The Adarna Group Foundation had this two-part mission for Nueva Ecija. First, scout a route through rough roads to an elementary school on the eastern approaches to Gapan City, the place where they’d be bringing their Barangay Early Literacy Program (BELP) the following month. Second, bring volunteers to do BELP classes for the kids and caregivers at the Bahay ni San Jose Orphanage in San Antonio, west of Gapan.
The drive would be a 260km loop through the near north and we needed a vehicle that could: (1) handle rough or broken roads, (2) carry as many as nine people along with a big tub filled with books and equipment, and (3) convey us comfortably enough to have people arrive rested and ready to teach animatedly. And I had a vehicle in mind, an institution by now, actually.
I had driven the top-spec Crosswind Sportivo last year for a story, the one with an automatic transmission, and I was impressed enough with it that I really wanted to see how any of its base models with a manual gearbox would compare. So I reached out to Isuzu Philippines once again and they readily responded, happy to help out.
Early on August 24—a Monday, the day starting out very wet with Typhoon Ineng about to depart Philippine waters and head up to Japan—we rolled out for our first stop in Gapan City, snug in a ten-seat 2015 Crosswind XL.
The hundred thousand
Early this year, Isuzu Philippines announced having sold its 100,000th Crosswind. Think about it, after launching it initially as the Crosswind HiLander in 2004 and subsequently as simply the Crosswind in 2007, the more than 9,000 units they’ve sold on average for each of those 11 years since means that if you stack these all up, one on top of the other, they’d form a pillar 186km high—enough to put the topmost 14,000 Crosswinds into low earth orbit.
And from a satellite’s vantage point, if you line up those 100,000 Crosswinds bumper-to-bumper, it wouldn’t take any magnification to spot it from space, that 450km long column that could reach from Quezon City all the way to the northern tip of Luzon.
Finally, just to complete the spatial spectacle, if you put those 100,000 side-by-side and abreast, these would form a 170km wall wide enough to span Luzon’s breadth, from its western to eastern coasts, through what would become a border town San Fernando in Pampanga. That’s a lot of Crosswinds.
A replaceable but classic engine
Just before and still after it reached the 100,000 mark, there was talk that the venerable Crosswind is on the final stretch, that it’ll be retired soon because its diesel engine isn’t Euro IV compliant. That’s a rather short-sighted observation if you ask me.
Isuzu Philippines is also in the powerplant business, after all. It supplies diesel engines that are sought after by our own jeepney builders, and its technologies are innovative enough that these prompted giant Toyota to buy stake in their global parent. Is it really a stretch to imagine them updating to a Euro IV engine soon and also offering this as a retrofit for older Crosswinds out there?
But yes, the Crosswind’s inline-4, direct-injection turbodiesel is a hard act to follow. Though it’s only Euro II compliant, doesn’t yet have high-pressure common-rail direct injection, and mounts just a low-boost turbocharger, the Crosswind’s 4JA1-L, with well matched ratios on its manual MSG5K gearbox, delivers torque exactly where its needed for transporting heavy payloads, particularly on rough or hilly terrain.
Kicking in when it counts
While the rugged and fuel-efficient diesel packs torque roughly equivalent to that of a 140hp petrol engine, its nominal power is just 85hp because, well, because it’s a diesel. With longer strokes on those pistons to achieve almost double the compression ratio of petrol engines, diesel combustion is leveraged into much higher torque but with a tradeoff in terms of top revolutions. There’s lots of torque on the 
low end. It builds and peaks early, plateaus for a short stretch, then drops off as revs approach redline.
On the Crosswind, the torque is already substantial at a little over idle, say at around 1,200rpm, and peaks early at 2,000rpm. On a normally aspirated engine, torque would then start to decline perceptibly, the power equation then relying heavily on increasing revs to deliver peak horsepower. But on the current-model Crosswind, with the turbocharger effectively increasing engine displacement, compressing more fuel-air mix than normal in the cylinders, the turbo spools up and reaches its boost threshold at around 2,500rpm—just in time to take up the slack and bolster torque as it starts to wane on a non-turbo. The result is a relatively flat power curve as the engine reaches peak power output at 3,900rpm, and fuel efficiency that’s downright phenomenal on a heavy hauler. The best I measured on the Crosswind XL with its 5-speed manual transmission was 12km/l in moderate city traffic, and 14km/l on the highway with medium to heavy load-out.
The turbo is easily taken for granted, that’s how low its boost is, but it kicks in at exactly the right time. When you hit cruise and have time to observe your revs against speed, the turbo’s subtle benefit becomes apparent when you decide to go faster than a relaxed 80km/h and reach for 100km/h, or beyond. The engine sounds unstressed but still with its teeth firmly clamped on the bit, always pushing.
Exquisitely elegant in its application, the low boost turbo doesn’t widen the power-band much, but it does flatten it. Peak torque to peak power from 2,000rpm to 3,900rpm is the same as on a normally aspirated 4JA1. But the torque you feel while traversing that power band is really something else with the engine milking each erg of energy from burnt diesel. Unladen or heavy, the Crosswind easily handles a short-shifting regimen with upshifts triggered around 2000rpm at 15, 30, 45 and finally 60km/h to reach fifth gear. Acceleration isn’t immense, but it’s relentless, as you reach a moderate top speed on the order of 130km/h, this even with the Crosswind heavy with people or cargo.
Truck tough
First-generation HiLanders are still on the road, in good repair. More so are those successor Crosswinds from first-flight onwards that are still on mission, in the cities 
and the countryside. And just this year, the quintessential AUV got its second major facelift after the first one a decade ago. Compared to the Crosswind’s decade-spanning timescale, the updates on rival models look as frequent as those for smartphones and casual-dress sneakers.
Individual Crosswinds could be on the road, and the Crosswind model kept online and relevant, for a service lifespan that rivals that of military vehicles. And why not? I know you saw this coming a mile away: the Crosswind is built like a darned tank. I’ve said it before (though in a story with another publisher), and so say it again: the Crosswind comes across as two tons of truck in thick gauge steel. The only evidence of crumple zones are polymer bumpers, and those side shapers and fender flares on the up-market variants.
She’s heavy, with a curb weight at 1,600kg, but that comes with seating capacity for as much as 10 souls, and a payload nearer to a ton than just a half, its realistic gross weight certainly much more than Isuzu’s officially published 2,200kg.
Finessed down under
All that weight is sprung on a typical truck’s suspension that, like its engine, is far from what you’d expect it to be. The front has independent double wishbones and a 
stabilizer bar guiding the chassis’ motion over tough, compact torsion springs. And, while the rear is on those familiar semi-elliptical leaf springs, these ones come with a welcome twist.
In back is what they call a FlexRide MOVE suspension. What it does is put five leaf springs on each wheel where only the top, longest spring is actually bolted to the chassis. The middle three leaves are merely shackled at both ends to the top spring, to let the upturned ends slide against each other as the whole set compresses down under load. And the bottom spring, the shortest and the stiffest, is shackled only on its front end. This brings that fifth bottom spring into play only 
when the vehicle rolls through a major bump or is laden heavily enough to make the Crosswind go way down on its rear haunches. That fifth spring stiffens up the rear’s ride only when needed, hence the “Flex Ride.” The effect is a comfortable ride for when you bring the Crosswind around unladen, or a reinforced and steady one when you’re going heavy.
On the base XL variant with 185R14 Yokohama Super Van 356 truck tires, that high-walled rubber allows for a wide range of inflation options. Recommended max pressures are 28psi in front, 47psi in back. But on the drive to Nueva Ecija with loads varying from five to nine people, with stretches on prime highway tarmac as well as unpaved track, in both wet and dry conditions, I opted to balance control and traction (as well as comfort) with 26psi in front, 35psi in the rear. It worked out fine.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyzVPx3mFsk&w=480&align=right]
The Crosswind’s substantial weight, tires, treads, suspension and low end torque profile (to take grades gently) made me look good, helping me deliver a surprisingly smooth ride over broken, or frequently absent, pavement. The apparent robustness of the platform, its freedom from extraneous body roll and ambient squeaks, kept me relaxed and surefooted, insulated from the roughness that we undoubtedly would’ve felt if we had been in a flimsy, smaller-wheeled ride.
See the video, it wasn’t just okay, it was downright fun rolling over those holes and bumps.
A rolling box, like an APC
The Crosswind is from an age when internal volumes were kept straightforward and big. Look inside the cabin and you’ll get this sense of being in a simple box, all straight lines and contiguous space. The only significant interruption in the cabin’s cubic area comes from the rear wheel wells which are elegantly put under the foldable side facing seats in the last row. The floor is a flat continuous slab, its height enough to be flush over the rearwheel drive axle.
The best thing about the XL is the contiguous cargo volume you could free up by folding away the second and third row seating. Feel free to double-check me on this, but with all seats behind the front row stowed away, that space looks equal to the cargo bay of a pick-up truck. And on the XL variant, with low maintenance features that include hand-cranked windows, vinyl upholstery, textured linoleum matting, and easy acceptance of bare painted metal peeking between finer interior touches, the utilitarian space simply works.
Decades of Crosswinds
Back when AUVs had that Asian “A” to make a proud pragmatic point, and not to marginalize these in the global market, Indonesia’s Astra conglomerate was the first to roll out these hardy utes with curvy-edged full-pressed hard-bodies. First came the third generation Tamaraw (the Kijang in Indonesia) from Toyota Astra Motors in 1986. Then, five years later, out came the first generation HiLander (their native Panther) from Astra Isuzu Indonesia in 1991.
The models were groundbreaking, the first shaped-metal bodies designed in and for Southeast Asia. Those models that came before (recall the Ford Fiera, the early Toyota Tamaraw, and even the VW Sakbayan) were all fabricated with sheet metal bent to shape and welded together to form boxy, angular bodies.
The HiLander, the Crosswind’s first generation if you look past the name shift, was built shapely from the start, though still on a truck’s robust chassis, and after Astra had half a decade to work out what else and more they’d like to do with a Kijang-like vehicle. The result was a utility that was purpose-built for the region’s roads (or lack of these), our climate (hypothermia cold to blistering hot, low and flooded to high and dry), and with the payload capacity to carry the extended family or anyone’s cargo. Introduced in 1991 globally, the HiLander got to our shores in 1996 and stayed in production until 2004.
With its eight years on the line, the timescale really makes the HiLander look like the precursor, a “demonstrator” in military-speak, of the Crosswind, its operational successor. Already sixteen years in after it was introduced globally in 2000, though introduced here four years later in 2004, new Crosswinds could be rolling off the production line until its two-decade mark … could be even three, it’s happened before.
Rugged because it needs to be
There’s talk that Isuzu’s recent introduction of the mu-X, echoing what others say about that Euro II engine, spells the impending retirement of the rearwheel drive Crosswind’s line. In fact, Isuzu admits that the introduction of the mu-X heralded a significant reduction in sales of its bestseller Crosswind. But do note the difference 
in price structure.
While the Crosswind’s top-spec and sleeked up Sportivo variant lists at PhP1.195M, slightly above the PhP1.188M for the 4×2 base model of the mu-X, the million-peso range where these intersect is still substantially above the PhP0.794 for the base XL variant I’d driven. The XL makes no reference at all to SUVs, doesn’t dress up into one, the best analog being those vanilla white utilities we saw foreign aid organizations using in-country before the turn of the century. And, although last priority seating is on a vestigial bench ledge between the driver and front passenger seats, that 10-seater capacity is still the most I’ve seen done on anything short of a full-blown passenger van.
The mu-X, an SUV, works because it’s ruggedized, made tough and above things enough to navigate the rougher corners of the land. In contrast, the Crosswind is rugged because it has to work. There’s a difference. It was built for the average multitude who live near or in hinterland. And, after all these years, the Crosswind is still on mission.
There’s no clutch pedal to work with. All clutchwork is delegated to the electronic shifter, leaving just the brake and gas pedals. And, about that gas pedal, the AMT also overrides your throttle inputs as it works the clutch, letting up on the gas as it pulls back the clutch for a shift, then bringing the gas back to where you had it as it lets the clutch back in to engage the new gear.
But, as it turns out, I was wrong. Working with the same gear ratios as on the manual box, that 3000rpm shift-point I had pegged is where the AMT would have you in its more aggressive S mode, with shifts happening at a similar 20, 40, 60 and 80km/h. In contrast, in normal A mode, the F-0’s AMT programming defaults to extreme economy, its logic and fast electronic controller managing to deliver an even more frugal shift sequence.
At 2,000rpm with its fairly flat power curve, the F-0’s BYD 371QA engine already delivers 86% or 57lb-ft of its peak torque of 66lb-ft at 4000rpm. It really is enough for getting you to the next shift point. The problem is, with the throttle so responsive on the MT variant, that 2000rpm comes and goes very quickly—difficult to hit when you’re minding a stick. But with the drive-by-wire controllers on the AMT kit, triggering things at 2000 is just routine of course.
On rolling out, shifting from N down to A will put the F-0 in gear only if you’re stepping on the brakes at the time. If you forget this and, perhaps, put it in A not while stepping on the brakes but rather with the parking brake engaged, it won’t put you in gear. The stick selector will be in the center position where it should be but the dash display will show you as being still in N. Remember this and don’t panic when you might be coming off the handbrake instead of the brake pedal (like when you move again in stop-and-go traffic). Simply step on the brakes, then cycle the stick to N then back to A. That’ll put you in gear.
But you can still use that old handbrake trick when rolling out from an uphill hang. Just do what you’d normally do after shifting the selector in drive while stepping on the brake. Engage the handbrake, step off the brake pedal, and then give it a little gas in A before disengaging the handbrake as well.
With a gear shift completed, the gearbox will restore full throttle control, putting the engine revs instantly back where your foot on the gas tells the AMT to put it. What’s this like? Have you seen the movie Apollo 13, particularly the part when their first stage booster cuts out and the second stage suddenly comes on to take over? It’s like that. You’d feel a sudden absence of acceleration as the AMT starts into a shift, followed half a second later by its equally sudden return. But, again, that’s only if you keep pressing on the gas pedal the same way throughout the gear change.
Somewhat related to this, A mode will keep you in a particular gear as long as it keeps you moving along at the gear’s corresponding minimum speed, regardless of not being able to accelerate beyond it. This makes for some hair-raising episodes when you’re going uphill. An A mode’s short-shifting sequence, while good enough on level ground, could cause a sudden loss of critical gear reduction as you deal with a climb. Instead of speeding through a climb on a lower gear, an untimely up shift would likely keep you at a low speed, not letting you accelerate further for the duration of the uphill run … makes for a lot of horn-honking at your back.
But in the end, after logging about 250km on the F-0, I’d suggest keeping it in A mode instead. Just build on old muscle memory to learn a new set of instincts for easing off the gas pedal when the gearbox idles down the throttle and come back in with the gas only after it completes a gear change. This way, you reap all the fuel-saving benefits of the AMT while enjoying its clutchless operation. Consume less fuel than with a conventional AT while still enjoying its clutch automation, what’s not to like?
The 
Now the smaller 
The weight distribution on this middle child feels optimal. The typical front-weight bias on the front-engine, front-wheel-drive A115 is mitigated somewhat by the mass of that roomy cabin with max headroom all the way back to the rear dash. Judging by its official axle-loading figures, the hatchback has a front weight-bias of just 51:49 (actually, just 50.4:49.6). Plus, the car’s form seems not to let any wind get under its skirt, with tangible down-force created front and back by its down-turned and faceted hood, and its slightly tear-dropped roof-line ending in an integral rear wing.
The BAIC A115 mounts the 1.5 liter inline-4 Mitsubishi 4A91 MIVEC engine with variable valve timing (VVT) logic that doesn’t put a premium on low-end torque but instead on mid to high-end sustained horsepower. The MIVEC engine’s power curve starts low but rises quickly to deliver peak torque of 107lb-ft at 4000rpm and 107hp at 6000rpm, and redlines starting at 6500rpm.
Just above idle with 1000rpm brings up just 48% of potential torque, 2000rpm brings a sudden rise to 83%, and 3000rpm to 94%. And, with a conventional 4-speed AT with widely spread gear ratios, that humpy power curve needs some management.
An automatic can be stopped while in drive, or allowed to crawl, while the engine is still idling under 1000rpm. The reason is that fluid link between engine and transmission (a “fluid coupling” it’s actually called, but I’ve chosen “link” to lose the innuendo). If it had been a clutch with its hard contact against the pressure plate, the vehicle would’ve stalled. Instead, on an automatic, the impeller just keeps on rotating while the turbine is either braked or allowed to rotate to push the car forward.
On the A115, if you want a stronger roll-out, go ahead and slightly surge up the revs to 2800-3000rpm while it shifts up through 1st and 2nd gears, then settle it down to the 2200-2500rpm range when you reach 3rd gear for the onset of cruise. If you like, keep it up even as you go through 80km/h, to prevent the lock-up clutch from kicking in, retaining that fluid gear reduction until you hit your desired cruising speed and reel things back in (at around 2000 to 2200rpm for a 100km/h cruise, depending on your load).
This rev surging takes practice—inherent tachymeter delay means you’ll be relying more on engine sound than on rpm readings, letting off the gas even before the needle finishes its climb to the surged revs level—but it makes for a more satisfying drive, maybe a more economical one, and perhaps more interestingly, it’s somewhat of a tradition among veteran Mitsubishi Lancer drivers.
So, even with the Magic being an India-specific configuration, its modification with jeepney-style benches expands its capacity, from the 6 who could sit on the original front and rear facing benches, to the 8 to 10 who’d fit on the side-facing benches in back. Most importantly, the foldable side facing benches could be stowed individually to create large, contiguous areas for cargo. It was this cargo-hauling feature that proved all-important on the real world mission that Tata let me take their Magic on.
At the event, among the rocker dudes milling about, a surfer friend came up to me and gave testament to how good the Ace looks. He sized up the micro-truck and very frankly asked if and when we can take it to Baler for some days of sun and surf, the truck serving as home to gnarly blokes and their waxed up boards.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
The phones are identical in all respects except for the firmware and/or hardware components for 3G mobile connectivity. The Starmobile has the 850/2100MHz UMTS/WCDMA supported by Philippine carriers, the Panasonic the 900/2100MHz HSDPA used by Indian telcos. And, while the Starmobile weighs in at 165g and measures (Height x Width x Depth) 148 x 74 x 8.25mm and the Panasonic 164g and 147.9 x 73.8 x 8.15mm, the minute differences in dimensions and weight could be put down as rounding off errors—just paper differences really.
While the head office has relegated their smartphone line to Panasonic India, they still intend a return to the market with products along the line of their ruggedized ToughBook laptops and Toughpad tablets. Defending the brand is still very much a priority for them in all markets and should translate to stringent requirements on the value-proposition of each and every Panasonic smartphone they now put out in India. At least, that seems to be the case with the Panasonic P55 Novo that we know here as the Starmobile UP Neo.
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