For years, the Toyota Prius hybrid (and now optional plug-in hybrid) has been the go-to vehicle for solid fuel economy without the range anxiety associated with pure electric vehicles. However, there’s a new kid on the block that may somewhat push the Prius aside and, ironically enough, it’s also a Toyota. According to recently published EPA fuel economy figures, the new 2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid sedan returns 53/52/52 mpg city/highway/combined.

By comparison, the latest Prius returns 54/50/52 mpg. Nearly identical figures, we know, and there’s a completely logical explanation why: both vehicles are powered by the same Atkinson cycle 1.8-liter inline-four with two electric motors, a nickel-hydride battery, and an e-CVT.

However, the Prius Eco manages to squeeze out an even more impressive EPA-rated 58/53/56 mpg. But the fact remains that the standard Prius hybrid and the new Corolla sedan hybrid are now sort of internal competitors. It’ll be interesting to see how that’ll play out in terms of actual sales figures.

The EPA also released fuel economy figures for the also new non-hybrid Corolla models and, as expected, straight up internal combustion is more efficient than ever. The SE and XSE 2020 Corolla trims, powered by a 2.0-liter inline-four and linked to a six-speed manual return an also impressive 29/36/32 and 29/36/32 mpg, respectively.

Lower trim levels are powered by the smaller 1.8-liter four pot and rated at 29/39/33 with the manual and 30/38/33 mpg with the optional CVT. Moving up the ladder for the more powerful 2.0-liter with 169 hp returns 31/38/34 for the XSE trim and 31/40/34 for other trims.

If you’re in the market for a non-hybrid economy car with high fuel economy scores, the new 2020 Corolla and its also new 2.0-liter inline-four may be the way to go. But it’s the new Corolla Hybrid that’s mighty impressive. Not only does it nearly equal the Prius, but it actually beats the Kia Niro, matches the Honda Insight, and only slightly trails Hyundai Ioniq.

Mere weeks into its life, Gazoo Racing fiddles with the Corolla. This is good news

The Toyota Corolla is back, and with it, much promise of sharper dynamics than ever before. Thus far, we’ve been a bit unmoved by it, essentially because its enthusiasm-sapping hybrids remove any great desire you might have to discover the outer edges of its handling ability.

This Corolla GR Sport – destined for the Geneva Motor Show – does not fix that. Because it uses the same 120bhp 1.8-litre and 178bhp 2.0-litre petrol-electric powertrains as standard. Boo.

But the mere fact it’s wearing GR badges is cause to celebrate; if Gazoo Racing has got its mitts on a Corolla mere weeks into its six- or seven-year life, then the probability of a properly hot GR version – perhaps a seriously hard-edged GRMN, like the Yaris – is surely high. This is Gazoo getting its eye in.

So the Corolla gets nattier 18in alloy wheels, a mildly racier body kit, a weeny diffuser and its own special grey paint option. It does look smart, even if the mechanicals beneath haven’t yet been sharpened up to match.

Quite how they might be is purely speculation; the Yaris GRMN uses a Lotus Elise-sourced engine purely because of the tiny development schedule Gazoo was given in order to pump some out alongside Toyota’s return to the World Rally stage.

We suspect the Corolla’s powertrain will have more thought put into it, and if we were reallyspeculating, we’d begin to wonder if one of BMW’s four-cylinder turbos would slot neatly in the front.

Toyota is using BMW engines in the Supra, after all, and the next 1 Series hot hatch will be front- or four-wheel drive, so whatever powertrain sits beneath its bonnet would likely speak to the Corolla’s oily bits too.

But hey, that’s just us hypothesising. Let us know what form you’d like to see a Corolla hot hatch take below. Ten internet points to the first person who says ‘2JZ’.

The 268-horsepower Toyota GR Yaris joined the list of forbidden fruits we can't get in the United States when it made its global debut at the 2020 Tokyo Auto Salon. The online petition to bring the car here didn't change the company's mind, but product planners have another plan to satisfy motorists seeking a seriously quick hatchback.

Toyota has "an answer" for the GR Yaris (pictured) that's better tailored to the American market, according to Bob Carter, the firm's executive vice president of sales. Speaking to Car & Driver, he explained it's not going to be a federalized version of the rally-bound model sold overseas because the car it's based on isn't available on our shores. The Yaris we get is a re-badged Mazda2 that shares no major parts with the fourth-generation hatchback sold overseas, so giving it World Rally Championship-like power would be easier said than done.

The publication added the hot hatch Carter alluded to will be a spicier evolution of a car already available in America, and it will likely get a variant of the turbocharged, 1.6-liter three-cylinder in the GR Yaris. Reading the tea leaves led Car & Driver to speculate there's a quicker, better-handling Corolla Hatchback around the corner.

It's a reasoning that makes sense. The Corolla is a size bigger than the Yaris, but the two models share a modular platform called TNGA so upgrading it with the GR's turbo-triple and its all-wheel drive system would be relatively straight-forward. It's also right-sized for the American market, while the 268-horsepower output would put it in the same ballpark as the Hyundai Veloster N and the next-generation Volkswagen Golf GTI. There are numerous other models built on TNGA, including the Camry, but they're not particularly well-suited to receiving a high-strung three-cylinder engine, a six-speed manual transmission, and all-wheel drive. GR Prius, anyone?

This isn't the first time Toyota has made subtle comments alluding to a hot hatch for Americans. British magazine Auto Express reported the GR Corolla will arrive by 2023 with a 250-horsepower version of the triple, while Road & Track floated the possibility of using the powertrain in a hot-rodded evolution of the C-HR crossover.

When we'll see Toyota's next America-bound hot hatch is anyone's guess. The GR Yaris is due out by the end of 2020, so don't expect its Americanized sibling to arrive in showrooms until 2021 at the earliest.

Toyota's confirmation that the GR Yaris won't be sold stateside disappointed many American car nerds, but you know that saying about dark clouds and silver linings? It applies here because Toyota has indicated that there's still a hot hatch coming to the United States, one reportedly based on the Corolla Hatchback—and one allegedly borrowing the best part of the GR Yaris: Its drivetrain.

In a wrap-up of new sports cars expected to launch by the end of 2021, Japan's Best Car reports that the GR Yaris's launch later this year will be followed up by the reveal of a model called the Corolla Sport GRMN—not the GR Corolla as we've speculatively called it. Their report corroborates rumors that the caliente Corolla will be powered by the same 1.6-liter turbo-three found in the GR Yaris, in a state of tune producing up to 268 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque. Toyota reportedly won't limit the shared parts to the GR Yaris's engine, either; the Corolla Sport GRMN will reportedly mirror its smaller sibling by also offering a six-speed manual transmission and all-wheel drive.

If you're interested in such a drivetrain but for some reason don't want to be seen behind the wheel of a Corolla Hatchback, rumors suggest in February that the GR Yaris' drivetrain will resurface in at least one other model. That model, however, is reportedly expected to be the next generation C-HR, which will reportedly launch by the end of 2021, and whose GR variant is expected in 2022. That was before COVID-19 rocked the automotive industry, though, so don't be too surprised if Toyota delays all its forthcoming GR products by a few months.

We're just happy to finally get a rally-inspired Toyota hatch—it's been a long time coming.

If you needed any more proof that demand for SUVs and crossovers shows no signs of abating, this is it. Say hello to the Toyota Corolla Cross, a crossover variant of the Japanese marque’s most famous hatchback and arriving just a few months after the Toyota Yaris Cross.

The Toyota Corolla Cross has so far only been unveiled in Thailand and uses the Toyota New Global Architecture C (TGNA-C). It will be sold in both hybrid and petrol forms and is 4,460 mm (175.5 inches) long, 1,825 mm (71.9 inches) wide, and 1,620 mm (63.8) inches tall, complete with a 2,640 mm (103.9 inches) wheelbase.

Entry-level models sold in Thailand come outfitted with a 1.8-liter petrol engine producing 140 hp and 129 lb-ft (175 Nm) of torque. This engine drives the front wheels through a CVT. Toyota being Toyota, a hybrid is also on offer, and combines a 1.8-liter that produces 98 hp and 105 lb-ft (142 Nm) with an electric motor delivering an extra 72 hp and 120 lb-ft (163 Nm) of torque. Paired with this hybrid setup is an electric CVT.

Elsewhere, the Corolla Cross comes with MacPherson strut front suspension, torsion-beam rear suspension, disc brakes at all four corners, and is available with 17- and 18-inch wheels wrapped in 215/60 and 225/50 rubber respectively.

From a visual standpoint, the crossover looks nothing like the Corolla hatchback and instead looks more like a baby RAV4. Found up front is a pronounced black grille as well as sharp headlights and LED daytime running lights. The crossover also includes black bumpers, side skirts, and wheel arches while sporting a pair of black roof rails.

Whereas the exterior look is unique, the interior is very familiar with the Corolla hatchback. There is a large touchscreen jutting out of the dashboard, a digital gauge cluster, and the same air vents as the hatch.

Sales of the new Corolla Cross will kick off this month in Thailand. It will land in other markets in the not too distant future as well, though Toyota hasn’t provided any specific details yet.

Toyota has had something of a performance car revival over the past few years. It has released the Toyota 86 and Supra sports cars, and has even developed TRD versions of the Camry and Avalon. Things are even more exciting overseas with the wild, turbocharged, all-wheel-drive Yaris GR, which will reportedly spawn a fast Corolla for the United States. In the meantime, Toyota has spiced up its humble compact sedan with the 2021 Corolla Apex Edition. It’s a limited edition with an aggressive body kit and chassis upgrades. Unfortunately, while it looks cool, it’s frustrating to drive and expensive for what you get.

So what exactly do you get with the Apex? On the outside, the Apex picks up a unique body kit incorporating a front spoiler, side skirts, and an aggressive rear diffuser, all in gloss black. The trunk spoiler is optional and costs $375. These parts all match the pearl black roof and mirrors, as well as the 18-inch alloy wheels. Toyota claims the wheels are designed to aid brake cooling, and each one weighs 2.2 pounds less than the equivalent wheels for the regular SE and XSE Corollas. The Apex also features bronze accents and LED lighting, and a rear spoiler is available as an option. Inside, not much has changed, but each car gets unique upholstery, cloth for the SE and leatherette for the XSE, with bronze-colored contrast stitching. It’s a mean, sporty-looking thing, and conjures up images of Scion’s glory days.

But what really makes the Corolla Apex appealing are its performance upgrades, which are all focused on improved handling. Stiffer springs and shocks lower the car by 0.6 inch and help reduce body roll. Solid anti-roll bars also contribute to making the Apex corner flatly, and the bumpstops have been changed in an effort to keep the ride tolerable. Steering is also retuned for a more natural build-up of resistance when turning. All-season or summer tires are available for the aforementioned light wheels.



The powertrain is completely unchanged save for a cat-back exhaust that adds a bit more noise. The naturally aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder still makes 169 horsepower and 151 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed manual is available, and it even has rev-matching for downshifts, though that's shared with the regular Corolla. Sadly, you’ll be hard pressed to find one: only 120 of the 6,000 Apex models built will have a manual. The rest get the CVT, as did our test car.

On the road, the Corolla Apex’s suspension mods are extremely obvious, for better and for worse. When hustling it down back roads or curvy on ramps, you’ll be impressed by the near lack of body roll and solid grip. It’s a stiff chassis, too. But before you get to those twisty roads, you’ll be miserable for the entire stretch of straight commuter roads that are bound to be blighted by imperfect pavement. The cabin is kicked and crashed over abrupt bumps, and the whole car jiggles and bounces over waves and dips. It seems like the team in charge equated hard suspension with sporty suspension, and that simply isn’t the case.

This uncompromising chassis character is also at odds with the powertrain and steering. The CVT is the biggest problem, as it falls prey to CVT stereotypes such as rubber banding between rev ranges, and holding high revs under full throttle. This is an issue because the engine is a bit coarse when it’s being thrashed. And now you hear it more because of the cat-back exhaust.



Shifting through 10 artificial gears with the paddles doesn’t improve things since it’s slow and slushy when changing "gear" ratios. Going with the manual would make things significantly better, though you’d still be left with just 169 horsepower, which is well below the at least 200 horsepower of sporty compacts like the Honda Civic Si, Kia Forte GT and Hyundai Elantra N-Line. And the steering is disappointing, too. That it's weighted is fine, but it's missing any useful feedback, and the ratio is sluggish. It feels like an economy car helm with racecar suspension.

Things get worse when you look at the price tag. The Corolla Apex starts at $26,065 for the SE trim with a CVT. Adding the manual transmission brings it to $26,455. Moving up to the XSE model, which is CVT only, adds heated power seats, leatherette upholstery and a price tag of $29,205. That’s about $2,500 more than the Kia Forte GT, and basically even with the Honda Civic Si, both of which offer more power and have a far superior ride and handling balance. The Civic Si also offers performance perks such as a mechanical limited-slip differential and electronically adjustable shocks. And on the comfort side, the Forte GT is available not just with heated power seats, but ventilated seats, as well as wireless phone charging. When so equipped, the Kia is still nearly $4,000 less than the comparable Apex XSE.

It might look good, and it does have a modicum of exclusivity, but the Toyota Corolla Apex doesn’t make sense for anyone. For someone looking for a high-feature commuter, it will be miserably uncomfortable. For someone wanting a sporty car, they’ll be stuck with a frustrating CVT, a relatively weak engine and the knowledge they could've had something more exciting and a better daily driver. And it’s too expensive for everyone.