A vegan food trip in Tagaytay on board the Geely Azkarra hybrid and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

The vegan foodie adventures continue in this latest installment on the TessDrive trio’s incessant hunt for meatless goodies. This time, they find a mountain lodge in Tagaytay ridge offering 100% meatless, plant-based, cruelty-free chow.

From the hustle and bustle of Metro Manila, our trio of vegan foodie adventurers Aries B. Espinosa (tessdrive.com editor in chief), Custer C. Deocaris (scientist and radio host), and Nona Andaya-Castillo (breastfeeding and vegan activist) relax on a ride onboard the Geely Azkarra hybrid for a 3-hour ride into the cool mountain breeze of Tagaytay, where sumptuous lunch awaits.

The Geely Azkarra Luxury 4WD mild hybrid compact crossover proved to be an efficient transport for the trio, as it consumed less fuel overall, and generated less emissions than its conventional compact SUV counterparts powered solely by internal combustion engines. The Azkarra mild hybrid is powered by a 48V Electric Motor Synergy in synch with the 1.5L turbocharged gasoline engine that produces 190 hp, 300 Nm of torque, and acceleration of 0-100 kph in under 10 seconds. The fuel mileage for the Azkarra Luxury 4WD mild hybrid, based on real-life driving conditions and actual long-term owners, has been between 12 km/liter and 17.4 km/liter on city and highway drives. It retails for P1.598 million.

Accompanying the Azkarra is the Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV)—the world’s first such SUV. The Outlander PHEV combines the EV technologies developed by Mitsubishi Motors Corp in Japan for models such as the i-MiEV, the Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC) technologies honed in the Lancer Evolution, and SUV know-how gained from the Pajero.

The Outlander PHEV compact SUV runs on two motors—an electric one powered by a 13.8-kWh large-capacity battery and a 2.4-liter gasoline engine. The twin-motor 4WD system delivers power independently to the front and rear wheels, with an engine power output of 128 PS and 199 Nm of torque at 4,500 rpm. A stable and responsive ride is achieved with the help of the Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC) integrated vehicle dynamics control system, Active Yaw Control (AYC), Active Stability Control (ASC) and Anti-lock Brake System (ABS). On a full charge, the Outlander PHEV can go on sole EV mode for up to 55km. With the electric motor and gasoline engine helping each other out, the fuel mileage gets into the respectable 11 to 25 km/liter range. With all its technological bells and whistles, the Outlander PHEV retails substantially higher than the Azkarra at P2.998 million.

For the vegan treats, the trio happily gorged on the following dishes:

  • Garlic rice, vegan tapa, and plant-based egg (for breakfast)
  • Plant-based fish burger and “no pork” chicharon; Plant-based “steak” and fries and vegan “chicken” Caesar’s salad; Nasi goreng; Mac and plant-based cheese, and; cauliflower wings (for lunch and dinner)

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