Toyota Corolla 1.8 Hybrid 2023 first drive
Fifth generation of Toyota’s hybrid powertrain for newly upgraded family hatchback
Ford may reckon it’s time to kill the family hatchback in Europe, but the UK-made *Toyota Corolla* now outsells the formerly market-leading Focus by nearly 20% and its maker therefore begs to differ.
The Japanese giant has just made a wide-ranging series of updates to the Corolla, which currently jousts with the Kia Ceed for second position behind the Volkswagen Golf in our C-segment hatchback market.
The aim, it says, is to keep UK sales steady at their recent annual 18,000-plus level for the next few years while selling the other 85% of the hatchbacks and estates made in the vast, 500-per-day Burnaston plant into 35 export markets, the bulk of them going to the EU.
Toyota’s experts are well aware of a decade-long decline in demand in this segment, noting that SUV sales in the same class exceeded hatchbacks for the first time during 2021, but they also say the class is stabilising and that for the next few years volume will stay within two per cent of SUVs.
The updates to the Corolla fall into four areas: cosmetic changes (new headlights, grilles, wheel designs and colour options); a fifth generation of the famous Prius-bred full hybrid system that powers every Corolla; a new suite of driver assistance and active safety systems; and major improvements to the cockpit systems, the clearest signs of which are bigger screens with improved functionality.
Inside, the new combination of a 10.5in central screen and a highly configurable 12.3in ‘combimeter’ moves the Corolla close to the top of the class, especially now there are knobs for most-used functions
There are also now four trim levels: Icon, Design, GR Sport and Excel, Trek having disappeared. Excel and GR share the top rung, the former being a luxury option and the latter sportier in look if not performance.
Prices start at £30,210 for the 1.8-litre Icon and rise to £35,145 for the 2.0-litre Excel. The Touring Sports bodystyle adds around £1700. All models have a four-cylinder turbo petrol engine, an electric motor, a battery and a CVT.
Both engines have been upgraded. The 1.8-litre is up 14% to 138bhp, the 2.0-litre up 6% to 193bhp. These boosts are best demonstrated by the cars’ sharpened acceleration: the 1.8-litre model’s 0-62mph time improves by 1.8sec to 9.1sec, the 2.0-litre model’s by 0.5sec to 7.4sec.
Closer examination of the powertrain’s minutiae shows why Toyota labels the new Corolla’s set-up as a fifth generation: the control unit is new, there’s a smaller and more powerful battery, the transaxle motor is redesigned to save 16-18kg depending on version and the whole motor-transaxle unit is more compact. The claimed effect is better accelerator response and less of the ‘rubber-band effect’ as the car accelerates.
Our 1.8 Design test car has the familiar Corolla demeanour: a quiet power delivery and a supple suspension that’s quiet over bumps yet keeps a nice degree of body control just the same.
The steering is light and accurate, tightening pleasantly in the most sporting driving mode. Cornering grip is dependable and plentiful, with a neutral stance that tends towards understeer near the limit.
What’s different, as promised, is the accelerator response. The feeling of disconnection between the engine and the progress is much reduced, at least until you give the car its head, although it will still rev pretty high (but smoothly) when pressed hard. At that stage, performance feels impressively strong.
It’s easy to see why Toyota believes this 1.8-litre will be the bigger-selling engine. Toyota integrity is present in spades, but also the Corolla is more of a driver’s car than before. Now, as perhaps not before, it goes as well as it looks.