The way the world used to work is that you’d get a Toyota Corolla because you needed a car, and while there may have been a feeling of desire attached to that, it likely wouldn’t have been a driving force behind an ultimate purchase.
That’s all changed because the all-new Toyota Auris, which is just the European name for the Corolla, looks rather brilliant. That one leaked image was accurate, and our hopes fulfilled. The Japanese automaker rightly calls this design more “dynamic”, and we’d go as far as predict the hatch market will be in for a welcome focus on aesthetics thanks to this.
The new Auris, as it’s referred to in Geneva, is built upon the same TNGA platform that underpins the fourth-generation Prius, the C-HR crossover, and the new Camry saloon. It will soon form the basis of nearly all modern cars save for ones designed specifically for more utilitarian and/or off-roading purposes.
On the looks themselves, there are definite echoes of the design cues used in the company’s most recent models, which have taken a more aggressive edge in recent years. This is demonstrated by the sculpted bonnet, the wide lower grille, squinted headlights, and various character lines that define nearly ever corner of the Auris’ body.
However, Toyota does seem to be offering a wider array of electrification options to most of their cars, especially in Europe. The company is known for its distaste for diesel engines in their passenger cars, and a more electrified range can only help to fill the gaps where (unturbocharged) combustion-only powertrains fall slightly short: low-end torque and fuel economy.
Upon its European market debut, the core of the all-new Auris’ will be made of a choice of two hybrids - one more geared to efficiency and the other leaning more to using the part-electric drive to aid performance. Guess which one the car above falls into.
It will begin with a conventional petrol engine to kick off the range, a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder presumably the same motor used in the C-HR. From there, there’s a naturally aspirated 1.8-litre four-cylinder paired with Toyota’s hybrid drive, essentially a powertrain shared with the XV50 Prius, and likely to the same 90kW of combined system output.
A 2.0-litre hybrid unit, meanwhile, will be tasked with propelling the sportier range-topping Auris. Working in tandem, it’s able to provide around 180kW to the road. Its unclear which type of transmission it would use, though. Toyota has always preferred their eCVT as a pairing for their hybrids, however it would likely not match the character this Auris variant is trying to project. They also say that the car will feature steering-wheel mounted paddle shifters, further point to a more conventional automatic.
However, because this new 2.0-litre hybrid is confirmed to be one of the first applications of Toyota’s new line of Dynamic Force power units, it will quite likely be mated to their equally new DirectShift CVT, a shifter that melds the better mimics the stepped feel and response of a conventional automatic while preserving the fuel economy of a traditional CVT. To help it tackle corners, this sportier Auris might also feature all-wheel drive and dynamic torque vectoring.
For more on Toyota vehicles, check out our Showroom.
