A month and a half ago my car got scratched by an Very Old Man in a Polo that, when asked, said the parking spot next to my car was "too narrow". It wasn't. I finally got all the insurance business sorted, so now I'm in a rental while my car is at the body shop.
Enter the 2022 (I presume) Toyota Corolla Hybrid
Touring Sports.
This is my insurance company's idea of an equivalent to a Passat Alltrack. I don't agree, but it's not an unpleasant experience and it makes a nice change of pace.
Positives:
- I'm used to a diesel with a dual clutch. City driving in a hybrid is obviously a whole different ball game. Everything's smooth and quiet and getting going from a standstill is much more effortless. I could get used to this. Yes, I know you EV drivers have been living this life for years. Shut up.
- While VW are deleting buttons and replacing nice surfaces with hard plastic, Toyota is doing the opposite. The steering wheel has actual buttons on it, there's a volume knob, proper buttons and dials for the HVAC, etc. The stalks are also nice.
- Wireless CarPlay.
- It has averaged 5.2 liters/100km which I guess is what a 1.6 liter Golf TDI returns. But there's no diesel tax here.
- I dug around in the boot to try and find the traction battery, but all I found was a cavernous spare wheel well. I wonder where they hid the battery.
- It actually drives pretty nice.
Noted:
- It has mechanical rocker switches for the seat heaters. HI-OFF-LO, just like a 1987 Corolla.
- It seems Toyota finally ran out of green digital clocks.
- You can tell they tried to make it "normal". It has a normal PRND shifter that stays where you put it, unlike a Prius. It also has a rev counter. No idea why because the engine does whatever it feels like. Shuts down, revs to 3000, shuts down, etc.
- It has the same square feeling windshield frame that Corollas had 20 years ago. I can't really explain it but it feels odd to look out of when you're used to pretty much anything else.
- It starts up with lane keep assist off. There's a button on the steering wheel to enable it. I wonder if this is a custom setting for the rental company.
- The ass dyno says this is the slower of the two hybrid drivetrains. Feels like 120hp or so, no idea what it actually has. As I recall, the more powerful version has like 180.
Negatives:
- The backup camera is not protected in any way, like in a VW where it's covered by the VW badge when not in use, and there's no sprayer on it like on a Skoda or Seat.
- I'm stupidly tall and I like food. But this is 2023 and this is supposed to be family car. I shouldn't have to shove the seat all the way back just to make room for my legs. It's also narrow. With the drivers seat set for me, my biceps is chafing against the B pillar. The pillar also curves in and is very close to my head.
- The backup camera is pretty lousy even when the lens isn't wet and dirty.
- The cruise control, when set at the longest following distance, is still firmly in BMW territory. I know for a fact that when it's raining and you're following a truck, you're in its spray with the wipers on the whole time.
- I can't see this being the main car for a houseowner, simply because it has a feeble tow rating. 450kg is barely enough to deliver greetings, and if you own a house you sometimes need to move more than that. You get 750kg if your trailer has brakes, but I don't think there are many 750kg braked trailers on the market because that happens to be the legal limit for unbraked trailers. No, I didn't look the tow ratings up for this review but for another reason.
- The lane keep assist beeps like a microwave.
- While the outer door skin doesn't wobble when you close the door (like on a new Yaris) the door handle still makes an unsettling hollow BONK when you let go. I'm sure Toyota did their homework on side impact safety, but...
