MIAS 2023: 15 brands will participate at this year’s auto show

Everyone wants to make a big splash at MIAS from April 13 to 16 2023

Last year marked the return of auto shows in the Philippines since the pandemic when the Manila International Auto Show opened on April 8. Actually, we had two shows last year with the second one being the CAMPI-led Philippine International Motor Show (PIMS) just a few months after.

Needless to say, it was refreshing to enter the World Trade Center Manila again for a major motor show since 2020, and that will continue this year when MIAS opens on April 13. Like 2022, the 2023 edition will be exciting, but this year it will only be MIAS.

So what can showgoers expect?

MIAS 2023 will be big and Petron will be joining as co-presenter of the show as well as the MIAS Custom and Classic Car Competition. As for the industry side, there will be a total of 15 brands all in all, along with more truck brands at the front lot of the World Trade Center Manila. This is up from the 12 brands that we knew participated in last year’s show.

There is an interesting statistic though: of the 12 automobile brands that participated in 2022, 6 brands were from China. This year will have 15 brands, with 9 from China. This will mark the first time that Chinese auto brands will command a majority of the booths compared to other brands from other countries, showing the potential of vehicles with an attractive value-for-money proposition in our market.

Actually if you’re looking for a great deal, then MIAS is the event to visit as BPI will be the exclusive auto loans presenter at the show. That means after you visit the vast test drive area from the many participating brands to try out your new car, you can drop by the BPI booth for some special deals.

Peugeot is expected to have a strong showing especially since Astara (the distributor) is working to boost the brand in our market. It also helps that they have the advantage of a manufacturing facility in SE Asia to get units from at better prices for customers. As to what they will launch, we have yet to find out. What we do know is that Peugeot is likely launching something with a 2.0-liter gasoline engine.

The executives of Astara will also be wearing a second hat because their other brand GAC is just a few booths away. If 2022 was any indication, a lot of people will be over at GAC because they really are stepping up their designs; we only need to look at the GS8 and Empow to realize why.

Ford will have their usual spot on the east wall of WTC. They will have the second biggest booth at the show, and will undoubtedly be displaying the Ranger and Everest there. Given that Ford likes to use MIAS as a major launchpad, we may even see a significant debut there. There is an outside chance the new generation Territory will debut, but we’ll wager that it may be the Bronco… that is if demand in the U.S. has already settled down.

Front and center when you enter the auto show from the east side will be Changan. Just like in 2022, Changan eager to make a big impression again, and judging by how their cars and crossovers look and feel, the group led by Fe Agudo is ready for the challenge. We may even see some electrification from them, but we’ll have to wait and see.

The biggest booth at MIAS will be none other than Nissan. They are definitely going big at the show just like last year and will be very visible the moment you enter from the west door of the building. We expect the usual models from Nissan, though we expect the newly launched Terra Sport there. Maybe the Z could also appear? We’ll have to do some digging to find out, but we’re not too sure Nissan’s all-new sports car will be there.

The west wall of MIAS will have MG which is under TCCCI. We expect MG brand to have their current lineup on display with the MG GT, HS, ZS, and so on and so forth.

Mitsubishi will likely be supporting their dealers with a large display area. Expect to have many of Mitsubishi’s models to be on display such as the newly launched Xpander Cross, the Xpander, as well as the latest variants of the Strada, Montero Sport (probably Ralliart Editions) and possibly even the Dendo House with the Outlander plug in hybrid.

Subaru will take on a big space at the far wall of WTC as before. This location gives them perfect access to the back lot of the facility for the Russ Swift stunt show on show days; a MIAS tradition. We expect to see the full Subaru lineup on display. What is likely is that they will launch an updated version of the Outback and the Evoltis. The buzz is that the Crosstrek (the new XV) was planned for the show, but there were some delays.

Next up is another big booth, and this time it’s Hyundai. They’ve got a lot to show this year, and the new company is eager to get going. Expect the full lineup, including the electric Ioniq 5 to be on display.

Geely also wants to make its presence felt at MIAS with a fairly large booth. Over the last few years, Geely has really made its presence felt, and MIAS will be key for them. We will likely see the entire lineup on display, but they may have something new in store. What we expect is the new Manjaro, but we may just be hoping.

Chery will also have a big presence at MIAS, and if last year was an indication then 2023 will be interesting. Chery has already revitalized their lineup with new models that are loaded with lots of features for the price. If we were to guess, we may see the updated Tiggo 7 Pro or even the all-new Tiggo 5X.

Right beside Chery will be UAAGI’s very successful Foton brand. They’ve invested heavily in Foton, and it has gained quite a bit of traction in the commercial market. Actually, there will be two Foton booths: one inside, and the other outside for the much larger machinery.

Interestingly there will be another Chery brand, but it’s called Jetour. We're still gathering information on who the actual distributor will be, but needless to say we will be keeping an eye on how this brand will do here because the designs certainly have a lot of promise. We hope they launch the Jetour Traveller; a model that certainly has some inspiration from some very famous 4x4 SUVs.

Here’s where it gets interesting: BYD will return to MIAS after quite a few years of being rather quiet in our market. There is a twist though: BYD might be present as national sales company that is part of the BYD group. If that is indeed the case, then they will be stronger than ever and we should see it with the model lineup moving forward.

Last -but definitely not least- is Great Wall. They are looking to make a great impression at the corner of WTC. The brand isn’t new to our market, but the group handling GW will be new and will have some key people that are very familiar to us. All indicators point to the fact that they want to go big, and we won't have to wait too long to find out more.

MIAS 2023 is shaping up to be a very interesting one. Expect to see a lot of new model launches, special offers, test drives of all the new cars, classic and tuner cars on display, as well as other attractions like the Russ Swift stunt show which will be part of the Subaru display

See you there in April!