With a new version looming on the horizon for 2008, the 2007 Toyota Corolla could be said to be in the autumn of its years, lagging behind its rivals on style and standard safety kit. But that doesn't mean you should discount the Corolla: It's surprisingly powerful and wonderfully economical, it knows its way around a windy road, and it's built like the proverbial brick outhouse. The Corolla CE base model is a smart buy at $14,825 and my LE test model was no shrinking violet with an as-tested price of $18,377. EPA city/highway estimates: 32/41 MPG (manual), 30/38 (automatic).
First glance: Old age comes fast in the car biz...
Larger exterior photos: front rearThe current version of the Corolla, which dates from 2003, is -- by automotive standards, at least -- geriatric. It's biggest rival, the Honda Civic, received a radical re-do for 2006 (read review) that vaulted it well past most of its competitors.
But that's not to say the Corolla has been left totally in the dust -- not by a long shot. Yes, it's conservative looking by comparison to the Civic. Still, not only is it roomy and comfortable, but it even one-ups the Civic for safety -- provided you check off the correct option boxes. Toyota offers electronic stability control, which they call VSC (Vehicle Stability Control), as an option on all but the base-model CE version of the Corolla. Honda only offers it on the sporty version of the Civic, the Si.
Of course, one could chide Toyota for offering side airbags and antilock brakes as options, not standard equipment as they are on the Civic and the new Hyundai Elantra. I'll cut them a little slack here; top-notch safety gear in lower-priced cars is a relatively recent phenomenon. If you buy a Corolla, insist on getting a car equipped with these vital options.
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In the Driver's Seat: Luxury car touches
I like the way Toyota designs their interiors. They use big, chunky buttons and switches that are clearly and legibly marked, so virtually all of the controls can be used with a minimum of fumbling. I'm not normally a fan of fake wood trim, especially in economy cars -- I think it's a bit pretentious -- but I thought the Corolla's wood trim, part of the LE trim level, wasn't entirely out of place. (SUVs guide Jason Fogelson rode in the car with me and thought it was atrocious.)
The electroluminescent gauges (link goes to photo), exclusive to the LE model, are another nice touch. The instrument panel is dark when you first get in; turn the car on and hey presto! The speedometer and tachometer light up. It wasn't long ago that this feature was only found on luxury cars, though it does have one problem: With the dash always lit up, it's easy to forget to turn the lights on at night, especially since the Corolla comes with standard daytime running lights. (That means the headlights are always on, but the taillights and side markers aren't.)
The Corolla's steering column has a tilt adjustment but no telescope (in-and-out) adjustment. With the seat adjusted so the pedals were in a comfortable location, I felt the steering wheel was a bit too far away at first, though after a few hours of driving I got used to the arms-out driving position. Shorter drivers who are considering a Corolla should definitely take an extended test drive to ensure that this won't be a problem.
On the Road: Not at all what you'd expect from an economy car
Most small-car engines are optimized for use with a manual transmission; outside of North America that's what most people public buy. Saddle them with an automatic transmission and they often feel sluggish -- there's never enough power unless you floor the gas, and then you get too much power. Surprisingly, that isn't the case with the automatic Corolla I drove. A light stab of the throttle gave me all the power I needed, with plenty left in reserve even when cruising the freeway at ten above the limit. That's all the more surprising considering the Corolla's transmission has only 4 speeds, versus 5 in many newer designs. For those who like numbers, the Corolla's engine displaces 1.8 liters and puts out a modest 126 horsepower and 122 lb-ft of torque. (The hot-rod 170 horsepower Corolla XRS has been discontinued for 2007.)What's amazing is how economical the engine is. EPA numbers for the automatic (30/38) match the Civic on the freeway and trail just 2 MPG behind on the highway, while in stick-shift form the Corolla bests the Civic by a respectable margin.
Also surprising is the Corolla's behavior on twisty roads. The car handles the curves well, provided you can ignore the squeals of protest from the tires. Though it stops short of being fun to drive, the Corolla offers the sort of agile and predictable response you want should you have to suddenly swerve to avoid an accident. The aforementioned electronic stability control system, available in Corolla S and LE, adds an additional layer of active protection, helping to keep the car under control in a panic situation.
Journey's End: Still a competetive choice
Details of what a future Corolla might bring weren't known at the time of writing. You can bet it will be more radically styled, and hopefully it'll have more standard safety equipment.
Still, despite its conservative duds, the current Corolla is surprisingly up-to-date: Roomy, powerful, economical, and agile, all things that we demand from the latest-and-greatest in compact sedans. If you're in the market, the Honda Civic is better looking and the Hyundai Elantra does all the same stuff at a lower price (and with lots of standard safety kit). Toyota offers an appealing competitor of its own, the smaller and simpler Yaris sedan. But that doesn't mean the Corolla should be stricken from your short list -- it's still a very competitive car.
