Will Hybrid Corolla make Prius Better?

Isn’t the Corolla a sedan?

 

Not here - the sedan sells in tiny numbers and isn't HYBRID - only the Hatch.

 

Here, Corolla sales have dropped with the new model about 6-8 mths ago (ours sell about 95%Hatch, and last I heard, 40% Hybrid).

I suspect it's dropped because it's poorly packaged. Driver's seat is great - great place to be if you're by yourself or one passenger. BUT get in the back seat and it's tiny, claustrophobic and visibility out is poor. Then get to the boot (trunk) - and it's pathetic. The Yaris parked beside it had a better boot. Crazy. I think my KE10 Corolla had a better boot in 1969 - though it was a 2dr sedan.

From a packaging point of view, the PRIUS is far superior - they had one on display when I had mine serviced recently. The only thing I thought about the Corolla - I would prefer the Corolla seats in my PRIUS.

 

According to my last Consumers Report people are slightly more satisfied with the standard Prius than the Prime.

By the way the standard Prius shares that spot with the Bolt.

This is the survey Consumers sends out to customers and mentions nothing to do with sales numbers. Why would they mess with

something that is still working. The Prius has been a cash cow.

 

if sales continue to decline, they'll have to do something eventually

 

Are Prius sales slow all over the world or just the US. I agree, it's all in the numbers. My local dealers really don't have any in stock.
I will check their inventory.

Between two dealers there are 5 and only one 2019 that is coming and no Prime.

 

good question, no idea. i'm so parochial. however, toyota makes decisions country by country. if sales keep slipping here, fabulous sales somewhere else won't mean zippitydodah, it'll get deep sixed, or reconfigured in ways to boost sales or profitability.

 

Here's a picture from Toyota's US site, Upcoming Vehicles section.

Technically, yes, it's a sedan, but it's so "blended" it's looking pretty "hatchy!" Pretty close to a -- umm -- a Prius!

A very interesting development indeed. The OP's proposed/hypothesized plans all seem as though they could come to pass. IMO, it seems pretty clear that this car and the Prius probably won't be co-existing in their present (or soon-to-be) forms for very long.

EDIT: I wonder how much trunk space the Corolla will end up having??? The original Camry Hybrid (I drove an 09 for a couple years) was pretty limited in this regard (only about 11.5 cubic feet, IIRC). It doesn't look like there's a lot of room for trunk after they add the HSD. Say what you will about a Prius, it's cavernous under that hatch.

 

I realize that Toyota designs and names its cars differently for different markets around the world. The "down under" Yaris and Corolla may be different than ours in dimensions, designs, and so forth. That said, fresh from the US Toyota site, there are some curious comparisons between the Yaris and the Corolla. Yes, the Yaris's trunk/boot is actually larger than the Corolla, by ~.5 cubic foot (13.0 vs 13.49). In contrast the passenger volume goes hugely in the Corolla's favor (85.9 vs 97.5 cubic feet!). Of course, these numbers reveal little about subjective comfort of any particular occupant location in either car.

What is troubling, as I've already suggested, there doesn't seem to be a lot of room into which the engineers can pack the HSD in the new Corolla. It'll be interesting to see how that comes out in the production version.

But hey, at least the prototype pic of the new Corolla suggests they're getting away from the "asphyxiating catfish" look of the current cars...

 

In the UK we have had the AURUS (changed the name from Corolla) in both a Hybrid & Gas engine for 2 generations and it has sat side by side with the Prius quite happily as a hatch and sports tourer.

The new Corolla looks great, but it has quite a bit less leg room in the rear than the Prius from what I have seen in video reviews. The sports tourer and saloon (sedan) have a longer wheelbase therefore have greater rear legroom but I do not know if it will be as much as the Prius.

Disappointed to see they dropped the joystick for a standard Lexus shifter, hope they dont do that with the next Prius!

 

This is in no sense intended as one of those snotty "I'm smart and you're not..." type of internet discussion responses! With that disclaimer, I was wondering whether they'll be able to get the whole battery and all of its associated stuff (cabling, cooling ducts, mounting and all) entirely under the rear seat of this car. The current Corolla is a bit remarkable in its "packaging bias" (my term, neither scientific nor "official"). This "little" car now offers more passenger volume than, for example, the 2000 Camry (which had "only" 97 cu-ft vs current Corolla's 97.5), but by contrast, it has a pathetically small 13 cu-ft trunk.

Toyota engineers have undeniably proven themselves very capable of coming up with extraordinary packaging solutions. Still, the shape of the "upcoming" car, and the fact that there just isn't much volume left aft of (and under) the passengers in a Corolla leaves me concerned that cargo volume may be a problem issue for this car. I hope not, but we'll see.

 

Good points. You've alluded to another problem area, unrelated to the specific car(s) involved -- a trap I'm well aware of -- and yet I fell into it again. It's the boundary between the purely objective stuff, and the subjective. The numbers are the numbers, period. One of my favorite cars was a 1988 Civic LX sedan I bought new and drove for ten years. I recall from somewhere it had a 13 cu-ft trunk (but today's available numbers say 12 -- who knows...). Anyway, as cars go, I loved that one, but I had a couple episodes of near "disaster" trying to get everything into the trunk of that car. Ever since, to me, 13 cu-ft has been the threshold of "pathetic" (or whatever similar word you might choose to apply) in trunk size. Rational me fully understands that to many people, 13 cu-ft will prove to be perfectly adequate.

One thing is for sure: the Toyota marketing and engineering geniuses will have applied vast amounts of data (that we'll never, ever see...) to decide what possible trunk size will result in the most favorable response to their new car -- and it will come out with something very close to that. As for each of us as buyers, we just have to decide whether what actually emerges is right for us.

 

Just my opinion: they got the bit in their teeth to do just that in 2016, with a mission statement to make the car more "attractive" to the masses. And mostly stumbled.

 

I always like to think of the Hybrid Synergy Drive as being the 'special' part....not necessarily the Prius nameplate.

I'm glad they are expanding the HSD's use.

 

If they wanted to be more attractive to the masses, they would shape it more like a crv

 

I'm afraid that TOYOTA seems to have dropped that ball. The Gen 4 PRIUS is a great compromise - ultra-aerodynamic, stylish, and with good rear sear space and visibility, as well as a big boot (trunk). Pity the front seats aren't more comfortable. And great economy.

But since then, the came out with the C-HR - has comfortable front seats, a quite sporty drive - but the back seat is a joke - neither children or adults can see out - but the boot is about standard for the class. The latest Corolla (hatch at least) has a poor back seat in that visibility for passengers has become marginal, particularly for children - and a pathetic boot - the smallest by far in the class, despite the car being bigger.