Nice to find your blog. Barry Ruth pointed me this way in an email conversation earlier today. My wife, Mita and I live just outside Metro Manila in Marilao, Bulacan.

Funny that I just noticed an “owner-type Jeep” (the generic Filipino term for locally made Jeep-style vehicles like these) a few days ago, all dressed up and “over equipped” like these ones you wrote about.

I haven’t met the owner but he appears to work at our local hospital nearby, so perhaps I’ll meet him someday. Maybe he bought his from one of your dealer friends, very few are ever customized to the extent these are.

The less stylish, basic “Owner Jeeps” are readily available available around here for as little as P50,000 and, while you are certainly correct regarding the inconveniences of the open construction, door curtains and such, they can be a very practical vehicle for an expat looking to get buy on a small budget.

The drive trains are typically “good used” Toyota, Nisan and Mitsubishi components from Japan

(due to some strange tax practices it’s almost impossible to keep a car on the road in Japan after it is six model years old, and due to the traffic in Japan, a six year old car has rarely ever done many kilometers)

so these P50K to P100K build to order “owner jeeps” can be a very good basic transport vehicle. Thanks for showing these colorful ones off for us.

By the way, I am also a Mitsubishi Adventure owner … bought mine new in 2006 and it has been a very comfortable and reliable vehicle so far, one of the best new car deals in the Philippines for a family vehicle.

We are close so setting a deal for a house. The moment it is definite I will write about it.

Thanks for the comment.