The interior of our Toyota Corolla tester is comfortable and functional. FAST FACTS
* Model: 2018 Toyota Corolla XSE * Exterior color: Slate Metallic * Interior color: Black * Engine: 1.8-liter, four-cylinder * Horsepower: 132 * Transmission: CVT * Fuel economy: 35 mpg highway, 28 mpg city * Local Dealer: Capital Toyota, Toyota of Cleveland, North Georgia Toyota * MSRP (as tested): $24,150
Toyota sold about 28,000 Corolla compact cars last month. That is an impressive number, but it’s fewer than the 31,000-plus Corollas the company sold in June 2017.
View other Test Drive stories by Mark Kennedy
Looking for a used or new car?
The rise of SUVs has dented nearly every sedan segment – including Toyota’s fleet – but the bullet-proof little Corolla is still a good choice for those who want reliable, A-to-B transportation.
The Corolla’s secret weapons are a 5-star safety rating and a raft of safety-tech features that only a few years ago were available only on luxury cars. Our test car – an XSE model on one-week loan from Toyota – has Toyota’s Safety Sense package which includes adaptive cruise control, automatic headlights, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking.
In a week of commuting to work in downtown Chattanooga, the Corolla tried to break me of the habit of changing lanes without signaling on clear stretches of Highway 27. The Corolla’s internal safety nannies gently nudge you back into your home lane if you forget to signal. The lane-keep assist feature compares to a soft poke to the ribs from your spouse when you fall asleep in church.