FAST FACTS |
| 1. The XRS is powered by the Camry’s 2.4-liter 4-cyl engine with 158hp and 162 ft-lbs of torque.
2. 2. While power options aren’t standard, the sporty looking and powerful XRS model starts at just $20,050. 3. Fuel economy is still quite reasonable (thanks in part to a five-speed automatic) at 22/30 mpg (city/highway). 4. Upgrades over the standard Corolla include the larger engine, 17-inch wheels, a front strut tower bar, front and rear stabilizer bars and a body kit. |
PERFORMANCE: 158 HORSEPOWER AND 162 FT-LBS OF TORQUE
Toyota replaces the standard 1.8-liter Corolla engine, which puts out a modest 132 horsepower and 128 ft.-lbs. of torque, with the 2.4-liter powerplant lifted from the base Camry, which offers 158 ponies and 162 ft.-lbs. of torque. While that motor won’t impress performance drivers in the much heavier Camry, it provides plenty of giddy-up when sitting in the engine bay of the 2,965-pound Corolla package. Add the Toyota 5-seed automatic, with manual shifting option, and you’ll see zero to 60 times in less than 8 seconds, which is much quicker than the competition.
While the transmission shifts smoothly in everyday driving, it does have a tendency to hunt for the right gear when driving spiritedly on twisty country roads. But that’s when you put it into the manumatic mode, and shift it yourself to keep it in the proper gear for maximum power, and fun.
As far as the suspension is concerned, the SRX adds a sports strut tower brace to the standard independent MacPherson strut setup up front, and torsion beam rear suspension with stabilizer bars at both ends. Vehicle Stability Control and Traction Control are standard for safety in all driving conditions. 17-inch wheels with 215/45/17 tires provide good grip and feel when pushing the XRS around corners, and the car feels stable and well planted. Adding to the nimble response of the car is the electronic power assisted rack and pinion steering. Body roll is moderate, and better than the Elantra’s and at least equal to the Sentra’s. The car sometimes feels a bit harsh over broken pavement, but nothing to complain about. In general the ride quality is comfortable.
The ABS brakes work well, and the XRS model adds disc brakes in the rear, rather than the standard Corolla’s rear drum brakes.
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INTERIOR: OPTIONAL LEATHER
The test car had the $1,495 Leather Package, which included heated leather seats, and “molded leather door trim and leather covered console.” The seats were quite comfortable and supportive, but one would be hard pressed to know that the door trim and console were made of anything except textured plastic. In fact, the entire interior and dash had a plastic look and feel to it, that wasn’t quite up to the Nissan Sentra’s appeal. But all the controls in the dash and center stack were right where they should be and quite well laid out and easy to use. In fact, it was nice to get back into an economy car from some of the more expensive cars that I’ve been testing lately, because it reminded me of how a simple, basic control layout can be so much superior to the overly fussy or downright difficult to use controls in luxury cars.
I don’t want to get off on a rant here, but three simple, easy to see and operate round dials for air flow location, fan speed and temperature control can’t be matched. The same goes for the radio controls with six large buttons for pre-sets, and round knobs for volume, tuning, and speaker controls. A convenient slot for CDs and a well-lit LED screen for the information is all anyone needs. But in so many of the more expensive luxury cars nowadays, you feel like you need to take a college course to operate those basic controls.
In many cars equipped with Nav systems, you have to work the heating and radio controls through the touch screen, which means you’ve got to find and select different menus for the heat or radio, so you wind up needing to press on that screen five times before you can increase the fan speed or change the airflow to the dash vents instead of the floor vents. And don’t even get me started with BMW’s I-Drive system! Listen up, OEM’s . . . just keep it simple! Ah, I feel better now.
Rear seat passengers can be comfortable on ling trips, especially if the front passenger seat isn’t pushed all the way back. But like all cars in this category, two is company and three is a crowd, unless they’re all children. Headroom is good. The trunk is fairly large and the rear seats fold forward to add carrying capacity.
SPORTY XRS AERODYNAMICS
The XRS I had was finished in arrest-me red, and was quite striking. Front and rear underbody spoilers (with integrated fog lamps in front) and side rocker panel moldings are striking without being over-done. And a small rear deck lid spoiler adds some flare as well. Together, the bodywork transforms the Corolla from a car that gets lost in the parking lot, to one that attracts without screaming, “Hey look at me.”
AMENITIES AND FEATURES
There are a whole host of niceties and safety features in this car, despite the relatively low price. Front and side air bags with roll sensing curtain air bags, steering wheel audio controls, cruise control, a multi-information on-board computer, MP3 player ready, power windows, shift-activated door locks, a tilt/telescope steering wheel, dual power outlets, alloy wheels, halogen headlights, low tire pressure warning and more.
The lid of the center console slides forward to make it a more useful armrest when driving. Like on the Prius, there is a dual glove box – top portion for papers and lower portion for storing larger items.
THE VERDICT
This is a dandy little stylish sport-sedan that gets 22mpg city and 30mpg highway, despite having more grunt than most of the competition, and costs about the same as comparably equipped cars. The base price of $20,050 is very reasonable, and adding the leather seats, heated mirrors, upgraded stereo system, power windows, locks, keyless entry, etc. only brought the total price up to $23,440 including delivery charges. The Toyota Corolla XRS does everything well at an affordable price.
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PLUS
Good gas mileage |
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MINUS
Transmission has a tendency to hunt for the right gear |
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Nice review. I opted for the less torquey but lighter 1.8 liter 2010 Corolla S with most of the options (sport package including moon roof and alloy wheels) and the manual 5 speed but without the nav or leather seats. The car steers predictably and has a good weighted feel at low speed as well as high speed despite some of the criticism the press has thrown at it. Maybe I was lucky and the 2010 models are better tuned? In any case I have 22 years of driving experience in many different cars accross virtually all continents and can't complain about the Corolla's handling. Tire pressure recommended by Toyota is 32 psi all around on the 16 inch wheels and 30 psi on the 15 inch wheels. I've got the 16 inch alloys with the 205/55 tires and find that 35 psi up front and 33 psi rear are in a sweet spot, saves a bit on tire wear, but still within the 10‰ "comfort" zone. Some folks pump them up to 37 psi and even much higher; I've experimented up to 40 psi and liked the crisp turn-in but I came back to the +10‰ zone because my roads are far from perfect and the tires start to skip a little over bumps and loose grip and I don't want to unecessarily wear down the suspension linkage bushings, shocks, etc.). The manual transmission adds a ton of appeal to the car from a performance, feel, and fuel economy point of view and also saves you a grand in purchase price. It also "connects" you to the road and keeps you more alert in a calm and assertive way. I'm getting about 34 mpg (US gallon) with mixed driving and use it mostly for commuting. Great car, I highly recommend it.
I agree with Joe's comments. I too own a 2010 Corolla S manual 5 speed. Best bang for the buck in the Corolla family; alloy wheels with 205/55 R16 tires (great profile by the way, slightly sportier than the 60 or 65 profile tires but not so extreme that comfort woud be thrown out the window), electric heated mirrors, moon roof, cruise control, etc. and the full aerodynamic kit. The difference between manual and auto on that car is quite amazing. I tried the auto and it just took me a quick drive around the block to understand that the 5 speed manual was a far better choice than the 4 speed automatic. But it's hard to find them in inventory; I hope manufacturers will continue to make manual transmission cars. The gears in the Corolla S shift very smoothly and the VVTi system helps get the most out the engine at any rev. You can drive with a feathery light foot on the accelerator and shift up early at less than 2000 rpm and the car just glides along without any hickups. You can also rev any gear up to maximum torque at around 4400 rpm and the car will accelerate fast on ramps to join speeding traffic on interstate highways. Rev it even higher if you don't mind speeding tickets. It's particularly quiet too (quieter than the Nissan Sentra, Honda Civic, or Mazda 3) thanks to the Lexus derived windshield, lined trunk, and decent soundproofing. MPG and low purchase price were my main priorities but I also wanted a car that wouldn't be too booring to drive or too ugly. Sure, the higher reving Civic Si would've been more fun but it uses only premium gas, costs several thousand dollars more and it's an ugly sister to its European counterpart. The Corolla XRS is probably a great car but I could buy a new base or LE Camry with manual transmission for about the same price and get 6 speeds instead of 5 as well as an improved engine (2.5 liter in the new Camry versus an older 2.4 liter in the Corolla XRS which comes from the older outgoing Camry). To top it off the Camry achieves slightly better MPG than the Corolla XRS. There comes a point in a car line where the top tier stretches too far and better value can be had with the next car model up. Resale value, MPG, purchase price, overall real world performance, comfort... In the same vein a base Honda Accord Coupe is better value overall than a high end Honda Civic Si Coupe.