The Many Flavours of the Toyota Corolla

The Toyota Corolla is a household name – make no bones about it. It has sold in the tens of millions over the years, it’s incredibly easy and accessible to drive and more recently, the choice of body styles has grown from sedan, to hatchback to…crossover?

Yep, you red that right; it’s called the Corolla Cross, and it takes the Corolla formula, raises the ride height, adds room inside and compliments it all with either a standard or hybrid powertrain. There’s plenty of choice – but which way to go?

Well, how do you feel about ride height? Is being able to have a better view out, perhaps over the smaller cars ahead of you in rush hour? Well the Cross provides that, as well as more occupant and cargo space. What about the fuel efficiency of a hybrid powertrain, paired with the stability of AWD and almost 200 horsepower? You’ve got it!

The thing is, all-new for this year is a Corolla Hybrid sedan with AWD, so if you want the tech but not the crossover styling, there’s a Corolla for you.

Perhaps a fun drive is more up your alley – if so, then how about the Corolla hatchback? Maybe even with a manual transmission? Well, that is available to you as well and at 169 horsepower and 151 pound-feet of torque from a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, it makes the same power as does the heavier non-Hybrid Cross model.

Or, if you want to just keep it all simple and easy, then a Corolla sedan with standard four-cylinder power is always a safe choice; you have the outstanding reliability of a proven powertrain, a compact sedan that makes the most out of its cabin space and one with just the right amount of interior features.

Can’t go wrong with that!