Toyota Corolla: A Study in Mediocrity

2011 Toyota Corolla

 Toyota sells a lot of Corollas every year. A lot. More than 266,000 in 2010 to be exact, by far the best selling compact car in the country. You'd think, then, that Toyota would keep their small car at the top of its game to maintain segment leadership.

You'd be wrong.

In fact, the last groundbreaking change for the Corolla happened way back in 2002, as the last all-new model was launched for the 2003 model year.A profile view of a brand new 2011 Corolla doesn't look all that different from the model that came out nearly 10 years ago.

2003 Corolla (top), 2007 Corolla (middle), 2011 Corolla (bottom)

You think that's bad? That's just the start. The Corolla also comes to the party with a wheezy, 132 horsepower engine, el-cheapo torsion beam rear suspension, and archaic 4-speed automatic transmission. New entries from Chevrolet (Cruze-2011), Honda (Civic-2012), Ford (Focus-2012), and Hyundai (Elantra-2012) have left the Corolla squarely in their dust.

What the Corolla has going for it is something that can't be quickly engineered or bought: Positive brand recognition. Corollas have been efficiently moving people around for decades, without issue, drama, or emotion. This commuter reputation was built upon years and years of well built, solidly engineered, and conservatively styled vehicles.

2011 Corolla interior

This reputation still does most of the salesman's work for him, but the hour is coming when Toyota's may be forced to sell on their merits, not their lineage. For the first time in the nameplate's history, the Corolla has been completely outclassed by competitors both foreign and domestic. Sure, the Corolla regulars will still mostly come and buy what they've always bought, but all it takes is one test drive in an Elantra, Civic, Cruze, or Focus to show just how antiquated the Toyota has become.

The next all-new Corolla is due sometime in the next 3 years, after several modest facelifts of the 2003 model. The new Corolla is  reportedly being based on a version of the Yaris subcompact platform, an effort to save weight and cost.

Until this new car arrives, though, they'll be forced to chose between keeping cash on the hood to win the sales race, or restoring price integrity at the risk of lower, albeit higher profit, sales numbers.

Whatever they do, I hope they focus (no pun intended) on making the new model a class leader. After all, competition is good for all of us.