Toyota Corolla with long wheelbase should be viable family car
In a surprise move, Toyota has announced it will import a stretched wheelbase Corolla sedan to Australia in February 2014.
A more spacious cabin will be the most obvious feature of the 100 mm longer wheelbase. Toyota engineers say half the extra length has been devoted to improving the space and comfort of rear-seat passengers, including a significant increase in knee room.
The rest of the extra wheelbase will go into a larger boot, but no details have been provided at this stage.
Corolla sedan should be a viable family car and will sell alongside the existing Camry and Aurion. While Corolla won’t have the same interior width as its bigger brothers it’s likely to be a viable family car for those who only want to carry two teenagers in the rear seat.
The enlarged Toyota Corolla sedan will join the existing Corolla hatchback, which was the biggest selling car in Australia in 2013.
The 11th generation Corolla sedan will be produced in Thailand for the Australian market and is set to go on sale here from the middle of February.
Toyota Australia’s executive director sales and marketing, Tony Cramb said the decision to source the new Corolla sedan from Thailand was based on the plant’s ability to match the quality from Japan. Mr Cramb says, “Australia’s Free Trade Agreement with Thailand has helped Toyota develop a larger car with added features while keeping a lid on prices. Thailand’s automotive manufacturing sector is well-known for producing robust vehicles like the Toyota HiLux.”
Worldwide Corolla sales of Corolla are 40 million since the nameplate was launched in 1966, with more than 1.25 million being sold in Australia. The Corolla was built here for many years prior to 2000.
Stand by for full driving (and passenger-ing) impressions was soon as we can get ourselves into the interesting new sedan model in the Corolla lineup.
