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Car Club of the Month
Familia bliss
Protegé Tech Philippines loves their Mazdas, and it shows
Words by Drew Asuncion; Photography by Chino Acosta
The internet has indeed been one of the greatest inventions of our time, and one particular sector that has benefited greatly from the Net is the car enthusiast's. No longer restrained to searching for info for their beloved cars locally, car nuts from all around the world can now share their ideas, resources, and most importantly, their passion for their rides.
And what better proof is there of the internet's advancement of car culture than the Protegé Tech Philippines car club? Basically starting as an exchange of e-group posts about the humble Mazda Protegé / Familia way out in the US, PTP has become one of the largest, most organized, and most passionate car clubs in the Philippines today.
The very first EB of the group consisted of three people, and was timed to coincide with the local launch of the original Mazda Familia. Their official EBs, known as Familia Reunions or FRs, used to be accompanied by a number to denote how many times to date the group had met. Nowadays, because of the sheer number of meets, PTP just calls them FRs followed by a month. PTP's 'reunions' are now practically events in themselves, like a car show, technical seminars, or circuit or karting days.
Currently, PTP has expanded to take in other variants of the Protegé, like the 626, Astina, Lantis, and the recent 3 and 6. The Ford Lynx is also welcome, and interestingly enough, the Kia Pride (apparently sold as the Ford Festiva in other countries) is as well. The founders stress that one thing they will always emphasize is respect, in every sense of the word. That, they say, is why they have no factions or segregations. Every type of Protegé enthusiast is welcome, as evinced by the 150 full-fledged members and 2,502 netizens on PTP's roster. They are also active in charity work, as well as the AAP's Sampaguita Rally, and have held four PTP car shows to date. Check out www.protegetech.org, and see what's really involved in making Protegé Tech Philippines one big, happy Familia.
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Top Gear Philippines - December 2006
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