Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. opened year 2009 with the arrival of its highly anticipated model, the All-New Honda City, a press release from Honda, whose cars are displayed at its showroom at the national highway, Talisay City, Negros Occidental, said.

Following the recent success of the new Jazz, the introduction of the third generation City reinforces its claim in the passenger car segment.  It presents cutting-edge design and technologies that will set new standards in it class.  Bearing refined and class-leading features that are once reserved for luxury vehicles, the City neatly merges modernism with practicality for an ultimate driving pleasure.  It simply changes the rules on how subcompacts should be like, the press release said.

The car model also ascertains sleek and powerful stance from any angle.  It features streamlined grille, harmonized with sharp headlights, smoother contours with rooflines that finish off to a higher rear deck and a 15” tire size to enhance its over-all sporty design. 

It also retains its compact form, despite the increase in interior space, to maintain its maneuverability. The City also radiates a refreshing atmosphere realized with careful selection of design and materials, the press release said.

Honda also takes the liberty to compliment the City’s relaxing air with premium sound quality. It comes with an advanced audio system that is compatible with iPod and other MP3 players via USB and AUX ports.  Using four high-powered 45 watt speakers, digitally crisp and clear sound quality is achieved.  

The entry of the third generation City completes Honda’s all i-VTEC line-up.  Sharing the same powerplant as the Jazz, the City is equipped with an i-VTEC engine technology that delivers maximum power output of 120 ps at 6600 rpm and 100 ps at 6000 rpm for 1.5 liter and 1.3 liter variants, respectively, the press release said.

The i-VTEC engine intelligently delivers powerful and torquey yet fuel efficient driving performance by switching valve timing during start-up and acceleration, then delays intake valve closure timing during cruising and other low-load conditions. 

To further enhance fuel efficiency, it comes with a class-leading 5-speed automatic transmission to reduce engine revolution and stress.  Delightful and easy tracking of one’s fuel consumption is now made possible with the fuel economy and range indicators available in the liquid crystal display of the instrument panel, the press release said. 

The new City is the only one in its class to be equipped with an F1-inspired paddle shift (1.5 E only) to deliver superb driving pleasure of a manual transmission, right at your fingertips.  Also available in other models like the Jazz, Civic and the Accord, the paddle shift option enables manual shifting of gears without the clutch. 

Taking cue from Honda’s fundamental values, Honda is ever committed in minimizing carbon footprint on the environment and in ensuring safety to every passenger, the press release said.

More than the usual subcompact sedan, the new City’s overall sensational package changes the rules in its class, both in style and in performance.  No wonder, the All-New City has made waves in neighboring Asian countries as it debuted in Thailand, India, Singapore, Indonesia, China and Malaysia, the press  release added.*

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SKYCable, HBO promo held

Great prizes were received by FunClub members at the SKYCable and HBO’s Shrek Christmas Treat Promo, held to hype up the showing of Shrek exclusively on HBO, recently, a SKYCable press release said.

Club members took home premium items in exchange for used toy donations. The toys were given to the Children’s Joy Foundation as part of SKYCable’s outreach program, the press release said.

Promo grand prize winners of the Shrek “Plug and Play” TV Game were Micole Traiga and Nahji Mar Jalover.

Those interested in subscribing with SKYCable may join the FunClub by calling Tel. No. 434-2307, the press release added.*

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IN ILOILO
SMART offers special
Dinagyang promos

Special call and text rates and other promos will be provided to subscribers of wireless services provider Smart Communications Inc. who will be in Iloilo City for the Dinagyang Festival celebration for the duration of the event, a Smart press release said.

To help ensure the safety of Dinagyang participants, SMART has also partnered with the Philippine National Red Cross for a first aid station tomorrow, at Iznart Solis Street.

On Monday, after the festivities, employee volunteers and residents of the PLDT-SMART Amazing GK Village-Sooc will gather at the Freedom Grand Stand to help clean up the venue and its surroundings, the press release said.

Smart Buddy subscribers who prefer to call and share their Dinagyang experience all day may avail of an affordable but high-value service – Flexi Rate.

With the promo, they will be able to enjoy a special P1 per minute call rate for the first 20 minutes when calling any SMART or Talk ‘N Text number nationwide. To call, subscribers may dial *88 <cell phone number> (example: *8809181234567). A maintaining balance of P1 is required to make a call, the press release said.

SMART Buddy subscribers, especially those who love to text but also enjoy calling, may avail of the 25-peso Text and Call Combo to keep in touch with their family and friends during the Sinulog revelry, the press release said.

The low-cost, high-value package includes 100 SMART-to-SMART or SMART-to-Talk ‘N Text messages and 10 texts to other networks, valid for 1 day, plus call-all-you-want period from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. for SMART-to-SMART or SMART-to-Talk ‘N Text calling, with just a 1-peso maintaining balance.

To avail of the service, SMART subscribers can avail of the Text and Call Combo from any SMART Load retailer in the area, or simply register, by texting C25 to 2827. To avail of the call-all-you-want service between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., subscriber dials *8654 plus the 11-digit mobile number being called, e.g., *865409191234567, the press release added.*

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UP student wins
best project award

A physics student of the University of the Philippines-Diliman who once dreamed of becoming a garbage collector produced the “Best Project of the Year” at the 2009 BPI-DOST Science Awards held at the Bank of the Philippine Islands in Makati City, recently, a BPI press release said.

Mikhail Solon, a graduating BS Physics student, bagged the title for his project, “Analysis of Selected Non-linear and Non-Local Systems,” besting five other finalists from ten partner-universities of the BPI Foundation.

While admitting that his project does not lead to any immediate practical applications as it involves fundamental research in theoretical physics, Solon said the judges recognized his efforts “to raise understanding of how nature works.” He said the research has also been internationally recognized after landing on the pages of a widely read physics journal last year, the press release said.

Stephen Alec Baluyot, a BS Physics and Materials Science and Engineering student from the Ateneo de Manila University, was first runner-up for his research on cadang-cadang disease that afflicts Philippine coconuts.

The winning projects were chosen for their relevance and impact to knowledge advancement, the originality and uniqueness of the study, and adherence to scientific soundness, the press release added.*

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