Video: 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid S Review: Affordably Efficient but Base-Model Bare

For me, the multimedia system was nice. It was very straightforward, easy to figure out. Everything was within easy reach. You know, that is something that was not offensive. Yeah, wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless Android Auto for the base model. That definitely is nice to have and worked well in this car. Yeah, it's, for me, it's an upgrade over older Toyota infotainment systems. Yes. to class-leading, but it's certainly better. But we should definitely talk about that fuel economy. This was far and away- The winner of our fuel economy testing, which doesn't really surprise when it's the only hybrid we have in the test. <v Joe>Yeah, it was 12.7 miles per gallon better than the next best car. Wow. it got on our 200-plus-mile loop was better than any of its EPA ratings. Wow, yeah, and another thing, you know, in the pro column is that quickness. Yeah. from that hybrid powertrain. This felt among the quickest out of all of the vehicles. Yeah, it was the second fastest in zero to 60 and second to fastest, it lost by 1/100 of a second. Like it was right there with the fastest in the test, the Seltos, but also the most fuel-efficient. How cool is that? Yeah, no, and coming in at under $30,000, that's really tough to beat. So if you're on a budget and looking to save money on gas, this is definitely something to consider. But there are gonna be some downsides. So there are some powertrain downsides, and we should start with that. It is noisy. There's just not a lot- A lot of sound-deadening material, I think, in this car. And the powertrain itself is just really rough sounding under hard acceleration. <v Jennifer>Wind noise, road noise, powertrain noise, it was one of the loudest vehicles in the test for sure, which is, it's a deal breaker for me. Yeah. weren't huge fans of the interior. I think this is probably the most basic interior we've got here. <v Brian>Not really surprising, it is the base model, and nothing else here is at the very bottom of its trim levels. But not a lotta fun to be had. Even the Volkswagen has a little bit of blue for some visual pop. This has some blue stitching on the seats and that's about it. Pretty much everything else is black plastic. Yeah, and this is still a $30,000 car, which it's not the least expensive in the test. But if you're behind the wheel, it kinda feels like it. I mean, these are entry-level SUVs, so I get it. Yeah. it much better. Oh yeah. We also need to talk about the Corolla Cross Hybrid's ride quality, which none of us were fans of. I thought it was very bouncy and uncomposed over broken pavement. Joe? (laughing) Yeah, when I look at a car and there are multiple wheel options, like typically, the smallest wheel will have the most side wall tire, and it'll absorb rough roads and impacts. This is the entry-level model, 17-inch wheels. It does not ride well at all. It has harsh impacts. You really feel it almost reverberate throughout the entire car. It's not comfortable. <v Jennifer>You know, reverberate was the word that I was just thinking of too. You know, you hit a bump, terrible bump absorption, and it just goes throughout the entire cabin. Yeah. you know, that's a real deal breaker for me, that overall jittery feeling is just really uncomfortable. One of the other areas the Corolla Cross Hybrid scored poorly was in in-cabin storage. And Joe, I know you have some strong feelings about that. So let's get into it. It's one of those everyday annoyances that there's no place to put your stuff, right? Your keys, your phone, your wallet. And the cubby that's at the bottom of the dashboard ahead of the gear selector, it doesn't fit my phone. Like, my phone will not lay flat. And I don't have a big phone. It's just a normal sized iPhone in a case. And it only fits in at an angle, or if I flip it, it's sticking outta the cubby and it slides out. And then the actual center console storage is also really small. <v Jennifer>They're both just strangely sized and not very useful. Yeah, I found myself using the cup holders a lot for item storage, which is fine if you don't have anything to drink. Yeah. now you're just fumbling for space. It's not great. Yeah. <v Brian>Cargo isn't the worst. It was about mid-pack. But interior room is a very mixed bag. I was comfortable up front, but not at all comfortable in the back. What did you guys think? <v Jennifer>Yeah, absolutely. I really struggled in our car seat check, especially installing rear-facing car seats. A rear-facing convertible and an infant seat, I installed them, could not sit in the passenger seat in front of them without my knees jammed against the glove box, which is a safety and a comfort issue. So it got very low scores for its car seat check. The class as a whole now, of the ones that we tested, actually have really good back seats, except the Corolla Cross. Like it wasn't even close. There is not a lot of back seat room. You know, your knees are close to the seat back. There it's narrow. It's not a place that you wanna spend much time. Yeah, and lest you think that that's a hybrid issue, the back seat measurements for this are identical to the gas version. And we had the same complaints about that back seat. But it's clear that what Toyota spent the money on for this car is its powertrain and its fuel economy and its acceleration. If you'd like to read more and see how it fared in that comparison test of affordable small SUVs, you can find it on cars.com. (light music continues)