Jaime Velazquez its nitpicky but its not the yaris, is massive and is heavier so that strung out 3 cylinder turbo will be struggling or wont have the same feeling as it would in that tiny yaris
JustAnotherHouseCat Well the current corolla isn’t that much heavier than the Yarris GR. The Corolla weighs 3,060 lbs and the Yarris is about 2,800 lbs so I don’t think it’ll be that much different in performance
"Toyota Corolla Apex is basically a middle-aged man wearing Yeezys." And you decided this how? LOL! Have you ever seen one, much less being in one, yet? LOL!
This is a Lexus grade CVT with a physical first gear. Yes, the 2021 Lexus UX 200 has the same CVT. I would much rather have this CVT than a harsh shifting DCT.
Strong points about the pricing structure - this just feels more like an extra trim package with some stuff that tries to help things... But it's still at the end of the day a Toyota Corolla. If you're spending this kind of money on a compact car you more than likely want something more fun than this like the Honda/Hyundai/VW fun car variants. Or something that feels more luxurious, like a Mazda 3.
With the new Mazda 3 turbo and AWD hatch for only a little more, it’s hard to see what toyota is even trying sell. If you want something with more room for modification, get an SI or Veloster. It just doesn’t make sense and Toyota is falling behind.
@@Cozmozmoz I feel like the Si is the easiest car to deal with modifying I'd be kinda worried about the N boi. Hopefully Mazda can sell enough to keep real automatics around haha never thought I'd say that while my only 2 cars are stick.
@@RCXDerp I'd be worried about the N as well, but at least it has options for enthusiasts. Compared to the gen4 mazda 3, which wasn't built with that in mind at all really, haha. However, I see the market Mazda is trying to carve with the new gen4/ gen4 turbo/ awd, and it's sort of the market I'm in at my current stage of life. I see where Honda is keeping its place for enthusiasts even though they really need to update their offerings and current reliability. I have absolutely no idea what Toyota is trying to achieve right now. They update exteriors to look radical, but continue to make really poor interior choices in material and outdated design. They add power, but continue to make their cars couches on wheels that feel unbalanced outside driving the highway. I don't think they have a clear trajectory other than making their cars appear "sportier and more attractive."
This car doesn't make sense on two main counts. 1. The price, @miles traysandor is correct. 2. The CVT, that nurfs any possible "fun", real first gear or not.
Raptor.Tremor The don’t buy one, buy a Ford Focus. Oh wait, Ford doesn’t make those anymore since the Corolla outsold that garbage mobile by a ratio of about 10,0000 to 1.
Speaking Truths for a guy named “speaking truths” you sure are prone to fallacious reasoning. 1) saying this is overpriced isn’t praising the Ford Focus, so your vituperative comment is irrelevant. 2) Saying this trim is overpriced isn’t a condemnation of the corolla more broadly.
If you like boxing without gloves, riding mountain bike trails on a rigid frame, eating walnuts with the shell, and surgery without anesthesia, this is the car for you! #feeleverything #prettysurethatsloganisalreadytakenbyacontraceptivecompany
8:31 and the visor doesn't even pass the test, throw the car away. For $30k, and what you're getting, I can only see the hardcore enthusiasts considering this, but even then, it's not different enough from other corolla's for me to really see why Toyota would make this. A good review as always!
It’s a ripoff as most Toyota’s are. They assume people want to buy it because they have a reputation or quality. But I don’t like the design or dynamics
Kevin Le no kidding 30k for this trash. Better off with an SI. Toyota is dead when it comes to real enthusiasts and this is only raising the price of JDM imports. Chasers jzx100 soarers and supras
This is a testament to Toyota understanding the consumer. Not everyone is looking for unbridled performance or the very most performance you can throw into an automobile and keep it under $33K. Many just want reliable, affordable fun. There is nothing that screams fun with a stock Corolla. God knows I've driven enough of them over the years. The Apex is a fantastic used option (let someone else absorb the depreciation) that for $25K, is a reliable road carver that won't end emptying your wallet each time you lift it up or open the hood.
I'm glad you showed this car some love Mark. It's sad that these "sporty" little 4 cylinder naturally aspirated engine cars with manual transmissions are becoming obsolete. I'd rather buy one of those that a civic with a turbo any day.
Toyota is getting way too comfortable charging $30k for a 170hp Corolla with minor suspension and anesthetic mods. Hopefully the Toyota fanboys will not support this overpriced car.
@@aseeds7785 I think it's going to be really close to the Civic type R price range. If the GR Corolla doesn't sell well then toyota is gonna say well, we made a performance car but no one wanted to purchase it so it's back to hybrids, SUVs, and collaboration for their performance cars.
I appreciate that you review a selection of vehicles from basic to extreme. Frankly, I'm more interested in the basic vehicle reviews, but it is fun to watch the more esoteric vehicle reviews too.
The only thing left to appreciate about toyota/lexus in the NA market are the LC500 and 86. Everything else is made for Uber and people who doesn't care a what they drive.
I bought my GTI brand new for $23k, which has substantially more performance, a substantially nicer interior, and substantially more tech. Enough said.
@Richard Favreau yea but the Apex specifically is more expensive than its German counterpart. The corrola apex also has less HP and a lower quality ride and interior than its german counterpart. Sorry but id rather spend 24k on a car that is actually quick and fun to drive with a bearable interior vs a 30k corrola with a few minor modifications
@Richard Favreau ivlooked at the corrola and the interior was the cheapest thing iv ever sat in. The exterior is OK but the GLI I bought it leaps and bounds more attractive, doesn't have a shitty CVT and is much better inside. Yea its not 16k off the lot but a regular jetta would be. I admit I wouldnt buy a regular jetta but id pick an equivalent subaru or a honda over a corrola
@Richard Favreau I call the corolla cheap because compared to the jetta styling wise and interior quality wise its a piece of shit. Ill give it reliability yes but its horribly ugly to sit in and the buttons made me cringe when I used them. Id rather buy a subaru with the same quality interior as the corrola but at least it has all wheel drive.
A H All the excitement of driving a Corolla for 30 years. No thanks lol. Although, in a manual variant it probably would be sufficiently fun for all those years.
@@AH-bm4ts You could get a Mazda3 fully loaded for the same price, be nearly as reliable/hassle free, and have a significantly better car across the board.
I'd like to drive a car for more than 20k mi before doing the engine. There are videos of people driving the N off the lot and the engine throws a rod. (yes the actual average for failure 60k mi, but starts making noise around 23k mi.) when is the last time you heard of a Toyota having a engine-related problem? last one I can think of is the gas pedal thing in like 2010, and was basically a floor mat problem, OH NO. Never buy KDM. its just not worth it.
@Richard Favreau yea if I'm gonna splurge to buy a car to gave fun with it sure as hell wouldn't be this. Get over it, this car isn't worth the money. Too many better cars at the price
I can see a very small number of people for whom this makes sense, but it really is overpriced. Lowered springs, summer tires, and stiffening up a few other minor bits shouldn't coat $3000+. If they were only expecting to sell a few hundred amortizing the development costs would push the price up tgat much, but this isn't going to.be a rarity and will likely be made for several years. I kind of wonder if they've just decided to spread out the improvements over several years, as they've done with the 86's incremental improvements. Maybe the Apex will get engine improvements next year. I hope so.
That physical first gear is a brilliant idea. Perfect compromise between the usability of an automatic and the fuel efficiency of a CVT. I drove an 09 Audi A4 with a CVT and it was a nightmare off the line. Half the time the CVT would lag and then jump and make the tires chirp. Never felt confident accelerating from a stop or turning left at a green light with oncoming traffic but it was perfectly usable and responsive after it got going. This physical first gear makes it so that’s no longer an issue. Really smart engineering.
It’s the only reason why I bought this car. I originally wanted a Camry because of the conventional auto (I dislike regular CVTs). I test drove a Corolla with this CVT and liked it a lot , feels much more like an automatic than a CVT.
Seems like the cluster used is out of a lower trim, like an LE. Higher end models have a nicer looking cluster, but I think the reason they stuck to the lower trim one was because it’s something that would be appealing to people buying a more sporty focused model. I think the cluster looks nice, it would be really suited if the car was a manual. It would annoy me if I was driving a manual with a digital gauge. If you’re getting an auto I guess you’d be disappointed, but maybe you should get something else to begin with.
Since they are limiting production of them it's gonna be a situation where even though and is over charged right now they're so rare that to gonna keep their value Especially the manual even now it's a pretty stupid trim and a pretty stupid car
I was epically disappointed by that engine. I'm sure it has more zoot than this, but it's definitely not impressive, at least not lugging the IS chassis around.
@@jhelmsing dude the engine in the corolla apex is pathetic, like 169 hp for 3000ish lbs (~1400kg) is sad in a world with the si and veloster turbo (and even new Mazda 3 for a more lux less sport buy). The 2.0t from the lexus would be a different beast in the lil corolla than it is in the old heavy IS. This car dissapoints me, but I have hope with the 86 refresh rumored and the supra, that Toyota will at least ignore enthusiasts a little less. Either that or the Koreans and Honda will keep those sales with the excellant civic and veloster.
@@m1l3s27 I get it. I just think Toyota overall has moved steadily away from the enthusiast realm. They (like BMW) are slapping F-sport and TRD badges on SUV's and trucks, putting TRD badges and appearance packages on lukewarm Camrys, refuse to put an actual powerplant in the 86, and sell a rebadged BMW as a Supra now. They're not at all capable of making a stirring driver's car at this point, and like most of their other engines, that turbo I4 is near the bottom of the pile in terms of actual performance. They need to quit phoning it in with these half baked efforts or just commit fully to making economical reliable commuter cars and forget whatever sporty aspirations they have. They're suffering from an identity crisis.
Considering how the current 86 is the spiritual successor to the original AE86, applying an APEX trim to that car would have been more appropriate. But people buy the Corolla, not the 86, so I (kinda) see why they did it. Wonderful visor test by the way :)
Esteban T. With FWD? Toyota started going down hill in the name of profits since the ae111. FWD is just cheaper to make and package. Main reason why they stopped rwd cars and they still don’t care to create a competitive rwd platform. I’d much rather pay 20k for a real ae86 trueno over this trash
d1zguy Yeah that’s all true. The preference over FWD is their slogan of safety+ all your reasons. Too bad they won’t even try an AWD special limited edition with 200hp range You’re right I’d rather build my own for $20k too
4:37: "It's old school" I think this is more than you guys realize. The center stack button layout and tactile feel are like that from 80's electronics. When I use the radio it just brings me back to old walkmans and handheld electronic toys. I don't mean this derisively, but the style is really bringing it back to that era. Speaking of: the tactile feel of the steering wheel buttons in this generation is meh. There's hardly any button travel, and it just bottoms out when you press a button. Of the Civic, Impreza and Mazda3 I've tried, the Toyota has the cheapest feeling in this regards.
As an Si owner I'd probably still take the 2L NA civic manual with no adaptive shocks over this sad boi. I wish Toyota made something appealing literally had 0 mechanical problems on my 2000 camry.
I feel like the SI is not worth it if you can get an ex with a manual and the type R is only 10k more, might as well pay the extra 10k for 100+ hp and less value depreciation
Thank you for the graphic showing the transmission! We have a CVT Outback, DSG Sportwagen, and 6-sp manual Type R. Good to see how the CVT works (with a real 1st gear no less). Great work.
in some countries cars are just ridiculous cheap, 30k for a luxury specced rav4 that like insanely cheap. Almost for free. You know what a specced out rav4 hybrid costs in the Netherlands? 57000 USD. medium specced corolla hybrid in the netherlands? 35000 USD . Its ridiculous and the reason why everyone here drives 10 year old cars.
I'm jealous. I really wanted that car to come to the US. Now we get an overpriced Corolla with 169hp. I have no interest in the GR Corolla either unless it has those wide fenders like the GR Yaris along with awd.
Richard Favreau def. and I totally agree about turbos being less reliable over time. I used to love them but now I prefer naturally aspired. I think the Forte GT is personally awesome looking and packed super nice for the money. Toyota has an amazing reputation for quality. I’ve never driven / had one tho
This is my little personal testimonial on Toyota Corolla reliability; my former wife bought a Corolla when she graduated from college in early 2000s. Ever since we met in our 20s I have owned Korean, German and domestic cars in a time span of almost twenty years, guess what she still drives Corolla. I used jokes about the longevity of Toyota cars which will last forever; Corolla outlasted our marriage lasted about a decade and I am pretty sure it will be the first car my son will own in few years. True story.
APEX gives me nostalgia to Need For Speed Underground 2, Corolla AE86. I burned a permanent speedometer outline into my parents TV from playing that game so much.
No, the 2020 Honda Accord Sport manual, always hard to find and now admittedly done (none made since 2019, I think?) - that should make you sad. This Corolla? Not so much. Toyota sucks the fun out of virtually everything, even manual transmissions, when it comes to mass market vehicles.
Part of the Toyota marketing...the other 5800 or so Corollas will probably be sold to those unsuspecting, non-enthusiast appliance buyers looking for at LE or base SE and go, "oh look a Corolla that looks so sporty with that wang", I'll go get that one instead. Then they will get punished with that stiff ride.
@@blautens I bought a 6-speed 2020 hatch this year, without knowing how to drive a manual (bought this as a second car, I'm keeping my automatic). Anyway, this car was super easy to learn to drive. I failed in the past to learn manual, and I'm so happy I finally learned. I'm 35 years old, and I've been wanting to learn to drive a manual for many years. The Corolla might not be the most exciting, but it excels as a "training car" for someone like me, who wants to learn to drive stick.
Great Music for the intro and tracks showing on the infotainment screen. I like the design and I see new Corollas often here in Germany, most are Hybrid though and they only come as a hatchback.
I have the XSE trim of this car. It’s actually very good in pretty much every aspect. For what it is at least. Only complaint is the paint is thin, should be a better motor / different transmission option for the XSE.
Although I respect the reviewers' opinion, I feel that this car has not really been properly appreciated. The review car is the XSE Apex at $28,710, which gets close to Civic Si/Veloster N pricing. However, the SE Apex is $25,570, and gives up only some fit and finish -- basically, it has cloth seats. For a lot of people, $33K for a WRX is too much of a stretch compared to $26K. The regular SE is $22,875, so it is about a $2700 upgrade for the Apex package which includes quite a lot of good stuff including flow-formed wheels, better tires and suspension/exhaust upgrades. I think there is a place for a "four door Miata," or a mid-$20K, naturally aspirated 4cyl making about 160hp, that fits the "drive a slow car fast" sports car archetype -- a car you can wring out at every red light and stop sign, and does braking and cornering as well as any other sports car. A car that makes regular sub-65mph driving on public roads a lot more fun. Whether the Apex hits this mark I don't know, but they are trying. One advantage of this framework is: a simple naturally aspirated drivetrain that offers both high gas mileage and low maintenance hassles; and, probably, lower insurance costs. Edmunds' five-year cost-to-own calculator shows the Corolla SE Apex costs $14,000 less over five years than the WRX in Premium trim. That's a lot of extra dough to enjoy some "vroom vroom" on the way to work. The CVT system actually includes a separate first gear. In hard acceleration to 65mph, you are only going to use 1st and 2nd gear anyway, so it is almost equivalent to a geared automatic. Plus, you get the CVT efficiency for highway cruising. I am sure the Toyota engineers were thinking along these lines. If the Apex handles well, it can certainly be called a sports car, despite its small engine. The first Porsche 911 of the 1960s/early 1970s only had about 160hp, and the original Miata NA had only 116hp from its 1.6L engine. Today, sub-200hp Miatas are still setting great track times. The reviewers should have taken this car to the track -- maybe, a track for slower speeds, like an autocross course. I personally used to drive an NA Miata modified to "SCCA spec Miata" standard, including suspension, exhaust and tire upgrades, which was previously owned by an avid autocross enthusiast. It was a lot of fun, especially with the all-manual steering rack. Naturally, I would be interested in a four-door version of the same, but all we have here is "the ride is harsh," and "it doesn't have a powerful engine." In other words, "it's not a cushy highway cruiser;" and, "it's not an M3." We already know what it is not.
Your reviews are always great . Always love how you reason on the purpose of the vehicle and not simply what you think it should be. Honestly ,some vehicles will have only certain features due to its purpose. The corolla is the best selling sedan worldwide for the very reason you stressed... reliability. if you live a country like mine where potholes are a main feature of the roads...then you think of corolla. The reviews are deep and we'll thought out. I'm surprised you have to keep encouraging persons to subscribe....I did on the first review I watched
When I first heard about the Apex my first though was maybe Toyota finally built a Corolla type r but sadly that doesn’t seem to be the case. The low number of manuals on this car seems like a mistake. The person who would buy this car for that amount of money would want the manual. The split should have been 50/50
They have no balls to just make it a Si like Honda. If it had a decent attempt at a diff and the manuals weren't so rare might've put up a fight against an Si.
@@DodgerBlueRobert well, I just picked up a Cadillac ELR, $75,000 car when new, for $17,000. That is a screaming deal. It has 44,000 miles on it what fool would pay 20 + thousand for the lowly Corolla? That doesn't make sense. That old saying, a fool and his money...
I am the first one to say most car companies styling a design is terrible and has been for the last 30 years, but I like this car inside and out. It needs to have 200 horsepower and a manual transmission.
Another level of review we're almost not getting anywhere else. Just disappointed with the sneakers not being Adike or Nididas, but I guess life can be tough sometimes.
Agree with Jack on how this car stacks within the price range. Also appreciated your perspective on another flavour offering in the market. It’s good to consider different perspectives 😎 thanks guys!
