2022 Toyota Corolla Cross treads familiar territory

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The 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross looks familiar, like a new winter season jacket that somehow smells like Grandpa. Toyota’s newest design doesn’t do everything new, but it welcomes buyers coming from Toyota sedans or downsizing from much larger vehicles with a heat but uninspired greeting.

Extra like a smaller RAV4 than an upsized Corolla hatch, the compact crossover offers a proper-sized alternative to the funky Toyota C-HR hatchback that is been paraded about as a crossover considering the fact that 2018. The latest Toyota does not really feel so new, with its out-of-date infotainment technique, buzzy powertrain, and analog gauge cluster. There is even a adhere in the gauge cluster to reset the excursion meter like the previous days. But Toyota has confirmed time and again that its conservative introduction of new automobile systems appeals to buyers who like familiarity. Which is a person explanation it earns a stable TCC Ranking of 6.2 out of 10, which will very likely maximize the moment crash-take a look at success are finalized. 

In my long weekend on the street with the 2022 Toyota Corolla Cross XLE with AWD, I was shocked to not find a CD participant.

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Strike: Appears like a lesser, calmer RAV4 

The five-seat crossover shares styling capabilities with Toyota’s bestselling RAV4, but devoid of the sharp angles entrance and back. The break up upper and reduced grille distances by itself from the far more menacing scowl of the RAV4 with a smile that aims to you should. Black cladding runs more than sq. wheel arches, and curved fenders give it some heft from the rear with out demanding to be taken seriously as an SUV. It is not, and Toyota has struck the stability concerning above-designing some of its most up-to-date styles with a extra unified streamlined glimpse in the Corolla Cross. 

Skip: Boring, buzzy powertrain

There is a lot less to like under the hood, but it is perfectly sufficient for most motorists. The Corolla Cross works by using a 2.-liter inline-4 shared through the relatives, from the Toyota C-HR to the Lexus UX. It helps make 169 hp and 150 lb-ft of torque, and paired with a continually variable automatic transmission it is not going any where in a hurry. That’s fine, but the noise it would make looks as if it is straining for reduction around each bend. Additional than nearly anything else, the noise reveals its economic climate car or truck roots. 

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Strike: Cargo quantity

It remains to be observed if the Corolla Cross will swap the flagging C-HR, which nonetheless marketed 35,700 models in 2021. The squat C-HR holds only 19.1 cubic feet behind the rear seats, or 37 cubes with the seats folded down. The Corolla Cross AWD product I analyzed had 25.2 cubic ft of house with the rear seats up, and the cargo maintain effortlessly managed a Costco operate. Individually, it held my daughter’s significant hockey bag with much less of a dilemma than other small crossovers. In both model, there’s only about 32 inches of rear legroom but head and shoulder area is far better in the Corolla Cross than the C-HR. 

Pass up: Out-of-date interface

Toyota has been rolling out its substantially-enhanced running technique and interface, but the entry-degree Corolla Cross doesn’t get it. The font and graphics will be familiar to anyone who’s driven a Toyota in the past 10 years or two, which provides it a common simplicity lacking in other new vehicles. But it’s dated, like an 8-bit recreation in a electronic metaverse.  

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Hit: Readily available all-wheel generate

Best XLE designs occur with AWD, which you can not get in a C-HR. This must appeal to winter climate drivers who want the extra traction of AWD devoid of the problem of swapping out winter tires.

Overlook: Should really be a hybrid

The loud but successful powertrain has an EPA-rated 29 mpg city, 32 freeway, 30 combined. I arrived up short of that on typically freeway miles, but it is great for an AWD crossover. It would be so considerably better—and quieter—as a hybrid. Probably subsequent 12 months. 

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2022 Toyota Corolla Cross XLE AWD

Base value: $28,640, which include $1,215 location

Price tag as tested: $33,550

Drivetrain: 169-hp 2.-liter inline-4 with a CVT and AWD

EPA fuel economic climate: 29/32/30 mpg

The hits: Tranquil styling, very good cargo area, obtainable AWD

The misses: Loud, out-of-date interface, would be greater as a hybrid

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