Small fun comfortable efficient and reliable
Bought a used 2021 as I was getting bored of driving a Toyota minivan for work after a lot of research. I got the SE with auto. It’s small fun and surprisingly comfortable. I needed a compromise between comfort reliability efficiency and performance and this was it. Not the fastest to 60 but power available with no hesitation. 10 air bags and safety features are welcome as well.
It’s not slow! One of the last true hatchbacks
Lots of reviews saying this car is too slow. Anyone saying that doesn’t know how to drive a NA 4 cylinder. Between 4,000 and 7,000 rpm this thing MOVES. I’ve gone up to 110 and backed off, but it could’ve kept going. Of course it’s slow next to a charger or STI, but it’s a perfect “drivers car” Car is a great time. Toyota actually lets you turn off all the traction control and stuff so it’s an awesome time if you know how to drive. It drives like the hatchbacks of yesteryear, reminiscent of GC imprezas, Civic EX or a (non-GTI) golf. Steering is a little light as it’s electric but what you miss in the corners is more than made up for when trying to navigate a parking lot. Traction control is a 10/10, when it starts slipping it doesn’t cut power like some cars do. It just send the power where it needs to go an almost never slips even on dirt roads. If you turn the system off it’s a true open diff which is a lot of fun. Auto cruise is awesome, it’s not as food as subarus system but you’ve gotta spend at least $10k more to get a similarly equipped Impreza. I have an NB Miata and 78 midget and this is considerably more fun than either of them. My only complaint is that there is no handbrake so I can’t do skids, but that’s the way the world is now :( Can’t speak to reliability at 1600 miles but hey, at the end of the day it’s a manual transmission 4 cylinder Toyota Corolla, I can’t think of anything known to be more reliable.
Best performance on a car in its class
I was amazed at how good the handling of this car considering it’s size. I enjoy cruising on the highway with its agility . I was not surprised though with the overall experience I have in this car, it’s a Toyota.
