda leaning on the Strada cause if something minor or major goes wrong, I can go to the local Dumaguete dealership. Either way, it will be a 4 door pickup. I was looking to get a V6 but guess a 4 cylinder will be good enough.

 

Steve - If I were buying used, I would have leaned hard toward the Toyota - their reputation for long-term reliability and availability of parts and decent mechanics is known throughout the world. However, the Strada has come a long way over the last 5-6 years, especially the last 2-3 years. I fully expect that after 10 years, my Strada will be just as good as the Hilux, and with many people able to fix them and excellent parts availability. If I lived another 25 years (which is a stretch since I'm 60), I will only live in the provinces of Leyte, Negros or Cebu. I don't see Mitsubishi going away in that time frame.

As for 6 vs. 4 cylinders. I routinely cruise at 80-100 km/hr when possible on the highway which includes much slowing down for assorted human/combustible/animal/fowl traffic on my trips to Ormoc (45km) and Tacloban (110km). I have averaged 12.8 km per litre combined highway/city so far. This is right in the wheelhouse of what Mitsubishi and owners say that they experience. Do an online conversion from km/litre to miles/gallon and you'll see that these little diesels do very well indeed. Have to add that the torque is exceptional, therefore passing power is comparable to a 3+ litre gas engine. I see absolutely NO need for the diesel 6. Also have to add that just for grins on a good stretch of road with no traffic - I quickly popped it to 140 km/hr and it had a LOT left - pretty impressive for a 2.5 litre diesel in a full-size truck! OK, I'll stop my sales pitch now. You'll be equally well served with either the Hilux or Strada - I just decided to save the P400,000. after my due diligence.

Mike Waters Baybay, Leyte hopefully soon in Dumaguete area

 

Dear Mike,

Thank you again for responding. I looked up your modal truck the Strada 4X2 GLX, I see that they are selling the new one for little under 1 million pesos. I'm assuming that you got a stick shift. As for me, I will need an automatic and will get a 4x4. The reason I would choose a 4x4 is because way back I heard that Dumageute city had a nasty flood cause of clogged drains. I might also want to venture out in some remote places where a 4x4 might be needed. Thank God I don't have to deal with snow and a cold place to live anymore when I move there. I'm 41 and my days are counting also. As soon as I get my social security disability pension I'm heading your way. I first wanted to retire in angeles city were the party is never over. I keep hearing that long time expat foreignors are getting killed or getting set up by the police in Angeles city. I hear a lot of other bad things in AC. My wife is from Dumageute and I hear its very peaceful there. I was there 13 years ago and it looked like a good place to retire and count my days. The plus side is having her family there to protect my interests. I will check things out first before I jump into a vehicle. I guess I will have to play lets make a deal in order to get a good price with a filipino dealer. My wife tells me that it's a luxery to own your own vehicle anywhere in the Philippines. What made you decide to stay in Leyte Mike? If you want to chat then my yahoo id is steveusa2007