New Corolla ticks all the boxes

Price: ZR Petrol, $38,490 ZR Hybrid
Engine: 1987cc four-cylinder VVT-iE petrol, max power 125kW@6600rpm, max torque 200Nm@4800rpm; 1798cc four-cylinder 16-valve DOHC VVT-I petrol and Hybrid Synergy Drive system with dual motor generator and lithium ion battery pack, max combined power 90kW
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission, front-wheel drive
Brakes and stability systems: Front and rear disc brakes, ABS, ESP, TC, and EAB
Safety: Five-star ANCAP
Wheels and tyres: Alloy wheels, 225/45 R18 tyres
Fuel and economy: 91 Octane unleaded petrol 6.0L/100km (petrol) or 4.2L/100km (hybrid), capacity 50L (petrol) or 45L (hybrid)
Emissions: 139g (petrol) CO2/km 97g (hybrid) CO2/km
Dimensions: Length 4370mm, width 1790mm, height 1435mm

What We Like

  • Attractive design
  • peppy engine
  • fine ride and handling

What We Don't

  • Cabin not especially spacious
  • coarse-chip road noise
Verdict

The best Corolla in several generations

Rating:

Overall
4/5
Design
4.5/5
Interior
4/5
Performance
4/5
Handling
4.5/5
Environmental
4/5
Safety
5/5

Overview

David Thomson finds that Toyota has banished boring from its new range of Corollas.

Designed to a brief that continues a push to ‘‘banish boring’’ from its fleet, the latest Corolla hatchback is a hugely important standard bearer for Toyota.

In a local context, and despite the rise of SUVs, the Corolla is firmly entrenched as New Zealand’s best-selling passenger car. Internationally, it is not just a market leader, it is the market leader, having notched up an unparalleled 45million sales since the first Corolla appeared over half a century ago.

This edition is the 12th and the New Zealand line-up comprises five different models featuring two different engine choices. The more conventional of these choices — a 125kW/200Nm 2.0L petrol engine — is offered at all specification levels, from the entry-level $29,990 GX to the top-line $37,490 ZR. The other — a 90kW petrol-electric hybrid option — is only available with the ZR equipment specification, priced at $38,490.

This test considers the pure petrol and hybrid ZR models of the new range.
The innovative Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform around which the Corolla is built has played a vital role in giving designers and engineers the scope to be bold.

Dimensionally, it is a little longer and wider than its predecessor, and also slightly lower. This alters its proportions to make it look more confidently planted on the road. That look has been further highlighted by bold sweeping curves and styling lines.

The sharp new look is most evident on the ZR model,
which picks up various exterior tweaks including LED fog lights, special bi-beam LED head-
lights and 18-inch, rather than 16-inch, alloy wheels.

Thanks to soft-touch finishing for key surfaces, contrast stitching, and brushed metal highlighting, the interior looks and feels classy, and is assembled to Toyota’s usual high standard. The ZR petrol test car had dark leather-and-suede accented sports seats and complementary trims, but the hybrid featured the more striking black-red ZR interior option.

A new-found sense of style comes at the expense of some interior practicality.
The cabin is roomy enough and the ZR’s seats are super-comfortable and nicely bolstered, but rear leg and head room are sub-par by class standards, as is boot space.

Unusually, it’s the hybrid that bests the conventional Corolla for carrying capacity, having ditched a spare wheel in favour of an emergency tyre sealant and inflation kit. The hybrid’s luggage capacity is 300L below the load cover and 389L all-up behind the rear seats, while the petrol model has a 208L/289L boot. These figures compare with a capacity of around 360L for the previous petrol Corolla hatch.

On the other hand, standard equipment levels are impressive.

Safety has been a particular focus, with autonomous emergency braking, radar cruise control, lane tracing assist with lane departure alert and steering assist, lane centring and sway warning, and road sign assist and auto-dipping headlights included at all levels.

An eight-inch centre touchscreen with satellite navigation features across the range, while keyless entry and start, dual-zone climate control, and wireless phone charging (located just forward of the gear shift) are all standard from SX level, which is one tier below the ZR. Opt for the ZR, and a premium eight-speaker JBL sound system is provided, along with a heads-up display, and 7-inch three-ring colour instrument cluster rather than the usual 4.2-inch display.

The layout of key controls and instruments is excellent and — aside from the absence of Android Auto and Apple Car Play integration — connectivity to mobile devices is straightforward.

As expected, the pure-petrol and hybrid versions offer distinct driving experiences.

Using the same powertrain as the current Prius, the hybrid’s mechanical strengths are low-speed refinement and economy; its standard-cycle consumption figure of 4.2L/100km is commendable, as is the 5.2L/100km real-world return Drivesouth managed on a test programme that included plenty of full-throttle hill work in power mode.

However, there is little excitement in terms of acceleration, my best estimate being that it takes a shade over 12.5 seconds to cover the 0-100kmh dash. Nor is there any aural delight as the hybrid gathers speed under full throttle; just a buzzy mechanical drone, accentuated by the vehicle’s CVT transmission.

As for the pure-petrol, it is all-new engine-wise, with the old 103kW/173Nm 1.8L motor superseded by a 125kW/200Nm 2.0L unit. Gains of 21% in power and 15% in torque are achieved while running on a diet of 91 octane unleaded.

As with the hybrid, the petrol Corolla’s power is delivered to the front wheels via a CVT transmission. There is cleverness in this CVT, which combines the usual belt drive with a torque converter and gear drive that engages when accelerating from rest to give stronger initial thrust, and also a 10-stage manual mode accessed via the ZR’s paddle shift controls.

Together, the new engine and transmission ensures greater aural character and significantly more vim; my best estimate is a 0-100kmh sprint time of about 8 seconds in sport mode, and an equally clear edge in the mid-range. The new engine/CVT combination also give a slight improvement in standard-cycle fuel consumption, which falls from 6.1L/100km to 6.0L/100km. This test showed a 6.7L/100km real-world return.

One thing the ZR models share are the dynamic gains engendered by the new and more rigid TGNZ platform and the shift from a torsion beam to trailing wishbone independent rear suspension.

Ride quality takes a marked step up at all speeds, both in terms of soaking up minor imperfections, and in dealing with large and sharper surface issues. The cabin also seems better isolated from noise than before, although the 225/45 R18 tyres fitted to the test cars transmitted appreciable road noise on coarse-chip surfaces.

Handling-wise, there’s plenty to commend this Corolla, too.

The ability of the new machine to corner with better balance and greater precision than its predecessors is apparent on the hybrid, and even more obvious on the petrol ZR. This is due in some measure to the petrol vehicle’s superior power and more obliging transmission, but is also likely to reflect its different weight balance and the greater grip of sport rather than economy-oriented tyres. Steering feel is also better on the petrol ZR, although both are fine in this respect.

One of the intriguing possibilities the dynamic excellence of the Corolla platform raises is the future potential for genuine hot-hatch editions.

Such a Corolla would need a motor producing at least 40kW more (and perhaps as much as 80kW more) than the current ZR petrol, with that likely achieved through turbocharging, or a high-performance hybrid powertrain. However, Toyota’s interest in producing such a Corolla is unknown.

In the meantime, the mere fact that motoring commentators around the world are speculating about such a vehicle, is testament to how good the new Corolla is.

Photos: David Thomson

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