* The new Toyota Corolla, outside and inside.
Toyota
Corolla road test by Steve Rogers
When it comes to comebacks there have been some corkers.
Winston
Churchill famously said "I'm finished" after he was sacked as First
Sea Lord in 1915 and look what happened to him.
Muhammad Ali regained his world
heavyweight boxing title against the odds having spent years in the wilderness
for refusing to fight in the Vietnam war, and who would have given Dennis Taylor
a chance against Steve Davis when he was 8-0 down in the 1985 world snooker
championship final. He won on the black ball in the final frame!
There
are scores more, many less notable, and into that category falls the Toyota
Corolla. The world's best selling car disappeared from our roads in 2006 to be
replaced by the Auris but it never slipped easily into the Corolla's big boots
so after 13 years in exile Corolla is back.
What's
more the Japanese favourite is built in Derby and the hybrid engine built at
Toyota's factory on Deeside which is good for Wales and the UK in general.
It
is hardly worth comparing new and old Corolla because so much has changed since
2006 so what we are really looking at is how the new model compares with Auris.
Toyota
will have spent billions of Yen developing Corolla, in particular making sure
it will suit the needs of the vast European market where competition is so
fierce it is like walking into a den of lions.
The
upshot is a totally new car. It sits on the same platform as the C-HR, one of
my favourite crossovers, and is a completely different animal to the nondescript
Auris.
Corolla
is a very decent car to drive and goes to show it is not just Volkswagen and
Ford who build top notch hatchbacks, in fact you can now add a lot of other car
makers to that list.
Toyota's
focus is on petrol hybrid engines, 1.8 and 2-litres, with a conventional 1.2
turbo for those who do not want the extra cost of an electric motor. There is no
diesel.
My
test car was the 1.8 litre and I had my doubts when I saw it produced a lowly
120bhp, not much for such a big engine. Yet with the help of the 53kW electric
motor it is quite lively up to 60mph when performance tails off and the engine
starts to sound a little gruff. At least the combination of engine and electric
motor provide enough mid-range pick up for confident overtaking.
The
big question is what's it like on economy? This is a self charging hybrid so
travel on electric power is generally limited to slow speed movement around
town although it comes in handy when scraping along in heavy traffic reverting
to electric power so saving fuel and cutting exhaust emissions.
I
have driven lots of hybrids in the last 10 years and more often than not have
been disappointed with fuel consumption but I can have no complaints with
Corolla. Over 750 miles of mixed driving the computer showed 66.2mpg and on one
300 mile round trip I hit 70mpg. Now that's what a hybrid is all about.
To
get the best results from a hybrid driving style has to be moderated, no harsh
acceleration or heavy braking, particularly into roundabouts, and that is exactly
the tactic I employed on the trip that returned 70mpg.
On
the motorway I kept to a steady sixty and drove as evenly as possible on A
roads. I doubt I would have done any better in a diesel.
Corolla
had to be a better all rounder than Auris and it is. It sits on Toyota's new
platform, is 60 per cent stiffer, has new multi-link rear suspension, and
steering which is sharper and gives the driver a much better feel for what is
going on down at the front wheels.
Everything
is neat and tidy along the dashboard with a central 8in touchscreen, clear
instrumentation and a variety of graphics to monitor hybrid progress.
Cabin
space is just on par as is boot space so if the latter is an important factor
then check out the opposition because there are some that do better.
As
comebacks go Corolla has achieved its aims. It is well built, has numerous
safety features and a decent spec list although I am damned if I could find a
USB charging point. Surely they haven't forgotten to fit one?
Verdict:
Corolla isn't as engaging to drive as a Golf or Ford Focus but is up there with
Mazda3, Seat Leon and Kia Ceed.
part from an enthusiastic driver who is going
to notice? And anyway, this isn't a car for the enthusiast, it is a full- blown
family motor and the family is going to be very happy with it.
Key
facts
Corolla
Design Hybrid
£25,830
(starts £21,080)
1.8
litre; 120bhp
0-62mph
10.9secs; 112mph
55.4-65.9mpg
combined
83g/km.
1st year road tax £110
Boot
space: 361 litres
Insurance
group 15
