Toyota Corolla Touring Sport

NeVeR

Hi All,

I'm thinking of upgrading to a Hybrid, and was looking at the Toyota COrrolla Touring Sport as I need an Estate model.

I like their Sol model and this would be the one I'd go for, I've a test drive lined up for tomorrow or Wednesday.

Has anyone driven one? Any thoughts on it? The price is good for me, but not sure what else is out there for a similar price.

AndyBoBandy

Just be fully aware that no matter what the sales guy says, these cars are 100% petrol powered.

what price are they going for?

NeVeR

30-34k I'm looking at the 34k one, the Sol.

What is the Hybrid side of things then?

Killer K

He means that they are 'self charging' as Toyota calls it - and which annoys a lot of people. Basically the battery is charged by the 1.8 petrol engine and to a much lesser degree by regenerative braking.

I considered buying the same model, Corolla Touring Sport in December. Really like the shape of the car and like the 1.8 hybrid set up (a little low on power) but a very pleasant place to be. When I say low on power, unless you are doing lots of motorway driving or doing lots of overtaking it shouldn't bother you. Wouldn't consider it under powered either. The EV and ice work very well together. Massive boot and nice spec.

Fair play for going the estate route. Would have one (and do have one) over an SUV or saloon any day. I think estates will become more popular in the coming years (at the expense of saloons and hatchbacks as opposed to SUVs).

silver_sky

The only thing that goes into them is petrol. They can recouperate a small bit of energy but that also was originally gained from petrol. Nothing new about them. It's the same 20+ year old stuff from the Prius with some fresh marketing.

Take a look at the MG 5 estate, that may interest you. Full electric and basically same price as the Toyota but then you have the fuel, maintenance, tax, and toll savings.

THEDONWALDO

I picked up a new Corolla TS Sol in January and I’m really happy with it. Getting used to the auto box in the Corolla took a while after always driving manuals but grand now.

the child seat does take up a bit of space in the back of the car but there is loads of boot space and tech in the car. Very comfortable to drive too!

Killer K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118573771#Comment_118573771

The other way of looking at this is it is proven technology. Something Toyota buyers go for given that reliability and value tend to be high on their wish list.

Good call on the MG 5 Estate. It has gotten really good reviews and has a long warranty. The one thing that put me off was the styling. They remind me of those Peugeot estates from the 80s.

Killer K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058230656/toyota-corolla-touring-sport

What did you think of it OP?

dashoonage

ive one since oct last year and love it, one thing to be cautious of is its not a big estate, i came from a VRS hatch and it had a bigger boot....but then again the only thing with a bigger boot than an octavia is a scania with a 40ft.

I'm well happy with the corolla though, SOL model has decent spec for the price etc. I find mine lovely to drive to be honest

Killer K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578377#Comment_118578377

Looked up the Octavia prices there and it looks good value in comparison to the Skoda. Apart from the 1.0 petrol that is, however I don't like the idea of a 1 litre engine in a car of this size. Same with Ford and the 1.0 Ecoboost in the Focus estate.

The 1.8 naturally aspirated petrol would be my preference.

Do you miss the power from the VRS?

silver_sky

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578317#Comment_118578317

The current one does look a bit dated alright. There's a refresh on the way but not sure when exactly. I heard later in the year.

Europe got it first and UK & Ireland got a technical update but no facelift.

Killer K

@silver_sky the front end looks much better in that picture but they could have done a bit more to the side. Don't like the way those lines run below the windows. Could live with it though. I'd imagine they will be very popular with Taxi drivers with the grants they are getting to go full electric.

road_high

Beautiful car the news Corolla tourer. Looks great and fine road presence. Probably as big as an old model Avensis was. Great buy I’d say and surely reflected in the strong resale values

Killer K

The other interesting thing I discovered recently is that Suzuki are selling a rebadged Corolla Touring Sport called the Swace. They also have a rebadged RAV4 but that isn't available here at the moment.

Would be going for the Corolla though as there is no great saving in going for the Swace, especially when you compare specs and consider likely resale value.

silver_sky

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578826#Comment_118578826

They already are very popular with taxi drivers. Quite a lot of those that arrived last year went to taxi drivers. Very good deal!

There's one Irish taxi driver that's been documenting his ownership and experience on YouTube. Some good videos. He moved from a diesel.

https://www.youtube.com/user/MrWingsuited

Killer K

Just saw one on the road as a taxi so far. Need to be getting out more!!

Killer K

dashoonage

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578685#Comment_118578685

Nope, thought i would but i dont. roads are so busy now youre just sitting there in traffic anyway

NeVeR

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578339#Comment_118578339

Loved it.. I ordered one I'll be picking it up end of Feb/ Start or March

NeVeR

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118578707#Comment_118578707

and this is the main reason i didn't got with the MG - the current one just doesn't look the best, the EU one looks amazing, but I spoke to MG Ireland and they said there is no plans to bring it to Ireland..

Killer K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118630001#Comment_118630001

Great decision. Congrats. What colour did you go for?

NeVeR

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118630141#Comment_118630141

I went with Midnight Blue.

Killer K

Very nice. There are enough silver Toyotas on the road already so glad you went with the blue!

NeVeR

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118630350#Comment_118630350

My current car is Silver,,, so wanted something different.

NeVeR

Picked her up yesterday. It came in early.

I love it !!

Killer K

That's a beautiful colour and really suits the car! Well wear and thanks for the photos!

thebackbar

Apologies for dragging up an old thread, but just wondering how you're getting on with the corolla touring now? Still happy?

NeVeR

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119716413#Comment_119716413

Ya still happy with it. Mileage is food, no issues with the car,

Some annoying things like when you connect your phone so Android Auto works it automatically starts playing the last Audio book or Spotify you where listening to.. even if it's been hours/days since you actually listened to it.

Damien360

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754794#Comment_119754794

That’s a function of android auto rather than your Toyota. My wife’s Android phone connects to my Seat and does exactly the same thing. It plays the last YouTube music playlist.

Old diesel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754794#Comment_119754794

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754833#Comment_119754833

The android phones in question aren't Samsungs by any chance.....

In my experience Samsungs do weird glitchy things at times.

Had a modern smartphone Nokia in between two Samsungs and the Nokia was much better behaved from an android viewpoint.

The actual main Samsung phone itself is more solid - ie less likely to break so I've learned to live with glitches.

Damien360

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119759437#Comment_119759437

Hi. No they are google phones. There is a 4A and a 5 in the house and each does exactly the same once connected to android auto.

NeVeR

My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro

thebackbar

Just wondering what price people paid for the toyota corolla touring sol new in 2022 ?

I'm trying to decide between buying a new 2023 Corolla Touring Luna or a second hand 2021 Corollla Touring Sol ?

This one seems a bit expensive https://approvedused.toyota.ie/used-cars/ireland/a0Z6700000e0pgz?Toyota/Corolla/Longford ?

Killer K

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120077772#Comment_120077772

When pricing them last December/January I think the Sol touring was somewhere between 34-35k. The lower spec model with 16inch alloys was somewhere between 29-30k. I know they has a considerable price increase since then. They are a very nice looking car with great practicality.

LasersGoPewPew

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120077772#Comment_120077772

That car you linked doesn't even have parking sensors. There was a 201 SOL with 35k kilometres for sale in a Cork non main dealer that asked 26900 and it sold yesterday after the advert was only up for 1 day.

I priced a Corolla SOL touring sport 1.8 2023 model year which should land in May. Multiple garages quoted me €41,600 on the road including dealer and delivery charges. Mad money for a Corolla with some spec. The 2023 model year has the latest 5th generation hybrid system with 140hp and some upgraded safety tech and parking sensors as standard(optional extra on previous years). Unbelievably most people didn't spec their TS with parking sensors.

I loathe this country's VRT system. In the UK and on the continent they get way better spec such as heated steering wheel, blind spot monitoring and power boot. Some continental specs even have matrix led headlights. In the UK, the 2.0 version is only 1500gbp more whereas here it's like 7-8k more.

There's a shortage of touring sports here and any decently priced ones are snapped up within a day or two. There are a few SOL 2020 and 2021's for sale at Toyota dealers but they're asking at least 3-4k over what they should be IMO.

thebackbar

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120078077#Comment_120078077

Thanks @LasersGoPewPew Im seeing that regarding prices too, have you been able to get a concrete spec for the 2023 toyota touring ? It would be really nice to know what we're getting before i order

LasersGoPewPew

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120081128#Comment_120081128

I was at Toyota Sandyford earlier this week and they had no specifications for MY23 yet. They said they should have a demo car early march with deliveries by end of March

Our Leaf is in the body shop today so have a 212 Corolla Hybrid (not Touring) as a rental. Here are my initial thoughts:

I have only driven a previous gen 1.4 DiD 'Rolla in recent years and I can see why people would choose these cars over that. They are very easy to drive and performance is quite good really. The only noticeable thing is that the road noise is quite high compared to the 2016 Nissan and also you can also hear faint drone of the engine at any speeds and the frequent start/stop cycle is not so nice. I suspect this would be even more noticeable if the rest of car had less noise like when the road surface is smooth.

Handling seems good, it corners quite flat, better than expected and suspension is also very well damped and comfortable. Steering is quite nicely weighted, still a bit light for my taste but totally fine, but this results in a slight tendency to wander as minute force on the wheel immediately changes the course of the car. Probably something you'd get used to quickly. The interior seems of high quality: It feels durable and just good. Nice cluster too with a TFT speedometer and graphics with accompanying analogue gauges. The EV drivetrain makes an effortless pickup from standstill and the engine kicks in rather smoothly but you can sometimes feel a slight jolt when it starts. One particular thing I noticed that it was noticeably easy to drive at constant speed. When I floored it for 80->100 sprint the performance seemed nippy.

So, thumbs up from me if you're on the market for a hybrid car.

road_high

I had a 1.4 Corolla diesel in 2016 for a few days (brand new) and it was so gutless and underpowered. Joining the motorway I felt I had to work my way up to it. So I can see what you mean

kanuseeme

Two years later you could not buy a new diesel from Toyota.

Artur.PL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119754794#Comment_119754794

You can change it in Android Auto settings.