2022 Toyota Corolla Cross wants to be the best of both worlds
Cars
Speaker 1: Sometimes a pair of ideas seem dust in the cross paths. Crossover utility vehicles have been gaining traction like a Boulder rolling down a mountain while the Toyota Corolla remains one of the most popular vehicles for the last 50 freaking years. So what happens when you combine the two, you get this the 20, 22 Toyota Corolla across
Speaker 1: Riding on the T N G a C platform and occupying a niche that slots between the CHR [00:00:30] and the RAV4. The Corolla cross may not look too much like a Corolla on the outside, but it keeps the Corolla's theme of in aesthetics alive. Sure. You get diffuse, Ze guys, friendly cues, like extra cladding around the wheel Wells and some bulky fenders over each axle. But otherwise this is a clean, quiet design that families should dig the interior. However, is near a carbon copy of the Corolla sedan. Whether you look at something like the dashboard as a whole or more discreet part, like the air vents, Corolla owners, pretty much know what they're gonna get when they sign up for the Corolla across. And guess [00:01:00] what? That's not a bad. I think at all, this interior is useful and functional as heck. All the controls are with an easy reach and there's plenty of physical buttons for things like the climate control or the infotainment storage abounds in the Corolla across the second row has a 60, 40 split folding bench seat.
Speaker 1: And the car area offers roughly 26 cubic feet of space with the seats up while I've got you here, let's talk about one more thing. I was able to prepare in this script ahead of time tech, the base L gets a seven inch touch screen running Toyota's [00:01:30] traditional infotainment system with apple CarPlay, Android auto, Amazon Alexa compatibility, and Sirius XM, satellite radio, all standard Le and XLE models. Bump that up to eight inches and get the option for a JBL sound system. And when it comes time to charge L models, get two front USB ports while Le and XLE upgrade that to three total in the vehicle, plus a cheap wireless charging pad on the safety front. Well, it's a Toyota, so there's plenty of it. All Corolla across variants. Come with Toyota safety sense 2.0, which [00:02:00] includes automatic emergency braking lane, keep assist and full speed adaptive cruise control Le models at blind spot monitoring while the XLE trim throws parking sensors, and automatic rear breaking into the equation.
Speaker 1: So how does the new crew roll across drive? I know this might shock and amaze you, but it drives like a Corolla. Surprise, surprise. That's [00:02:30] not a bad thing either. The ride is generally pretty well composed airing on the softer side, even with my tester's larger 19 inch alloy wheels, the ride's nice and composed and it never really gets stiff and uncomfortable until you really hit the craggy stuff. Since the Corolla crosses SCO heavier than a regular Corolla sedan, the Corolla SS power train does have to put in a little extra legwork under the hood. Here is a two liter naturally aspirated inline four making 169, nice horsepower and 150 pound feet of torque. And it has to use [00:03:00] all of that to get up the inclines around Austin, Texas, where I currently am. The engine is Coco wailing to the heavens as it thrusts itself, Skyward, but in normal around town driving, it's plenty of get up and go.
Speaker 1: The acceleration would be even poke if it weren't for Toyota's direct shift C BT, which uses an actual physical first gear for low speed acceleration before getting into all the pulleys and belts and stuff of the usual, C B T, and [00:03:30] really that low down get up and go does help get this thing around town, especially when there are, like I said, inclines the CVT also confers the benefits of fuel economy with on wheel drive models, getting an estimated 32 MPG combined and all wheel drive models, getting an estimated 30. And as if that's not enough, even though it is a CVT, it is still rated for 1500 pounds of towing without any extra equipment on all trims sweet. Now, [00:04:00] Normcore might not bring all the tos to the yard, but it is pretty much a recipe for sale success. And in that regard, the 2022 Toyota Corolla cross looks like it's in the right place at the right time taking advantage of the public's love for crossovers while also leveraging some of what has made Toyota, a household name for decades.
