i've got nothing against the author of the review, but Tessa Salazar's feature on the GU Patrol 3.0 A/T in the November 27, 2003 Inquirer is simply ridiculous and is astoundingly abysmal for a supposedly informed review and reviewer.
some snippets (taken verbatim):
"Handling was apt and much appreciated as soon as we negotiated the winding roads to Tagaytay. The pan hard, a lateral rod at the back of the vehicle, handles the sideward movement of the differential -- the reason for the good handling."
WHAAT??? jesus christ, it's a Panhard rod, not a "pan hard"! attributing "good handling" to the panhard rods is like saying BMWs handle well because of struts and nothing else. not necessarily true, and very misleading. kinda like a sales brochure eh?
"The engine is called ZD30DDTi with a max power of 155 horsepower over 3,600 revolutions per minute, a max torque of 354 Newton meters over 2,000 rpm.
We didn't feel the "pull" too much -- the transition from aceleration to turbo boost being not distinguishable. We were expecting the feel of an increase in torque. In this case, the pull was flat, from the start to the shiftpoint. We figured that either the turbo kicked in at a low rpm range (at perhaps 2,200), we couldn't notice it anymore."
i wonder what they're expecting from a turbodiesel if not a flat torque band...?? and i wonder at what rpm do they expect the turbo to spool up in a low-revving diesel? 4,000 rpm (haha)??? goodness, they acknowledged that the torque peak of the motor is at 2,000 rpm, why on earth can't they figure out that the turbo indeed "kicked in at a low rpm range"?
"We expected cat-like reflexes despite the body bulk because of the size of the engine and its turbo components. Maybe the 5-speed manual transmission would respond better."
hahahaaaa... this is insane! cat-like reflexes from a freaking 5,500-pound hardcore off-road SUV with 155 hp, 261 lb-ft, two rigid axles and a center of gravity right up there with a Boeing 747?? Land Cruisers have more power but have never been described as having "cat-like reflexes". maybe the Patrol would have cat-like reflexes if the cat being referred to is a century-old obese house cat...? hmmm... and funny, many have criticized the ZD30 for being a tad too small and lacking two cylinders for the Patrol.
and the clincher...
Anyway, the feel of this ride is that the entire differential is being dribbled.
well duuuuuuh, naturally, since the truck uses two rigid axles. hmm, i'd be very scared if the differentials of the Patrol i'm driving didn't move along with the wheels and axles.
have you watched one of their automotive columnists in auto focus? tv mekaniko yata yun where in they answer auto-related questions. i believe his from the inquirer..nakakatawa sya panoorin sobrang conscious sa camera..palaging nauutal at kala mo may kumikiliti sa pwit nya. hehehehe
Yan na nga ba sinasabi ko, mahilig sila magcompare ng rides from a sedan to a truck. Why don't they just maintain their opinions and write-ups on what they know best on sedans. And leave the SUV write up to mbt as the INQ's new columnist. I find their columns a bit off their lines when judging different types of vehicles.
Swerte ni Ms. Salazar, I did not catch her column or even the whole news paper that day.
OT: Pag pasyensyahan nyo na kung may wrong spelling, this wireless keyboard is driving me nuts!!! Some won't keys respond as soon as I type them.
ahehehe!!! kaya pala nagdududa ako sa mga reviews nila before... mya nabasa ako sa kanila na yun intake outake mods daw will not have any effect sa horsepower ng sasakyan and will just create more noise na namimisinterpret daw as power pero sa personal experience ko naman ang laki talaga ng difference saka why do dealers sell these high performance aftermarket parts anyway kung wala talagang silbi.. nakakatawa din ang review nila sa mga SUVs. palagi nila kinocompare kahit magkakaiba ng categories or functionality. they expect a truck to perform like a car... but i never seen a car pull a load like a truck.
Ewan ko ba sa mga diyaryong iyan. Nandyan naman si mbt para mag-review. Kumukuha pa ng kung sino sino. I don't even think those people like cars. They just treat it as a job.
When my brother's Sentra conquers Hi-Peak, then I'll expect the Patrol to ride like a car and have it's CAT-LIKE reflexes.
Mabuhay ka mbt. Thank God the motoring world has you.
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Sa tagal na nating magkasama dito sa Tsikot, malamang alam ko nang mas may talent ka kaysa diyan sa mga big-shot sa diyaryo na wala nang ginawa kundi kumain lang at mag-golf sa mga corporate events ng mga manufacturers.
AT SAWA NA KO SA MUKHA NI ARNEL DORIA! Pakisabi nga dun sa mataba na yun na hindi lang iisa ang empleyado ng Honda at hindi lang Honda ang gumagawa ng sasakyan sa Pilipinas! hahahaha.
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yep... also was able to read that review... my impression was that they were "trying hard" to promote the gas version of the Patrol GU since a very big majority of GUs being sold are the ZD30-powered ones...
i for one considered buying the gas version... what turned me off was the rear drum brakes (why da hell they did this i don't know) and lower torque compared to the diesel even it has much better hp... as we all know, torque is more important in mid/large SUVs rather than raw hp...
read that column too, yung gas version daw pang malacaņang, tapos yung diesel e pang councilors and mayors
yung mga articles naman sa mga motoring sections ng mga dailies natin puro kopya lang sa brochures ng mga manufacturers, tapos tatawagin nilang review!
kalokohan talaga... what's the point of making the diesel-powered Patrol a "second-class Patrol" relative to the gas-powered one? the author really doesn't understand the merits of a diesel engine huh? tingin ba niya sa diesel motor pang-masa at yung gaso e motor pang-elitista? harharhar
boybi,
mas mabuti na nga kung kopyahin nalang nila yung brochure word-for-word e, mas nakakabaliw kasi minsan pag maglagay pa sila ng subjective impression, like "cat-like" reflexes hehe
idiotic "review" of GU Patrol c/o Inquirer
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