May the Horse be with you: 14-plus cars to look forward to

If any year is slated to be a good one for the automotive industry, it should be this one tied to an animal inevitably associated with the automobile: the Year of the Horse. The horse symbolizes movement and power, as well as a certain nobility, all boding well for car companies.

 

Here are 14 new horses that you can expect to see in 2014:

 

Small horses, tall horses

Launched on the eve of the New Year is the Ford Ecosport. Appropriately for a company best identified with replacing the animal itself with the horseless carriage, Ford is entering an entirely new category. Or at least rejuvenating one. The Toyota RAV4 invented the subcompact crossover based on a passenger car platform, before it grew in girth and moved upmarket. Now the Ecosport is set to combine a small footprint with tall ride height and substantial wading capability—a useful combination in Metro Manila.

 

More along the lines of conventional compact goodness is the upcoming fourth-generation Honda City. It promises to continue the line of good-to-drive and efficient sedans. Likewise its hatchback sibling, the Jazz. The Jazz will receive a healthy dose of style and versatility versus the sedan.

 

On the other end of the scale is Chevrolet’s full-size Tahoe SUV. With all the brawn and interior room expected of the twin to the Suburban, the Tahoe might make it to your favorite senator’s garage soon. A 5.7-liter V8 mated to a six-speed automatic provides plenty of horsepower. Officially, the Tahoe is just being considered for the Philippine market, but according to Chevrolet Philippines, indications are good that it will make it sooner or later.

 

Squeaky power

Toyota is set to re-enter the A-segment market with the Wigo hatchback. With a  1-liter, three-cylinder engine, it will be one of the smallest-output Toyotas in recent memory, but surely enough for the Wigo’s diminutive frame.

 

Packing more than adequate power will be thoroughbreds like the Porsche 911 Turbo S, with 560 “horses” from its six-cylinder boxer engine. The mission to bring in the Corvette Stingray, should Chevrolet choose to accept it, will give the Europeans reason for pause as the new Corvette ratchets up its performance credentials with a smaller price tag, to boot.

 

One sedan to watch out for is the upcoming Rolls Royce Wraith coupe. Boasting of a 624-hp  turbocharged V12, the big bank on wheels can go like a horse out of hell.

 

 

 

Practically speaking

Mazda will launch the latest version of the car that put it back on the map, the 3 C-segment sedan. With a newfound style and the latest SkyActiv engine technology under its skin (hopefully with the hybrid-like i-Eloop energy-recapture system), the 3 will again be hovering near the top of the compact class.

 

With the D-Max selling like horse cakes, Isuzu is also betting that the Alterra SUV will follow in the success of its long-lost twin model, the Trailblazer. Recently reintroduced to the press is the VW Jetta, with a 2-liter turbo diesel engine. A 1.2-liter gasoline turbo version is expected in the first month of the Year of the Horse. Mated to a manual transmission, the Jetta promises fuel efficiency to match its solid roadholding dynamics. And just in time for their official showroom launch, VW has dropped the price of the Jetta to a sweet P1.09 million and the smaller Polo sedan to P888,000.

 

Veering a little from the four-dour practicality of the 3 Series, the BMW 4 Series add a healthy kick of style to the formula. Looking lower and wider, the coupe should also carry the willingness of the 3 to follow its master’s directions

Charging horses

Subaru will unleash the Impreza WRX STI this year, just to make sure you forget all notions that it had already gone to the glue factory. The WRX STI will feature the latest raucous version of the four-cylinder turbocharged boxer engine, hopefully in time for the Manila International Auto Show on April 3.

 

And of course, we must count the ponycar herself, the Ford Mustang. With the new styling that nearly drops all hints of retro design, the new Mustang will entice a new group of fans to saddle up. It may carry a (whinny!) four-cylinder option, but the available V8 should be able to stir up all the galloping force that the esteemed car deserves.

 

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all!