Ready to rock the sedan world
For families and first-car buyers, there’s now a Corolla to suit just about all tastes – not just because it is a Corolla, but because it is a good Corolla
The 2020 Toyota Corolla sedan has arrived, ready to slot in alongside the well-regarded Corolla hatch range to complete Toyota's renewed small car line-up.
The new sedan adds a hybrid option, which is a first for the booted model. Following in the foot-steps of the hatch, the new sedan adopts Toyota's newest sharpened styling direction and unlike the previous two generations that featured a slew of unique panels over shared underpinnings, the vehicle bears a much stronger family resemblance.
On closer analysis, the new Corolla sedan measures 4630mm from nose to the tail – a substantial 255mm longer than the hatch and 10mm up on the outgoing sedan, giving it a more compact look.
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The new sedan adopts the Toyota New Generation Architecture as used by the hatch, C-HR and Prius, but the wheelbase remains the same as the previous sedan at 2700mm, which is 60mm longer than the hatch.
The petrol CVT has real smarts, launches cleanly and avoids the slurring, slow reactions of older CVT autos. The hybrid achieves a similar feel, but uses extra electric torque when more punch is required, doing so effectively.
In terms of equipment, the vehicle has it all, but of course the range of features and trinkets increases as you step up through the range.
Crucially, all variants come with safety kit including autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection and cyclist detection, seven airbags, lane-departure alert with steering assist, road sign recognition, active cornering assist, two ISOFIX and three top-tether child seat mounts, and a reverse camera.
The 2020 Corolla continues the legacy of a sedan, effectively and convincingly, while at the same time addressing packaging issues found in hatch models. For families and first-car buyers, there's now a Corolla to suit just about all tastes – not just because it is a Corolla, but because it is a good Corolla.
