When someone from our team mentioned Macoy Dubs as our next feature, I honestly did not know how to react.
I knew him as the guy behind a wig, red lipstick, and a pearl necklace, doing witty skits online, and not someone who would geek out about torque vectoring or OEM stock.
And since I’m not exactly a car guy myself, I started to work on this story with curiosity more than skepticism. How in the world did Macoy Dubs become this? Because if there’s one thing that people think of when they see his skits online, it’s not cars.
But everything changed when I read his answers to our initial questions – and even more when we finally met in person.
He started sharing stories about how his mom would buy him toy cars, how his first real car was a hand-me-down Mitsubishi Montero Sport from his dad, which he later returned because big cars weren’t his thing. Then he bought a Honda Civic FC instead.
How his dad played a huge part in shaping his love for cars. “Papa would pick me up every weekend,” he said. “Uso pa ang cable noon—we’d watch F1 together, V10 and V8 era pa ‘yan. Then, of course, Motoring Today with Sir Ray Butch Gamboa, Pocholo Ramirez, and Sir Ron’s Auto Review was always a weekend staple.”
He reminisced about how Mazda was in the ‘90s, how he felt like the Honda Prelude was overshadowed by the Integra and Type R, and the hours he spent as a kid playing Gran Turismo 1 at a PS rental shop in San Pedro, Laguna.
He could go on all day just talking about cars and the culture that surrounds them.
And that’s where it hit me – the way he talked about cars was not for clout – it was deeply personal.
The Wit Before the Rev
Before venturing into the car community, there were the skits.
“It all started in 2017 when I was working at DDB Philippines,” Macoy recalls. “Agency life — stress, pressure, the usual. At the time, dubbed movies were everywhere on TV, so I decided to make my own versions.”
From Tagalog-dubbed memes to the now iconic Mean Girls cafeteria dub, to his Genevieve Gozum skits, his humor paved the way to his now gargantuan social media presence.
“In 2017, social media wasn’t that saturated yet,” he says. “It was easy to go viral.”
But for him, the goal was never fame. “To be quite honest, never ko talaga naging dream to become a content creator because my dream really is to be a News Anchor,” he admits. “And since that didn’t happen, content creation became a way for me just to channel my dreams of doing voice-overs and writing for radio and TV.”
The characters he built – sharp-tongued tita, demanding boss – were all born from real-life experiences. “First job ko sa broadsheet, then naging ahente ako sa real estate,” he shared. “And I worked in Qatar for almost a year and bumalik ako sa Pinas in 2017.”
What started as a small creative outlet soon became his breakout moment online.
The Nostalgia That Started the Engine
Macoy’s love for cars is steeped in nostalgia.
“I’m an old soul,” he says. “I miss the push-button feel of things. The mystery of waiting for someone to show up without texting first. The simplicity of that time.”
That affection for the analog world naturally feeds into his love for cars – machines controlled by touch and feel.
But his love for cars started long before the skits.
Macoy’s mom nurtured his obsession at an early age, taking him to toy stores to browse Matchbox and Tomica cars. His first Tomica was a Toyota Prius, and for his eighth birthday she gave him a green Mazda Miata toy car.
“The small car toys I would often put in a clear plastic bag and bring it everywhere,” he shared “Kapag nasa simabahan kami, Mama would give me an the eye kapag nilalaro ko yung toy cars sa upuan”
On weekends, his Dad helped fan the flame for his passion for cars bonding over F1 races, Motoring Today and Auto Reviews.
“When I was still young, there was this Playstation rental shop for Php 15 per hour,” he recalls “Madalas tambay ako hangang gabi. Gran Turismo 1 played a big role in why I like JDM cars”
Then he shared that when he started earning money he would buy and collect Top Gear magazines.
“My parents were very supportive talaga,” he reflects “Hindi kami mayaman sa totoo lang while I was growing up, kaya hindi rin ako nakakapunta sa mga car shows or events when I was young.”
“Whenever I see my favorite cars such as the Mitsubishi Lancer Pizza, Mazda 323, Honda Civic EG and Hyundai Elantra,” he continues “Talagang pag nasa bus kami or jeep, titignan ko yung pag spin ng wheels nun at gagayahin ko pa yung movement ng wiper — so ganoon ako ka obsessed with cars at an early age”
From Punchlines to Pistons
The expansion from comedy skits to car content happened naturally.
We asked him what made him finally share this side of him “So my turning point was, I was driving in SLEX and made a stop in a gas station,” he shared “And alam mo na — sitting there for hours and thinking what to do next I looked at my Civic and said, sige, let’s share this side of me on social media.”
He started casually posting it on IG stories and a few months later Honda Cars Philippines reached out for a lend-out “I guess that’s the start of my journey as an automotive content creator.”
While brands did reach out, Macoy also had his share of comments saying that this was all for clout. Some would even go as far as “Ah bakit? Eh di ba bading ka?” or “Usually ang kilala ko gays are into fashion and make-up kesa sa cars”
His authenticity always transcends these comments, people though sometimes surprised can feel that his passion for cars is genuine and deeply rooted.
But similar to building cars, he know that this expansion will take time.
“Hindi talaga instant. It’s like a project car, talagang you have to try and try and exert your effort and resources to make it running di ‘ba? Ganun rin sa social media content, authenticity ang labanan.”
Project Ueno: The Prelude
Today, his fascination for cars lives on in his Honda Prelude – dubbed as Project Ueno.
Asked why the Honda Prelude, he answered “This is one of my favorite JDM cars, also I’m a huge Honda fanatic. It’s also really underrated, and I like not-so-hyped things”
For him the car represents good taste and maturity – he likes the luxurious exteriors that makes it look like a premium car when driven.
Honda Prelude was also always the showcase subject of Honda whenever they would introduce new technology like the four wheel steering and torque vectoring.
Macoy is also a purist at heart when it comes to cars. Exterior wise he likes them looking restored with original parts. He thinks that when you keep it stock the value of the car, specially older models, holds longer.
“Technical-wise, I know the engine codes, chassis codes of some models,” he shared when asked how hands-on he was on this project “But not to the point na I will memorize everything.”
Funny how he shared his quirks when it comes to his cars, that he doesn’t let anyone eat inside the car or ask them to pagpag muna ng shoes before going in. “Medyo OC,” he shared “But that’s really my quirk”
This project is both a passion project and also a personal statement. He wants people to identify him not by the content that he uploads online but with his character and the car that he drives.
At the end of the day, he would be happy if car enthusiasts would associate him with a black Honda Prelude.
The Road Ahead
“I would say this is an expansion,” he explains. It’s not about changing my content, but about showing my other passion. “For me, the jump into automotive content is not reinvention because my love for cars is innate.”
Ask him what’s next and he doesn’t hesitate. “In two years, I want to open my own auto shop. A place that supports local mechanics and helps people build their dream cars.”
He also hopes to inspire other people specially within the LGBT community to pursue their passion for cars. He shared “Maraming queer people ang mahilig sa motorsports and nakakatuwa na unti-unti din sila narerecognize sa communities nila.”
He may not have become a news anchor, but for him, sharing stories behind the wheel — about people and the culture that drives them — feels even more fulfilling.
Watch his short film “Always Been Driven”