2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback Review: Safe And Reliable, But Not Very Exciting
If you're a gearhead, hearing the words "Toyota Corolla hatchback " will most likely bring to mind the GR Corolla pocket rocket. But that potent little hot hatch has tamer siblings in the Toyota garage that generally stay under the radar. Not because it's a bad car - sure, it is a little meek with 169 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque from its 2.0-liter four-cylinder - but it's still a good urban runabout. The main problem it has is the existence of Honda's Civic Hatch which is hard to fault, and even the Mazda 3 Hatch will steal some of the Corolla's thunder.
New for 2024
Not much changes for the lineup, except that the Nightshade Edition is made available to the hatchback lineup and it gets a new vented sports wing and a black roof. Other changes affect the Corolla lineup as a whole, with package changes being most noteworthy.
2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback Price: Which One to Buy
The MSRP of a new Toyota Corolla Hatchback SE is $23,505, while the Nightshade costs $24,505 and the XSE goes for $26,805. An additional destination fee of $1,095 applies to all Corolla prices.
At these prices, it's not hard to recommend the top trim. The XSE will come in at under $30k at the end of the day, so you might as well go all in. It's worth paying for the nicer upholstery and the additional features, which include seat heating, a premium audio system, a larger digital cluster, and the additional blind-spot monitoring. Among the hatchbacks, our heart belongs to the GR Corolla, but that's a different kettle of fish entirely, so we'll settle for the XSE.
SE | Nightshade Edition | XSE |
---|---|---|
Base | Mid | Top |
$ 23505 | $ 24355 | $ 26805 |
2.0L I4 (169 hp/151 lb-ft), CVT automatic, FWD | Based on the SE, plus: | Based on the SE, plus: |
16-inch alloys and all-LED exterior lighting | Black exterior trim & mirrors | 18-inch alloys, LED foglights |
Multi-link rear suspension | Black roof and spoiler | Heated front seats, leatherette upholstery, eight-way power driver’s seat |
Sports seat with sports fabric inserts | Black mirrors & window trim | Eight-speaker premium JBL audio system |
Leather-trimmed steering wheel | Bronze 18-inch alloys | Seven-inch digital gauge cluster |
Eight-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto | Black interior with red stitching & seat accents | Blind-spot monitoring & rear cross-traffic alert |
Interior and Features
Restricted in the back when it comes to space, the cabin of the Corolla Hatch shows off its compact size. Occupants seated up front won't have much to complain about, though.
Inside the Toyota Corolla Hatchback, you'll find most of the modern conveniences expected of a car in 2024. Like most of its rivals, the Corolla Hatch really comes into its own at the top-end of the range, as the lower-rung trims make do with a small 4.2-inch multi-information display ahead of the driver and an eight-inch touchscreen paired with six speakers. The most premium trim gets a bigger seven-inch digital gauge cluster and an eight-speaker audio system from JBL.
For the most part, the Toyota Corolla Hatchback's interior is pleasant and comfortable, but it's the least spacious among competitors, with rather restricted rear legroom and a smaller trunk. Fabric is standard when it comes to upholstery and the best you'll get on the seats is SofTex.
Space
There is space to seat five in the Toyota Corolla Hatchback, but unlike the Civic and the Mazda 3, it dips below 30 inches when it comes to back-seat legroom. It has the most headroom, all around, and those seated up front will be quite spoiled for room. This isn't surprising when you consider the Corolla rolls on the shortest wheelbase of all three cars, and the Civic is almost 12 inches longer.
Cargo
The Toyota Corolla Hatchback is significantly more practical than its sedan sibling with 17.8 cubic feet of cargo volume behind the second row - that's 6.7 cubes less than the luggage space offered by the Civic Hatchback, thanks to its larger proportions.
At least there are ample small-item storage options in the Corolla hatch, with large door pockets, a lidded bin in the center console, a phone rest that doubles as a wireless charger when so equipped, and four cupholders split equally between the front and rear.
Toyota Corolla Hatchback | Mazda 3 Hatchback | Honda Civic Hatchback | |
---|---|---|---|
Seating | 5 Seater | 5 Seater | 5 Seater |
Headroom | 38.4 in. front 37.6 in. rear | 37.5 - 38 in. front 36.5 - 37.2 in. rear | 37.6-39.3 in. front 37.1 in. rear |
Legroom | 42 in. front 29.9 in. rear | 42.3 in. front 35.1 in. rear | 42.3 in. front 37.4 in. rear |
17.8 ft³ | 20.1 ft³ | 24.5 ft³ |
Materials and Colors
The base model is kitted out in fabric upholstery to retain its budget orientation, and this is available in light Moonstone or dark Black. As its name would suggest, the Nightshade is only available with black cloth seats. The XSE gets the best in the hatchback lineup, with SofTex available in Black or Moonstone.
The only form of leather in the Corolla Hatch is the premium leather wrapped around the steering wheel.
Features and Infotainment
As is the norm in the industry, the best features are reserved for the top model in the lineup, and that's the case with the Corolla Hatch. The base SE gets just the basics, which include power windows, a 4.2-inch multi-information display for the driver, automatic climate control, a 12V power outlet, two USB charging ports, and an eight-inch multimedia touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Six speakers are the standard fare ont he base trims.
The top XSE model is best equipped, gaining standard wireless device charging, heating and power adjustment for the front seats, a larger seven-inch digital gauge cluster, dual-zone climate control, and an eight-speaker JBL Premium audio setup. Wireless charging is the only feature the base models can option on.
SE | Nightshade Edition | XSE | |
---|---|---|---|
Eight-inch multimedia touchscreen | S | S | S |
Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto | S | S | S |
Dual zone climate control and heated front seats | N/A | N/A | S |
JBL Premium audio with eight speakers | N/A | N/A | S |
Wireless device charging | O | O | s |
Performance
Unhurried and meek, the Corolla Hatchback isn't about performance. It's a reliable means of transport, however, and it's easy to drive on the daily commute.
The only Corolla hatch that should be mentioned in the same breath as performance and when quoting 0-60 times is the GR version, and we review that separately. Instead, the regular hatch is sedate and slightly lethargic, making 169 hp and 151 hp from its 2.0-liter inline-four engine. All hatchback models are paired to a CVT that directs power to the front wheels, and it does so without urgency.
While the Toyota Corolla Hatchback serves well as a city runabout that doesn't need to fuss to get from traffic light to traffic light, it's not great when pushed. It'll drone enthusiastically if your right foot is heavy, but that enthusiasm is aural only as this little Toyota isn't going anywhere in a hurry. 0-60 times are more for academic purposes, and you'll need at least 8.3 seconds to hit the magic number, according to independent tests. Regardless of its unhurried nature, it's a pleasant car to drive, even if it doesn't stir up any emotions. That's clearly been reserved for its spicy GR sibling. If it's a nimble and athletic small car you're looking for that isn't exactly track-focused, we'd advise shopping over at Honda.
Fuel Efficiency
Where the Corolla Hatch does well is at the pumps; the efficiency-minded powertrain allows it to achieve EPA ratings of 32/41/35 mpg on the city/highway/combined cycles, although the XSE takes a bit of a knock, likely due to the extra equipment and larger wheels. It is rated at 30/38/33 mpg by the EPA.
All models have a 13.2-gallon fuel capacity, which means you'll get at least 436 miles of range on the XSE and around 462 with the lower trims.
2.0L Inline-4 Gas Continuously Variable Automatic (CVT) FWD | |
---|---|
Power | 169 hp |
Top speed | TBC |
MPG | 32/41/35 mpg - SE & Nightshade 30/38/33 mpg - XSE |
0-60 | 8.3 seconds |
Safety
Safety is a strong suit for the Corolla lineup, with both the IIHS and NHTSA scoring it highly. Toyota's Safety Sense 3.0 is standard on all models.
Despite its slight size, the little Toyota Corolla comes with ten airbags as standard as well as Toyota's Safety Sense 3.0. This includes a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection, full-speed range dynamic radar cruise control, lane departure alert with steering assist, lane tracing assist, road sign assist, automatic high beams, and proactive driving assist. Blind spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert is equipped to the XSE but you can add it at a fee to the other models.
This generous safety suite makes for an excellent safety review for the 2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback. The NHTSA awarded it full marks in all tests barring rollover, where it was given four out of five stars. The IIHS rated the car similarly with all Good scores except for the updated side crash test being rated Acceptable. The Hatch still score a 2023 Top Safety Pick award for 2023.
SE | Nightshade Edition | XSE | |
---|---|---|---|
Full-speed dynamic radar cruise control | S | S | S |
Lane departure assist with steering assist | S | S | S |
Road sign assist | S | S | S |
Proactive driving assist | S | S | S |
Blind spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert | O | O | S |
Reliability
With no recalls listed for the last few years, JD Power's reliability rating for the Toyota Corolla Hatchback and Sedan lineup is rather average, at 76 out of 100. At least buyers get decent cover via warranty for the 2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback. This includes three years/36,000 miles of basic cover, and five years/60,000 miles of cover for the powertrain and restraint systems.
Warranty
Basic | Drivetrain | Corrosion | Roadside Assistance | Maintenance |
---|---|---|---|---|
3 Years / 36,000 Miles | 5 Years / 60,000 Miles | 5 Years / Unlimited Miles | 2 Years / Unlimited Miles | 2 Years / 25,000 Miles |
Design
We can't fault the Corolla Hatchback's exterior design, and among Mazda and Honda Rivals, we do think it's most appealing aesthetically. The hatch gets all-LED lighting, with the headlights and DRLs designed attractively in a sleek, slightly cheeky way that complements the front-end design. It's especially attractive in XSE guise with its integrated LED foglights, color-keyed exterior mirrors, and dual chrome-colored rear diffuser accents. The Nightshade model does as it suggests, blacks out the exterior bits, adds a black rear spoiler, and equips a Midnight Black Metallic roof. The roof and spoiler are available on the other trims as an optional extra.
The base SE runs on 16-inch alloy wheels while the Nightshade gets 18-inch bronze-finish alloy wheels. The XSE gets 18-inch wheels that are graphite colored.
Verdict: Is The 2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback A Good car?
Among such intimidating names as the Honda Civic, the Corolla lineup faces tough competition. The Toyota hatchback is smaller than the Honda in proportions, which also means it's not as spacious inside - at least in terms of legroom and cargo space. It's still a comfortable car, it's well-priced, relatively frugal, and the safety ratings mean it makes for an ideal family carrier. If you're looking for something fun and even mildly exciting, you'd do better with the Civic. But if well-specified, reliable transport in a cute package is all you're looking for, the Corolla Hatchback is worth considering - provided you're not looking to go anywhere in a hurry.