2009 Toyota Corolla update

Well I mentioned about how dangerous driving the Corolla was in the winter. Guess what I've been proven entirely correct by Toyota USA and that it wasn't just the vehicles I was driving. Read the handling section to see what I wrote about the Corolla's scary winter handling. This is why I rave on about how the car feels, without it means you lost that connection between the car and the road. You'll have less information as a driver about what's going on with your car and what your next actions should be. I'm still disappointed that Toyota has even got to this point.

The sad thing is, Toyota in 2008 was a company flush with cash and they make such a weak product. I know Chrysler makes some horrible cars but they're bleeding cash on a daily basis unlike Toyota who back then was raking in the dough. It seems being the #1 automaker does bad things to the company that reaches it, GM will never be the same again and I doubt will return to that position again. Toyota the current leader on the sales board has lost the quality that was instrumental from making it a small car company into a auto giant.

2009 Toyota Corolla CE

What a ridiculously busy few weeks this has been. 6 straight days of working including today, no doubt I haven't updated for such a long time as a result. Today is a new car for once, a 2009 Toyota Corolla.


Introduction: This is the 10th generation of Toyota Corolla which has 5 trim levels. The CE being the least expensive, the LE being modestly equipped, the S having sport oriented seats and pedals, the XLE being fully loaded with good grain trim and lastly the XRS equipped with a Camry 4-cylinder and a body kit.


Performance: The new Corolla uses a newer 1.8L engine, however the difference in power is rather minimal over the previous one since this newer car is a bit heavier. With 132 hp and 128 lb.ft of torque its not nearly enough to be that different. The only thing this engine really does differently is save fuel a bit better. As a performance engine, this engine is not what you really want.

My Score: 7/10 - No real changes from last time despite the different engine. Slightly better fuel economy however.

Handling: This is the biggest change in the Corolla over the previous 9 generations. This car uses an electronic power steering system partially helping reduce fuel consumption. This is the biggest gripe I have with this new Corolla, there is a complete absence of feel. Steering straight is more difficult because you really have no feedback of how the car is moving. This is by far the dullest and worst feeling steering in the world. The Corolla doesn't change in the handling department other than being a bit worse than before, it still rolls and with the dull steering you'll have no confidence in the corners. This is absolutely terrible that Toyota has done this, removing items that make driving involving. Driving this car in the winter is surprisingly dangerous, it has a tendency to slide from the front, with the weak feedback you feel you have no control while the useless ABS light flashes.

My Score: 0/10 - I have no confidence in its ability with no feedback.


Interior: The last Corolla had a pretty generic interior but the materials were pretty decent along with good build quality. This one didn't follow that idea, instead you get a nicely presentable interior but once you actually see beneath the surface its pretty awful. The materials this time are very very cheap, I expect this from Chrysler but apparently Toyota wanted to make extra dough and used low quality plastic so they scratch ridiculously easy. The gauges are so generic with no imagination put into it, even Kia has better looking gauges. The days of roll up windows I thought would be gone...but surely Toyota felt these relics are still needed, even Nissan dropped this from its Sentra. These Corollas are built in Cambridge Ontario, the build quality is still pretty good. That said build quality doesn't really sustain an unacceptable interior especially with a badge like Toyota's.

My Score: 2/10 - Very poor materials, more generic than before, still has roll up windows and the Corolla isn't the cheapest car in the segment. Preventing a 0 score is due to the good build quality.

Styling: The Corolla has attempted to change its styling away from the admittedly generic 2003-2008 version. The problem however is the styling just doesn't match the way the car actually drives. The new style while borrowed from the Camry shows its more dynamic and seems more exciting...it couldn't be further from the truth of how this Corolla is. The rear end was not really changed so it still retains some generic styling. Not a great effort, actually this car's styling should have been applied to the previous generation while the previous car's body should be used for this one. The last car at least had some excitement in it, this one didn't.

My Score: 5/10 - Attempting to fool people into thinking the car something it isn't. Mostly generic styling borrowed from the Camry.

Value for money: The Corolla usually does well with value for money due to its name and reputation. This one I'm afraid doesn't offer the best value especially considering this car is outdated compared to many of its rivals. The Honda Civic is much more advanced and uses better materials, just pay a bit more and you'll have a better car. The Mazda 3 is superior to this Corolla when it comes down to the driving, significantly better handling and amazing steering feel. Even the generic Cobalt has something against this car...that car uses less cheap material and costs less.

My Score: 3/10 - Its down to that badge and whether you still trust it.

Overall: 17/50 - An extremely dull and horribly boring car, hurt badly by the low quality materials and not so cheap price.

This will be my harshest review of a Toyota. This car is so disappointing in several ways that it in my mind is an embarassment to what the Toyota badge means. Quality is certainly missing with the shockingly cheap plastic used. Toyota used to have "feel" in their "oh what a feeling" slogan, this car just has none of that. What's left is reliability, if it fails here then the car will be the worst car the company's ever made, no joke. Clearly in this segment there are far better choices out there, I would never pay Toyota money for this clearly rubbish product. If you want the reliability go with either the Mazda 3 or Honda Civic, the 3 for the excellent driving experience and the Civic for its fuel economy. This car has shaken my faith in the company, its been that bad.

What happened Toyota? This is the sort of car I expect from a soul less, greedy company. You're not like this...are you?

2006-2008 Toyota Corolla CE

The last one for today since I skipped Friday and Saturday.


Introduction: The Toyota Corolla is one of Toyota's oldest and most successful vehicles in the company's history. So successful that the total amount of cars with the Corolla badge is now the world's top selling car of all time. The car that this review will focus on is the 9th generation Corolla that spans from 2003 to 2008. This version of the Corolla offers a whole range of options from the basic CE to the sports oriented XRS that has the Celica's high revving engine.

We all know how successful the Corolla has been, we can see it everyday. Everywhere you go you can find a Toyota Corolla somewhere in the world, often ranging from very old to very new. The early Corollas allowed Toyota to gain its reputation for reliable cars since these cars while not being all too exciting appear to last so much longer than their owners wanted. I was expecting an average car when I first got into one of these.


Performance: The main Toyota Corolla, not the XRS, uses a normal 1.8L 4-cylinder engine that produces 128 hp and 125 lb.ft of torque. This is an adequate amount of power, due to Toyota putting a lot of sound proofing in their cars the noise is not all that noticeable. This is not the most powerful car in the world but it wasn't meant to be, just adequate for daily driving and it does do this well.

My Score: 8/10 - A decent engine that is quite fitting for the car. Not too impressive but focuses on economics instead like fuel economy, maintenance, etc.

Handling: I never hear good things about Corollas and their handling ability. I was actually rather surprised with this version of the Corolla. The wheel is actually reasonably well weighted and does produce some feel which by this point was lacking in the whole Toyota car lineup. When going around corners the body roll is a bit of a problem making it not nearly as stable as the Celica. Still, with a proper suspension this Corolla chassis is actually in better shape than expected and seems to show in the XRS version.

My Score: 6/10 - Not a great car in terms of handling, but much better than was expected. The car has potential and has a wheel that feels connected to the steering, all things that make the driving experience seem better.


Interior: The interior of this version of the Corolla is pretty average. Like before you don't expect all too much, I still don't understand why Toyota still uses roll up windows for the Corolla since I didn't even think there was a demand for them anymore. Nothing in this interior is all that special but the quality of the materials were at least decent. The car is built in two locations from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada and Fremont, California, USA. The examples I have driven are built from Canada and appear to be built very well.

My Score: 6/10 - An average interior that is built very well.

Styling: The Corolla has rarely ever attempted to use styling that isn't conservative to the times. This generation of Corolla doesn't attempt to change this, its a standard car. Nothing about the way it looks is attractive nor ugly. Its a very neutral looking car but doesn't attempt to be anything more than that.

My Score: 5/10 - Toyota didn't really try to style this car.

Value for money: Much of the time with the Corolla it comes all down to economics. The Corolla CE is actually not very expensive all things considered and is cheaper to buy than the Honda Civic. You hope the car will be reliable and you already know its not going to ruin your wallet when it comes to gas(American cars getting heat here) or insurance(where the Civic is hurt badly). Your buying a pretty safe choice of car with this Corolla, one that really comes down to costs.

My Score: 9/10 - Assuming the car is reliable, there wasn't anything other than the Civic to challenge the Corolla in being affordable to own. It loses the point only because cars like the Mazda3 excels at being a affordable car that excites the young driver, the Corolla doesn't excite this group.

Overall: 34/50 - A solid and reasonable car. If you don't mind the generic interior, the generic styling or the ho hum handling the 9th generation Corolla is a decent worthwhile choice.