From the backseat: A different kind of test drive in the Isuzu mu-X

Not so very long ago when I was still motoring editor, I’d choose to be the first driver in a test drive event.

- PINKY CONCHA COLMENARES

I’d grip the wheel, tune into the engine’s rhythm, and write about every curve and climb of a test route. But these days, test drives have taken a quieter, more reflective turn.

Now, as executive editor, I often find myself not in the driver’s seat, but in the rear—literally.

My “test rides” are measured less by horsepower and more by how efficiently I can work from the back seat. As motoring journalists, vloggers, and content creators power through the twists and straights of our country’s scenic roads, oftentimes live streaming to tell their followers about the experience, I sit silently behind them — reading drafts, editing editorials, circling misplaced commas, and untangling implied meanings — all from my phone.

Now, the question I ask of any vehicle is simple: Can I edit my pages from the back seat, while the car is running 80 to 100 kph, or crawling stop-and-go at 30 to 40 kph? During the recent Isuzu mu-X test drive in Palawan, the answer was a resounding yes.