2018 Toyota Corolla Reviews

The Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport won our previous budget-hatchback comparison, so we've brought it back to see how it fares against two newcomers in the market - the Mazda3 G20 Pure and the Kia Cerato S. All of these models represent the respective entry points to their ranges, and while you might think that'd mean bargain motoring, the prices you'll see can be surprisingly high.

If you need a good little car to get around town, then you could feasibly be looking at one of these three - the Hyundai i30, Mazda 3 or Toyota Corolla. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, so we assembled them to find out which is best for about $25k.

The Toyota Corolla has just ticked over into its 12th generation after selling millions all over the world and is an absolute testament to Toyota's unique blend of quality and crushing dullness.

The Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport 2018 model is the most affordable model in the new hatchback range, and comes with the choice of three drivetrains.The Ascent Sport is available with a 2.0-litre petrol six-speed manual at $22,870, a 2.0-litre petrol with new 10-speed CVT auto at $24,370, or a 1.8-litre petrol-electric hybrid with CVT auto at $25,870.Ascent Sport models come with LED headlights (with auto high-beam), LED daytime running lights, LED tail-lights, 16-inch alloy wheels, an 8.0-inch touchscreen media system with Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, voice recognition, USB/auxiliary connectivity and a six-speaker stereo.Ascent Sport hybrid models get push-button start, keyless entry and dual-zone climate control, where petrol versions have a regular old key and manual air-con. All Ascent Sport models come with a plastic steering wheel with audio controls, but at least there's an electric park brake and a 4.2-inch colour info display for the driver.Safety has been a big focus for Toyota, with every automatic Corolla fitted with auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection (day and night) and bicyclist detection (day), adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning with lane-keeping assist, speed sign recognition, active cornering control (torque vectoring by braking), a reversing camera and seven airbags (dual front, front side, curtain and driver's knee).If you choose the manual, you miss out on fully adaptive cruise that works at all speeds - it gets a 'high-speed active cruise' system instead, plus there's no lane-keeping assist. All models get ISOFIX child-seat anchors.All Corolla models will attract a $550 extra cost for premium paint, while the Ascent Sport is the only variant with optional equipment available: buyers can add sat nav and privacy glass for $1000. We'd suggest you just buy the SX.

The Toyota Corolla SX 2018 hatchback is the mid-point of the three-model range, sitting above the Ascent Sport and below the ZR.The SX petrol model is available with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine with a 10-speed CVT auto priced at $26,870, or a 1.8-litre petrol-electric hybrid with CVT for just $1500 more ($28,370).For your extra expenditure over the Ascent Sport you get exterior differentiators such as fog lights and privacy glass, while inside there's a 'premium steering wheel', dual-zone climate control, a wireless phone charger, push-button start and keyless entry, DAB+ digital radio and satellite navigation with live traffic updates. The SX has two USB ports (one front, one rear), and blind-spot monitoring is added to this grade.That's on top of the already extensive safety kit list, comprising auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection (day and night) and bicyclist detection (day), adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning with lane-keeping assist, speed sign recognition, active cornering control (torque vectoring by braking), a reversing camera and seven airbags (dual front, front side, curtain and driver's knee).The SX has 16-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights (with auto high-beam), LED daytime running lights, LED tail-lights, an 8.0-inch touchscreen media system with Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, voice recognition, a six-speaker stereo.All Corolla models will attract a $550 extra cost for premium paint.

The flagship model in the 2018 Toyota Corolla hatchback line-up is the ZR, which sits above the entry-grade Ascent Sport and mid-spec SX.The high-spec ZR is sold with a petrol-auto 2.0-litre drivetrain, which lists at $30,370, and the 1.8-litre petrol-electric hybrid version is comparatively quite affordable for a flagship hatchback, listing at $31,870.ZR models look the sportiest of the lot, with a set of 18-inch alloy wheels making this model stand out from the pack - and inside there's a fair bit of differentiation, too, with heated front sports seats, leather/'ultrasuede' seat trim, driver's lumbar adjustment, a 7.0-inch driver info display, ambient lighting, a head-up display and a JBL sound system with eight speakers.ZR models also gain electro-chromatic (auto-dimming) rear-view mirror and high-grade bi-LED headlamps, and like the SX, there are two USB ports (one front, one rear), and blind-spot monitoring is included. Plus the ZR has a 'premium steering wheel', dual-zone climate control, a wireless phone charger, push-button start and keyless entry, DAB+ digital radio and satellite navigation with live traffic updates.That's on top of an extensive safety equipment list, with a heavy focus on safety gear: auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection (day and night) and bicyclist detection (day), adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning with lane-keeping assist, speed sign recognition, blind-spot monitoring, active cornering control (torque vectoring by braking), a reversing camera and seven airbags (dual front, front side, curtain and driver's knee).The ZR hybrid model gets the biggest boot of the range because it has a tyre repair kit instead of a spare. The boot space is 333 litres (VDA), as opposed to 217L in all other variants, whether they have a full-size spare (Ascent Sport petrol) or not (all others).All Corolla models will attract a $550 extra cost for premium paint.

The Toyota Corolla 2018 hatchback range is now available with a petrol-electric hybrid drivetrain in every variant.Previously buyers were only able to access a sole hybrid version, but now there's the choice between the Ascent Sport ($25,870), SX ($28,370) or ZR ($31,870).Every Toyota Corolla hybrid model has a 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol-electric drivetrain that combines Toyota's 'e-CVT' automatic transmission with a nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) battery pack and an electric motor with maximum outputs of 53kW/163Nm. Combined maximum power is 90kW. Fuel consumption is class-leading, rated at 4.2L/100km.So, what do you get in each grade of Corolla hybrid? Here's a rundown.The Ascent Sport has LED headlights (with auto high-beam), LED daytime running lights, LED tail-lights, 16-inch alloy wheels, an 8.0-inch touchscreen media system with Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, voice recognition, USB/auxiliary connectivity and a six-speaker stereo, push-button start, keyless entry and dual-zone climate control.All Ascent Sport models come with a plastic steering wheel with audio controls, but at least there's an electric park brake and a 4.2-inch colour info display for the driver.Safety has been a big focus for Toyota, with every automatic Corolla fitted with auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection (day and night) and bicyclist detection (day), adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning with lane-keeping assist, speed sign recognition, active cornering control (torque vectoring by braking), a reversing camera and seven airbags (dual front, front side, curtain and driver's knee).The next step up is the SX, which adds fog-lights, privacy glass, a 'premium steering wheel', a wireless phone charger, DAB+/DAB digital radio and satellite navigation with live traffic updates. The SX has two USB ports (one front, one rear), and blind-spot monitoring is added to this grade and the one above.Flagship ZR grade versions look the sportiest of the lot, with a set of 18-inch alloy wheels adding some presence. Inside there are heated front sports seats, leather/'ultrasuede' seat trim, driver's lumbar adjustment, a 7.0-inch driver info display, ambient lighting, a head-up display and a JBL sound system with eight speakers. ZR models also gain electro-chromatic (auto-dimming) rear-view mirror and high-grade bi-LED headlamps.ZR hybrids have the biggest boot capacity of all Corolla hatch models, with 333 litres of cargo space (VDA). The rest of the hybrid models have a space-saver spare wheel, which impacts boot space to the tune of more than a hundred litres (217L).

There’s no questioning the success of the Toyota Corolla. Whether you compare national sales figures - or ones from abroad - the small-car merits of the good-ol’ Corolla are almost second-to-none.  How else has it managed to stick around for the past 51 years? That, and garner an impressive cult following. But it