Review: 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross
Posted in Vehicle Reviews
Review: 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross
The all-new Toyota Corolla Cross has landed causing a buzz amongst those who recognise the Corolla name as a symbol of reliability.
Now in SUV form, the Corolla Cross retains in dependability while bringing greater versatility to the name. Recently, we took the top-of-the-line Atmos model to the streets of Brisbane to test out its capabilities and see if it stacks up to its iconic namesake.
INITIAL IMPRESSIONS
The Corolla Cross is another addition to Toyota’s midsize SUV lineup slotting between the Yaris Cross and RAV4. The car is available with either a petrol or hybrid powertrain, both of the 2.0-litre front-wheel drive variety, with the upper variants of the hybrid model offering an all-wheel drive option.
The exterior styling of the Corolla Cross has an understated, yet sleek appearance with a subtly aggressive front end akin to its similarly-sized Toyota siblings. The refined stylings continue as you step inside with high quality yet simple finishes offering an exceptional feel to your drive. The seats are exceptionally comfortable, offering ideal positioning for the driver, while the steering wheel is satisfying in hand.
DRIVEABILITY
Toyota has been at the forefront of hybrid vehicle technology for two decades now and this is reflected in the smooth and efficient powertrain of the Corolla Cross. Steering is light and active yet provides enough feedback to ensure you still feel connected to the road. Although it may lack a bit of vigour when putting your foot down, the Corolla Cross makes up for it in the fluidity and stability of its drive. Outside of putting your foot flat to the floor, the hybrid powertrain is silent. Fuel efficiency is stated at 4.4-litre per 100 kilometres for the model we tested. However, ours did come in a touch higher, although we were driving Motorama’s demonstrator model so this was expected with all the short test drives around the local area it had done.
The advanced driver safety technology in the Corolla Cross was great for peace of mind. The Adaptive Cruise Control has the intelligence to adjust the car’s speed for the curves in the road, as well as the speed of cars in front with enough advance notice that you don’t experience an abrupt deceleration. The Blind Spot Monitor and Lane Change Assist also helped negotiate traffic and lane changes with ease without excessive alerts.
The Parking Assist is quite active, however, especially if you have a tight garage space as we do. If you put yourself into a wall, it will not be from the lack of alerts and warnings, plus, the car will automatically engage the brakes if it senses that you’re about to hit something. We loved the high resolution of the front- and rear-facing parking cameras, as well as the detailed 360-degree view available.
LIVEABILITY
Comfort is a defining feature of the Corolla Cross - you could easily sit in the leather-accented seats of the Atmos for hours. The front seats and steering wheel have a heating option, and the soft-touch points around the cabin make the driving experience even more satisfying. Interior space is excellent with plenty of legroom even in the rear seats where you can usually expect to sacrifice some space. You also won’t have to worry about a lack of boot space, with 436 litres available in all but the Atmos variant. This loses about ten litres of volume due to the upgraded JBL audio system.
We would have loved to see more storage space in the front. It is far from non-existent. However, if you like to have your personal items handy and not tucked away in the door or glovebox, you may find it awkward trying to squeeze them into the cup holders or the modest centre console. Nevertheless, your phone always has a dedicated spot to live with a wireless charging station located below the centre dash. The Corolla Cross also features wireless Apple CarPlay (though Android Auto is wired) meaning you can rid yourself of annoying cables.
We were impressed with Toyota’s latest infotainment and navigation technology built into the responsive 8-inch touchscreen. The outstanding feature of this set-up would have to be the petrol price monitoring built directly into the satellite navigation. Rather than pulling out your phone and opening your favourite fuel price monitoring app, you can now see the locations of fuel stations around you complete with current fuel prices listed. This is the first time we’ve seen a feature like this and we love the forward-thinking from Toyota on this one.
COST
Prices for the Corolla Cross start from $36,692 (including on-road costs) for the base model GX with front-wheel drive 2.0-litre petrol powertrain in either Glacier White or Jungle Khaki colourways. The GXL model with the same powertrain will add about another $4,000 to this price while the Atmos starts at $47,560 driveaway. Upgrading to the hybrid engine will result in a price increase between $2,100 and $2,200 depending on the model. As for the all-wheel drive option, this is only available on the hybrid powertrain in the mid-spec GXL and top-of-the-range Atmos models which start from $45,798 and $52,734 respectively.
CONCLUSION
The Corolla Cross offers great functionality in a finish that feels simple yet high quality. The stability it offers combined with the sensible driver safety technology gives you excellent peace of mind on the road while the comfort factor means you won’t have any issues with longer commutes.
We are satisfied that the Corolla Cross reflects the functionality of its namesake while bringing greater versatility with an SUV iteration of this icon of reliability.
