The Toyota Corolla badge is to make a comeback, 13 years after being killed off in the UK in favour of the Auris.
The next generation of Toyota’s family hatchbacks, saloons and estates, rivalling the likes of the Ford Focus and Vauxhall Astra and set to launch in early 2019, will be called the Corolla.
The change will take place across all of Toyota’s global markets, the Auris nameplate being completely killed off.
Common underpinnings
Toyota will also follow the lead of other manufacturers in adopting a common platform for all versions of the new Corolla. The Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform will replace the three different platforms currently used in the range.
According to Dr Johan van Zyl, President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe, using the TNGA engineering and design philosophy will bring a whole new dimension to the brand’s next-generation Corolla models. “Adding to Corolla’s renowned quality, desirability and reliability, it delivers the more emotional values that our customers aspire to, such as a distinctive design, interior refinement, rewarding driving dynamics and powerful yet efficient hybrid electric powertrains,” he says.
“There is no better moment than the launch of the upcoming new generation model to reintroduce the Corolla name to our C-segment hatchback and wagon,” van Zyl adds.
The estate version of the new Corolla will be unveiled at the Paris motor show on 2nd October. Also on the stand will be the hatch version which was revealed at the Geneva show in March, at that time still wearing an Auris badge. Both will be built at Toyota’s UK factory in Burnaston, Derbyshire – the plant currently produces the slow-selling Auris.
Both show cars will be hybrid electric versions. The new Corolla range will also be offered with petrol engines but will follow the current trend of dropping diesel options from its line-up.
