Enter the Panda

DRIVER’S side profile of the Panda

Talk about chutzpah! In the Year of the fire-breathing Dragon, a Chinese car manufacturer is entering the fiercely competitive mini-compact market with, of all things, a Panda.

But don’t underestimate the Zheijung Geely Holding Group Co. whose International Corp. granted Autochina Inc. last April the exclusive distributorship of Geely automobiles in the Philippines. Geely, one of China’s top ten carmakers, has global ambitions and deep pockets: in 2010 it acquired Volvo, the Swedish premium auto manufacturer, from Ford Motor Co. lock, stock and barrel.

Geely International Corp., which is tasked with the mission to “Let Geely cars go all over the world” claims to sell some 100,000 cars globally every year via 56 overseas distributors. Geely has not succeeded so far in its efforts to sell cars in Western Europe and North America, so it is focusing on emerging markets like South America, Africa and Asia.

Starting small

THE FRONT of the Geely LC resembles the Panda’s head, round and plump.

Autochina Inc., Geely’s distributor in the PH, is starting small with only one dealership called Geely North EDSA in Balintawak, Quezon City.  But it has two big names on its board of directors: Felix R. Ang, president of CATS Motors, the distributor of Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep, is vice chairman while CATS Motors chair Gregorio T. Yu is a director.

At present, Geely North EDSA has only two offerings: the LC 1.3 liter popularly known as the Geely Panda and the Emgrand EC7 sedan. With the Panda, Geely is targeting first-time new car buyers and corporate fleet accounts.

The Panda comes in two versions: the standard GB model, which has no airbag, no ABS, no EBD, 14-inch steel rims with hub caps, no pretensioner on the front seatbelts, and no CD player, MP3 or USB. The deluxe GL model has dual airbags, ABS with EBD, 14-inch alloy wheels, pretensioners on the front seatbelts and CD player, MP3 and USB.

5-speed MT

Both models have a 5-speed manual transmission, air conditioner, AM/ FM radio with four channel speakers, optitron instrument cluster, front and rear fog lamps, third brake lamp, remote control central locking with anti-theft system, energy-absorbing steering column, angle adjustable steering wheel, front headlamp with self-leveling device, rear wiper, roof antenna, front and rear ELR seatbelts, rack and pinion steering with power assist, power side view mirrors, power windows, side impact door beams, rear door child safety lock and fabric seats with the back seat split-folding 60/40.

EVEN the radio and aircon controls are housed in round

The engine in both models is a 1.3-liter DOHC 16-valve gasoline powerplant producing 85 hp @ 6000 rpm and 110 Nm @ 5200 rpm max torque. Brakes are discs up front and rear drums with vacuum booster and the suspension system consists of MacPherson struts in front and rear hybrid link. Top speed is touted to be 155 kph, but when you exceed 120 kph an alarm starts sounding.

Naturally, the GL costs more at P448,000 than the GB, which is sold for P398,000—a P50,000 price difference for safety features, alloy wheels and a CD player, MP3 and USB connectivity. But externally, both models look exactly the same except for the alloy wheels in the GL model.

Mascot

Geely let it be known immediately that the LC’s design concept was inspired by the panda, China’s cute, cuddly national mascot as well as the 2010 Beijing Olympics’ Fuwa. The front of the car resembles the panda’s head in round, plump and smooth outline with the headlights as the eyes, the side view mirrors as the ears and the big grille as the panda’s wide open mouth. At the rear, the white body with black-lined rear window resembles the panda’s back, the foldable rear window wiper is like the tail and the taillights like the palms of the panda’s paws.  Inside, the two-tone black and cream color scheme calls to mind the panda’s body.

ALL-GLASS rear window opens wide. The tail lights resemble a panda’s palm.

The Panda delivered to me for a weekend test drive was the basic-spec GB model. At first I had qualms about driving a car with no airbags, ABS and EBD until I remembered that way back when airbags were found only in luxury cars, us peasants driving budget tin cans managed to survive with all our limbs intact.

THE TWO-TONE cream and black interior evokes the panda’s body color.

So I took the Panda up to the Skyway, where its 1.3-liter, 85-hp engine performed valiantly. At 100 kph, the Panda did not shimmy or shake but when I went past 120 kph, the speed-governing alarm protested. The structure of the Panda is reasonably solid for a car this size and price, with no audible rattling and some expected amount of discomfort driving over potholes.

14 seconds

Geely claims that it takes 14 seconds for the Panda to reach 100 kph from standstill and I believe them, except when the car is struggling uphill.  Then, it takes a much longer time to accelerate. Cabin space may be a bit tight for five adults even if they are the typically small Asian size.  Four occupants would be a more comfy fit. And if you want to ask about luggage space in the back, better not.

Bottom line, at P398,000, the Geely Panda GB is the lowest-priced mini-compact car in the market. It is cute and suitable for inner-city transportation if you’re not worried about the absence of airbags and if you drive carefully all the time.