Wow - the last time I saw a mainstream publication thrash a new model this badly was when the Ion was introduced:

New Corolla Could, Should Be Better

I won't even bother trying to excerpt any key paragraphs - the whole thing is one slam after another, with a few back-handed compliments thrown in for variety.

 

Nope. My fiance drives a 99 corolla. It's only the 3 speed auto with OD (nope, it's not a 4 speed, 4 speed was optional) and it gets 31 mpg highway and about 25 "around town." The new ones are better though.

2008 Corolla revised EPA estimates:

5 speed manual: 28/37

4 speed auto: 26/35

 

Wow. Now I don't read too many mainstream auto publications, but that is the first time I've ever heard one of them trash a Toyota car so badly.

 

Could we be beginning to see a shift or backlash towards Toyota? After 20+ years of waving the Toyota flag might the press and general public be ready to bring them down a notch or two as bashing Toyota becomes more acceptable.

 

Car and Driver also had a pretty stinging review of the new Corolla....they actually went so far as to say Toyota "should have benchmarked a GM interior for it, then tried to beat it."

 

That is one beautiful piece of writing right there.

 

It's almost dangerous on the highway. She's the type of girl that wants me to drive when we go out and we almost always take the Corolla (our other vehicles are fuel sucking trucks) and over the past 4 1/2 years I've personally put about 20K on that car. The 3 speed is horrible on the highway, it's either a gutless dog or it drops to second and winds the motor up so damn high it sounds like it's gonna blow But it's a Toyota, so it will last forever, right?

 

But what did Montgomery think?

I don't think the exterior is too bad, I like it a little better than the last one. But it would seem that Toyota is starting to be more like how GM was...

 

Nope - I think what we're seeing is that the press loves to bash a bad car, regardless of the badge. The Big 3 stopped getting poor reviews when they stopped producing poor vehicles; for whatever reason, Toyota apparently felt immune to this. Hubris can be painful.

 

Hopefully GM will take an honest stab at the Mazda3 and Civic with the new Cobalt . Those 2 are just in a class all their own , the 3 for design in and out and civic for mechanical performance( not high performance) and chassis .

 

So this is what we get after Toyota delays the launch?

 

I've always seen the Corolla as a more boring but more comfortable alternative to the Civic. In reading this review I'd say it's safe to assume that still holds true, for better or for worse.

I think the EPA fuel economy rating for the regular Corolla is actually a mpg or so above that of the regular civic, too. The observed mileage isn't much of an indicator since they probably drove it harder than somebody would who actually owned one and was just driving it daily to work.

 

I just think it shows that the competition has risen from domestic and foreign brands and Toyota has been cought. They can no longer sit on their name and image but actually need to continue their innovation. After long been seen as the best quality, reliability, fit and finish they now must go a bit further. The bar has been raised and I for one think that Toyota has bitten off a bit more than they can chew.

Think about how many cars or trucks they make that are actually the best in class? Is the Camry, Tundra maybe Corolla and think about the competition today in those classes can you really say Toyota has the best anymore??

 

I don't think anyone would claim the Tundra is best in class.

Camry? Maybe. Depends who you ask. Tacoma? Probably. But it doesn't have much real competition either.
Avalon? Possibly. Again, depends who you ask and also how you define its 'class'.

Right now I'd say Toyota doesn't have any real stunners or market killers except for the Prius. Regardless of what you think of the car itself, it's probably keeping a lot of domestic company managers up at night. That car has done wonders for Toyota's public image as a green and economical car company, which is a great image to have at this point and time. That image rubs off on most of their other vehicles even if it's not legit, and will give them quite a bit of credibility with future eco/fuel-friendly releases of theirs.

 

I went and edited my post. I was asking if the Camry, Tundra or Corolla were best in class. I think we both agree they are not. I do think there was a time recently when the Camry and Corolla were better in class than they are now. Point being the competition has gotten much better and I think Toyota has slipped a bit.

I agree about the Prius as they get a lot of good green press while still dumping some very thirsty Tundra's, Sequoa's and Land Cruisers that are no better than other brands on the market.

I think the Volt will help GM image but I don't think it will make people think GM is green while the huge numbers of full size trucks and Hummers are sold.