With nearly 40 million units sold, the Toyota Corolla is the best-selling car nameplate on the planet, and this year marks its 47th year on the market. In developing this new 11th generation of Corolla, Toyota designer and engineers relied on exhaustive consumer feedback to help shape key elements of the product on a global scale.
The all-new 11th generation Corolla makes a much stronger design statement, with more compelling exterior and interior executions that challenge the pre-conceptions about Corolla. The next generation Corolla continues the Toyota brand’s recent momentum set forth by design-focused product launches such as Avalon and RAV4.
The all-new Corolla makes an immediate visual impact with a more expressive, chiseled exterior design that elaborates on the “Iconic Dynamism” theme first seen on the Corolla Furia Concept that debuted at the North American International Auto Show. The new Corolla is distinguished by its tauter, more athletic proportions that ride on a longer wheelbase (+ 3.93 inches/ +100 mm compared to current model). With the wheels pushed out toward the corners, compact overhangs, and more tapered front and rear expression, the new Corolla communicates a more dynamic compact sedan form. The new sedan is 3.90 inches (99 mm) longer overall.
The new Corolla features an expressive front fascia with sharper, more pronounced details above a large trapezoidal grill that rests beneath a thin intake inlet below the hood. Sleek, compact LED lamp assemblies were adopted to reduce the corner mass and help accentuate the Corolla’s tapered, rounded-corner, front- end design theme.
A horizontally oriented dash structure helps enhance the interior’s sense of spaciousness while providing a more wide-open, intuitively functional space for interface with vehicle controls. The interior offers a premium aesthetic with its use of piano-black gloss trim highlighted by metallic ornamentation and trim.
As a result of the 3.93 inch increase in vehicle wheelbase, the new Corolla’s interior package has been dramatically improved in terms of passenger comfort, gaining considerable legroom for the rear seat occupants. Compared to the outgoing model, the rear seat hip point has been moved back 2.95 inches (75 mm), and additional leg-room was gained by adopting a slim front seat back.
The 2014 Corolla is available in four distinct grades: L, LE, S, and the new LE Eco grade. While each grade offers its own equipment level, all Corollas feature LED lowbeam headlamps with LED daytime running lights, an in-glass AM/FM antenna, color-keyed outside door handles, color-keyed outside mirrors, a 60/40 split fold-down rear seat, power door locks with automatic locking feature, power windows with driver-side one-touch up/down, air conditioning with pollen filter, standard Bluetooth connectivity and eight airbags.
The new Corolla LE Eco model targets an estimated EPA highway fuel economy rating of over 40 mpg. The Corolla LE Eco is a new grade that enhances the fuel economy with the help of aerodynamic underbody covers, color-keyed rear spoiler, a more efficient 1.8-liter engine with Valvematic technology, low rolling resistance tires on 15-inch wheels or available 16-inch aerodynamic alloy wheels, and an efficient CVT.
The 2014 Corolla offers two efficient 1.8-liter, all-aluminum four-cylinder engines. The base 1.8-liter unit with VVT-i is available on the L, LE, and S grades and is rated at 132 horsepower. The Corolla’s new LE Eco trim level is equipped with a 1.8-liter engine with Valvematic , a valve train technology which appears for the first time in North America with Corolla.
The new Corolla offers improved handling and steering thanks to a rigid unibody that can take advantage of improved suspension tuning to offer a more engaging, better handling, more dynamic car. The Corolla’s unibody makes extensive use of high-strength steel to improve the rigidity of the structure, but also keeps vehicle curb weight under 2,900 pounds for all grades, which helps fuel efficiency. The new Corolla’s suspension uses a Macpherson strut design for the front with a new, more rigid control-arm design. A rear torsion beam arrangement is used for the rear.
The braking system includes a 10.82-inch (275-mm) ventilated front disc, and either a 10.19-inch (259-mm) solid rear disc (available on S-grade) or nine-inch (229-mm) rear drum (all other grades). Like all Toyota models, the 2014 Corolla will feature Toyota’s Star Safety System standard, which includes Vehicle Stability Control (VSC), Traction Control (TRAC), Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist. It also features the standard Smart Stop Technology brake-override system. An electronic tire pressure monitoring system is standard equipment.
