New Toyota Corolla a mini-Camry

All-new 10th-generation Toyota Corolla coming to India in August 2008.

Toyota is likely to launch the all-new 10th-generation Corolla in India in August 2008. Built on an all-new platform, with new objectives and goals in mind, the saloon version of the world’s most popular car has, this time around, been given special treatment from the world’s most successful carmaker.

A car that was sent back to the drawing board, this all-new Corolla sedan showcases Toyota’s new-found love of class-leading and forward-thinking design. A trend that began with the new Camry, the strong acceptance of its car in global markets has Toyota very bullish on the design front. Differing considerably from the hatchback version sold in other markets, the saloon will be targeted at emerging economies as well as markets where compact saloon cars are finding greater acceptability, like Europe.

The new Corolla’s silhouette is much sportier than the current one. The overall height may be the same, but Toyota designers have worked hard to give the new car a crouching, sporty look. The A and C-pillars that hold up the roof have been moved forward and back respectively, so as to meet the body of the car at a much more acute angle. The design is much more cab-forward than the earlier car and Toyota has tried hard to come closer to a ‘one-form’ flowing look that blends the boot and bonnet more seamlessly into the overall design of the car.

The styling of the nose is bold and uses a low-mounted grille. Other design elements like the bonnet V, long sharp-edged headlights and the bumper all swoop down to meet it. Looking like the Camry’s younger sibling, the new Corolla uses a lot of the larger sedan’s successful design language. Its headlights and tail-lights bulge out for that 3D effect. The rear, especially the tail-lights and boot lid, however, look very evolutionary.

The wider track of the front and rear wheels has also liberated more space in the passenger compartment. There is more shoulder and hip room, the very comfortable seat height is similar to the current Corolla and the underbody has been engineered to provide a flat floor. There is also more legroom for rear seat passengers. Expect class-leading comfort here. “We wanted to develop an interior that portrays a sense of spaciousness beyond actual space,” says chief engineer Toshi Ezaki. They paid attention to everything, from expanding the door trim to optimising the size of the seats, even lowering the upper surface of the facia. The pictures of the interiors you see are for the European version, but the Indian car will have a lot of light colours.

Toyota also claims to have paid great attention to not just delivering visually-appealing interiors but also ‘a high quality tactile experience’. The surfaces have a soft-touch feel, panel gaps and fit are improved, and quality of switches has been improved too. The design of the dash is very neat and integrates the doorpads as well. A ridge that starts from the door handles on the doorpads goes all the way around to the other side of the car.

Power will come from a new version of Toyota’s very torquey and tractable 1.8 motor, with a significant improvement in refinement expected. Toyota also has an all-new 1.6-litre motor that uses variable valve timing on both inlet and exhaust valves. Known as the 1.6 dual VVT-i, this motor has been specifically designed to deliver very high torque at low engine speeds. This will help both acceleration as well as economy.

Developing 124bhp, this new motor could provide Toyota an opportunity to bridge the gap between the Honda City VTEC and the Civic. It won’t be slow either — Toyota claims a 0-100kph time of 10.4 seconds and a top speed of 195kph, and that’s plenty.

But the real trump card will be an all-new 125bhp aluminum common-rail diesel, which we understand will be sold in India. Using a low-compression ratio but sufficient turbo boost, this motor will offer very strong performance as well as fantastic refinement. Capable of 200kph as well as economy as high as 15 kilometres a litre, this new 2.0-litre motor is one of the most modern diesels to be put to market by Toyota. This motor will also be available with a self- cleaning particulate filter for better emission control. Time for Skoda to rethink its Laura pricing.

Toyota will also have the option of using a six-speed manual gearbox on its cars. The new Corolla will also drive better, claims Toyota. Tuned for greater driving pleasure, the updated strut suspension and electric power steering will deliver a sporty performance, claims the carmaker. The non-independent rear suspension, however, remains.

Toyota will raise the suspension for Indian roads and conditions, as it has on the current version, but this time around we’re quite sure they’ll sort out the suspension fully.

If the reaction to the all-new Camry is anything to go by, the radical looks of the new Corolla are sure to go down well in India. Add in the new diesel motor, a sorted-out suspension and more comfort and space and the new Corolla has enough ammo to take on the wildly popular Civic and the diesel Skoda in one shot. A battle royale is about to ensue, but the winner has already been decided — it’s you the customer!