Let me get one thing straight instantly: The Corolla Cross is just not a bad automotive. It just happens to compete with plenty of other subcompact crossovers, a few of which possess more character just like the Chevrolet Trax, or off-road chops like the Subaru Crosstrek, fun driving dynamics just like the Mazda CX-30, or near-luxury features just like the Hyundai Kona. The Corolla Cross delivers none of those, nevertheless it does make automotive ownership and operation a complete breeze when you’re the kind who wants your automotive to vanish into the white noise of your life.
The gas-only Corolla Cross is very forgettable, powered by a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter inline-4 that sends 169 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque to either the front or all 4 wheels through a repeatedly variable automatic transmission. This mixture is EPA rated for between 31 mpg city, 33 mpg highway, and 32 mpg combined for essentially the most efficient front-wheel-drive Corolla Cross L, and 29 mpg city, 31 mpg highway, and 30 mpg combined for top XLE AWD cars, which is a bit underwhelming.
On top of that, my test Corolla Cross XLE AWD felt underpowered in plenty of settings, which caused me to push the engine harder and thus achieve even worse results closer to 25 mpg. Once I asked the little two-liter to hustle the three,500-ish kilos the Cross weighed with my butt in the driving force’s seat, it grew quite loud and thrashy. Passing maneuvers required great long-distance vision and lots of patience and the shortage of power became much more apparent after I drove above sea level.
Beyond the automotive’s weak engine, its steering is dead but a minimum of light for straightforward car parking zone maneuvering, and the brakes do their job just high-quality. Toyota’s Safety Sense 3.0 suite of energetic safety features are standard on the Corolla Cross, though you could have to step up from base L to LE grade with a purpose to get blind-spot monitoring, and you could have to get an XLE for front and rear parking assist with automated braking. The adaptive cruise control worked great during my week with the automotive, and it is easy to operate using the steering wheel controls.
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The highest XLE trim gets an upgraded 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster, which is evident and straightforward to see without causing fatigue at night, but navigating through the menus on the cluster is needlessly overcomplicated. The usual 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, nonetheless, may be very clear and straightforward to navigate, nevertheless it lacks a house screen. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard on all Corolla Crosses, and I had no issues with connecting my iPhone 15 to the automotive at any point during my loans.
At the least it could be relatively low cost, with a starting price of $26,485 including destination for the bottom Corolla Cross L FWD, but my loaded Corolla Cross XLE AWD had a sticker price of $33,954. At that price point, the Corolla Cross’s value proposition feels weak.
This Article First Appeared At www.jalopnik.com
