Reasonably rockin' 'rolla: 2019 Toyota Corolla Hatchback XSE

This is the best version of the Toyota Corolla that we've gotten in a very long time now. I know what you're thinking Corollas are bland and that a really low bar to clear but trust me. A healthy dose of styling and driving care soon make this 2019 X XSE hatchback worth your attention. So grab shotgun with me and I'll explain everything that's great and not so great about this new model. [MUSIC] Of course, we're talking about the hatchback today, and the Toyota Corolla sedan is still the automotive equivalent of getting socks for Christmas. I mean, yeah, you need socks, but come on now, live a little. However, the Corolla hatchback has that dose of style and character that we talked about earlier. Stylistically, it wears Toyota's big-ass grill design language a lot better than larger vehicles like the Toyota Avalon. It's kinda weird looking, but I like what's going on here. nd from the driver seat, the character of this car feels a lot more fun and dynamic than it's specs might imply. Now speaking of specs, under the hood we've got a two liter naturally aspirated four cylinder engine. That makes 168 horsepower and 151 pound feet of torque. Those are pretty modest numbers that it puts through Toyota's dynamic shift continuously variable transmission. Now before you start ragging on this car about [UNKNOWN], let me just say that this power train feels really well balanced, and really well matched to this vehicle. It does that thing that CVT's do really well, where it does a great job making sure you have the torque when you need it without a lot of hunting around for gear because there aren't any. Well, sort of. In the sportiest mode, when you step on the gas, it just gives you the torque without any sort of waiting around like you would with a torque converter automatic, and it's a lot smoother in daily driving than a dual-clutch unit could be at this price. Interestingly, it uses a fixed first gear for launch, which means that off the line, it feels more dynamic than any CVT I've ever tested in this class. And around town the ratios feel better matched to the vehicle than any other CBT I've driven ever. I thought more about how the transmissions work in a separate video on the roadshow.com. You can check it out and nerd out how this gear box works there. Now in the handling department, we have a similar thing. Really surprisingly good for performance but not great feel. The suspension feels well sorted. It has good grip and really good responsiveness, especially on turning when you start chucking this thing around a corner. But the power steering is really light and a little over boosted, so you don't really get good feel through the wheel. I wouldn't call it numb, but it definitely doesn't feel as fun as say a Volkswagen GTI. [MUSIC] If you have a Toyota Corolla, so you've got to have a big dose of practicality to go along with all that newfound fun. And this model year is the first that Toyota safety since Version 2.0 is standard. That means that pretty much every advanced driver [UNKNOWN] feature in Toyota's line is available as a standard feature even on the base Corolla, that includes adaptive cruise control that works in stop and go traffic, pedestrian detection. In Toyota's lane tracing assist system, is basically a really advanced version of lane keeping assist that uses the steering to keep the car centered in its lane. It's kind of weird. It takes a little getting used to but I really like it. And it's impressive on a car that starts around $20,000. Now we talk about the rest of the dashboard tech in a separate video which you'll definitely want to check out. But what we've got here is Toyota's third generation in tune infotainment. The short story is that it's a lot better [UNKNOWN] than it used to be those [UNKNOWN] maybe not my favorite. However, if you carry an iPhone you can get rid of a lot of minute fixed [UNKNOWN] plugging in and you think Apple car plates. Standard equipments on all Corollas. However, [UNKNOWN] is not available for this generation which is a little bit disappointing. The overall between 2019 Toyota Corolla just feels like a more fun An incomplete car than any other Corolla that's come before it, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to somebody looking for something practical, safe, but still kinda fun anda little funky. However, if you're looking for something that's little bit more dynamic I think that some of the weirdness and the feel of this car is not really gonna appeal to Enthusiasts. [MUSIC] It's still really practical, but now there's a dash of fun to go along with it. That's the 2019 Corolla Hatch in a nutshell. Starts at around $20,000 for the base model But the way that I'd go with, full loaded XSE like we have here. It's got all the bells and whistles for around 28 k. And yes that includes the CVT, but if your the kind of person that thinks a manual's magically gonna make this car more fun, well you're better of just getting a more fun car. Something like the new Veloster Turbo or Civic SI. [MUSIC]