Toyota COROLLA COLOUR COLLECTION SPECIAL EDITION RANGE
Toyota Have Launched A Colour Collection Special Edition Version Of The Corolla To Keep Their Family Hatchback Fresh. Steve Ghosley Reports
The Toyota Corolla has always had a sound reputation as a medium sized hatchback that is both reliable and practical, if not wonderfully exciting to look at or drive. Recent styling updates, however, have improved the looks and with added safety features along with improved equipment levels, Toyotas long-serving stalwart can still mix it with the latest offerings from
Volkswagen,
Mazda and
Vauxhall. Toyota has now also improved the value-for-money appeal with the introduction of the Colour Collection Special Edition models we look at here.
Realising that the Corolla needed a broader market appeal, Toyota have recently been targeting the younger drivers by promoting the T3 trim level as a more sports-oriented model with new body styling features and a hi-tech interior. They have now carried this further with the Colour Collection Special Edition, which is based on this sporty Corolla T3 grade. Three and five-door hatchback, saloon and estate versions are available with a choice of three engines options depending on the body style chosen. The engine choices are 1.
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4-litre and 1.6-litre VVTi petrol or 2.0-litre D-4D diesel power. Prices start at £10,995 for the 1.
4-litre VVTi three-door model and rise to £14.495 for the 2.0-litre D-4D estate.
Toyota reckon this saves the customer £1,400 over a similarly specified standard model car.
Buyers now get as part of the package a T Sport body styling kit with side skirts and deep front and rear air dams. Theres also wider metallic paint colour choice with Igneous Grey, Ixion Blue and Eclipse Black as well as Silver Steel metallic. Ixion Blue cars come with the added bonus of new Sandu design six-spoke 15-inch alloy wheels.
"Realising that the Corolla needed a broader market appeal, Toyota have recently been targeting the younger drivers"
The Colour Collections specification includes key safety features such as driver, front passenger airbags along with front side and curtain airbags, ABS brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) along with a four-speaker sound system with CD player, air-conditioning, electric windows, electric door mirrors, front fog lamps and 15-inch alloy wheels. Additionally, the hatchback models come with what the manufacturer calls "extra sporting style" that includes a leather trimmed steering wheel and gearshift, carbon fibre style trim details, ancillary audio controls mounted on the steering wheel, side skirts and a rear air dam. And just to make sure you know youre driving something special, theres a Colour Collection Special Edition badge mounted on the rear door. The current model of the Corolla is the ninth generation of a car that was specifically developed for the European market in terms of design, engineering and performance. The Corolla, as Toyota would readily admit, has been a tremendously important car for the company.
They would not be where they are today enjoying such global success without the significant contribution that this car has delivered worldwide since its launch back in 1966. Since then Toyota have sold more than 28 million Corolla models worldwide over its nine generations. The latest car is easy to identify thanks to the sculpted teardrop style headlamps that give the front end a bit more in the way of personality. The grille and bonnet have been subtly changed as well as the tail lamps and rear bumper.
Colour keyed side mouldings also feature. Inside, trim and cabin detailing have been improved and all models are fitted with slick Optitron digital instrument displays and telescopic steering wheel adjustment for improved comfort If you opt for the saloon variant, youll find that the boot is quite a size (437 litres) and the 60/40 split folding rear seats also give a welcome boost to practicality, making the carrying of long and bulky objects simplicity itself. In terms of overall size, the saloon shares the same body dimensions as the estate, which in turn is slightly longer than the hatchback models) due to marginally longer front and rear overhangs. Its worth thinking about if space in your garage is tight.
The Toyotas styling does little to betray the parent companys nationality, instead opting for the sort of clean, global village styling that many pundits would pigeonhole as Germanic. Not so. Yes, theres more than a hint of
Audi A3 in the rear three-quarter view of the three-door variant and the interior is Teutonically dark: but then, were getting used to seeing that. Modern car design now transcends national borders, and the Corolla is prima facie evidence. Toyota has quite unashamedly used the
Volkswagen Golf as its quality benchmark and the cabin therefore features silicone-damped grab handles, soft-touch plastics on the fascia, and doors that say thunk rather than ding when they close. Closer inspection shows little evidence of corner cutting.
Although the steering wheel only adjusts for height, its easy to obtain a comfortable driving position and the sheer ease and intuitiveness of all the minor controls is a testament to Toyotas understanding of how we interact with a car. Certainly, the Corolla is more than just a middleweight makeweight and it can play the patriotic card, since the best selling three and five-door hatch variants in the range are built in Britain. In a world where the customer is king and the choice on offer seems limitless, a product has to offer something special or different to guarantee success. The Corolla Colour Collection Special Edition range is based on a sound and extremely successful formula.
Whether its special enough or different enough to maintain the good times for Toyota only time will tell.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Toyota Corolla Colour Collection Special Edition range
PRICES: £10,995-£14,495 on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 3E-14A
CO2 EMISSIONS: 156-198g/km
PERFORMANCE: [1.6] 0-60mph 10.2s / Max Speed 118mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [1.6] (combined) 40.3mpg / (extra urban) 47.8mpg / (urban) 31.4mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front and side airbags / ABS
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: [5dr] length/width/heightmm 4180/1710/1475
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