New Toyota Corolla MY2023 - WhatCar? Review

DISCOVER THE NEW TOYOTA COROLLA MY2023 WITH THE WHATCAR? 5-STAR REVIEW:

• 

• WhatCar? says...

  “So, you don’t want a diesel. The petrol cars you’ve looked at aren’t frugal enough and an electric car won’t fit your lifestyle. It’s a common conundrum for the modern car buyer, but before you tear your hair out, there could be an answer: a ‘self-charging’ hybrid, like the Toyota Corolla.                     

   

• The Corolla doesn’t need to be charged overnight to get the best out of it, you simply treat it like a regular petrol car and let it sort out the electrical business for itself. The battery is topped up when you use the brakes, then a small electric motor is deployed to improve either efficiency or performance. If you’re really gentle, you can drive the Corolla on battery power alone for short distances.

  When it comes to CO2 emissions and, officially at least, fuel economy, this halfway house between a petrol car and an electric one certainly delivers
  some impressive numbers. And thanks to tax advantages, the Toyota Corolla is much cheaper to run as a company car than most of its rivals.”

• Performance & Drive:

  “Updates to the Toyota Corolla’s hybrid system mean that the latest version of the entry-level 1.8-litre engine has 138bhp at its disposal, and can match the 0-62mph time of the 128bhp 1.5-litre Volkswagen Golf at 9.2sec.

  In fact, it’s almost as quick as the 1.0 Ecoboost 155 Ford Focus.” 

   

   

• 
• 

• Suspension and ride comfort:

  “Fancy a bit of pampering? Well, forget the spa and buy yourself a Corolla instead because – along with the Golf – it’s one of the most comfortable cars in the family car class.

  It has softer suspension than, say, the Focus, which means it smoothes off the rough edges of road ridges better and fidgets less on patchy sections of motorway.”

• Noise and Vibration:

  “One benefit of hybrid cars is that they’re usually hushed when you’re pootling around town because the electric motor can manage on its own in stop-start traffic. In the Corolla, progress is virtually silent and, even when the petrol engine cuts in to assist, it doesn’t spoil the peace too much.

   

• 

• On faster roads, especially going uphill, the petrol engine begins to whine because the CVT automatic gearbox causes engine revs to soar during moderate to hard acceleration until you reach cruising speed.

  Before the recent engine changes, this was more pronounced in the 1.8-litre than the 2.0-litre, but we need to drive the revised 2.0-litre to confirm if this still applies. A power upgrade to the electric motor means the 1.8 engine is needed less to get you up to speed, so any peak in revs is mercifully short-lived.

  You hear a bit more tyre roar on the motorway than in a Focus, but the Corolla is a quieter cruiser than the Leon. The 2.0-litre hybrid is better than the 1.8 at isolating you from the outside world, thanks to its ‘acoustic’ side glass.” 

   

  Handling:

  “When you’re driving normally, you’ll find that the Corolla is a fine handling car.

  The steering is precise and its weight builds in a progressive manner, starting light for city driving and ending up with a heft that’s reassuring. There’s even a reasonable amount of feedback streaming to your fingertips.” 

• Discover more about the Toyota Corolla and our current offers - Click Here