“Drive Electric, Love Pinas” Campaign Completes An End-to-End Philippine EV Journey

Support CleanTechnica’s work through a Substack subscription or on Stripe.

Sets Two Guinness Global Records

A 22-day nationwide electric vehicle expedition led by Wil Dasovich has reinforced the viability of long-distance electric mobility in the Philippines, covering more than 3,500 kilometers across 102 cities and municipalities from the northern tip of Luzon to the southern reaches of Mindanao.

The “Drive Electric. Love Pinas.” campaign, organized by BYD Cars Philippines in partnership with ACMobility and the Department of Tourism, deployed a mix of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles in a continuous cross-country journey designed to test infrastructure readiness and real-world usability.

The convoy began in Laoag City, at the northern edge of Luzon, the country’s largest island, and concluded in General Santos City on the southern island of Mindanao. The route crossed the Philippines’ three main island groups — Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao — requiring both long overland drives and roll-on/roll-off ferry transfers between islands.

At the Manila International Auto Show 2026, the campaign earned two titles from Guinness World Records. The BYD eMAX 7 set the mark for the most cities visited in a continuous journey by a battery-electric vehicle, while the BYD Shark 6 DMO achieved the same distinction for a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, with both vehicles completing a 102-city route.

Beyond the records, the journey also highlighted the uneven but rapidly expanding charging landscape across the country.

Public charging infrastructure in the Philippines remains heavily concentrated in key economic corridors. The highest density of chargers is in Metro Manila, the country’s capital region, followed by surrounding growth areas in Central Luzon and the CALABARZON region south of Manila. Additional clusters are emerging in Cebu in the central Visayas and in Davao in southern Mindanao, both of which serve as major regional hubs.

Outside these areas, charging coverage becomes significantly thinner. Long provincial stretches in northern Luzon, parts of the Visayas, and large sections of Mindanao still rely on limited or strategically placed charging points, making route planning essential for uninterrupted travel. Across the country, more than 160 public chargers are currently operational, with locations accessible through the Evro App.

No major mechanical breakdowns were publicly reported by organizers, reinforcing claims of vehicle reliability. However, the absence of failures does not mean the journey was without difficulty. The challenges encountered were largely structural and logistical, underscoring the current limits of the ecosystem rather than the vehicles themselves.

The service crew from the organizers anonymously told CleanTechnica that the nationwide trip had an unseen benefit. It gave them a lot of data on the actual running performance of the vehicle, battery life and discharge rate, the rate of charging on the emax7 via regenerative braking, and more real world figures for fuel economy on the hybrid set-up of the Shark.

Charging availability dictated pacing. In areas outside major urban clusters, the convoy likely had to manage speed, timing, and energy use carefully to align with available infrastructure. Inter-island travel introduced additional constraints, as ferry routes between Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao offer little to no charging capability, requiring vehicles to maintain sufficient charge before boarding and upon arrival.

Terrain and climate also played a role. The route included mountainous roads in northern Luzon, dense traffic conditions in Metro Manila, and long, high-temperature highway drives in Mindanao, all of which affect battery efficiency and real-world range.

Jaime Alfonso Zobel de Ayala, chief executive of ACMobility, said the campaign reflects a broader push to close these infrastructure gaps.

“What was once a vision is now a reality,” he said. “We are building a complete ecosystem that supports EV ownership — from accessibility and charging infrastructure to enabling long-distance travel across the archipelago.”

ACMobility continues to expand its Philippine EV Spine Network, a system of interconnected charging hubs designed to support continuous travel across major routes nationwide.

The campaign ultimately delivers a dual message. It demonstrates that long-distance electric travel in the Philippines is already achievable, while also making clear that it still depends on planning, infrastructure awareness, and disciplined execution.

Rather than signaling a completed transition, the “Drive Electric. Love Pinas.” journey shows a country in the middle of electrification — where the technology works across thousands of kilometers, but the supporting network is still catching up.