New 2023 Toyota Corolla goes on sale from £29,610

The Toyota Corolla, one of the world’s most popular cars, has been given a mid-life refresh for 2023 and order books are now open. The British-built Corolla is available exclusively with hybrid power in hatchback or Touring Sports estate guise.

In 2018, Toyota launched the 12th generation of its Corolla - which returned the famous nameplate to the UK - replacing the Auris. Once again rivalling the likes of the Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf and the new Peugeot 308, the 2023 model can be had in four trim levels - Icon, Design, GR Sport and Excel. 

Every version of the new Corolla receives Toyota’s latest infotainment system on a 10.5-inch touchscreen. The firm says the system is an “easier, more intuitive user experience and future-proofed so that new features and upgrades can be provided via seamless over-the-air updates.” 

A four-year subscription to Toyota Smart Connect is included, enabling cloud-based navigation and real-time traffic information. There’s also a new ‘on-board voice agent’ that can operate the infotainment functions and even features like operating the windows. 

A new 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster comes as standard across the range, which can be customised to the driver’s preferred driving style with four different modes - Casual, Smart, Sport and Tough. Also inside the new Corolla, Toyota has also given it new graphics, trim and upholstery materials along with ‘Dark and Light’ themes. In addition, there are LED headlights, fog lights, dual-zone automatic air conditioning, reversing camera and heated front seats.

Kicking off the range is the Icon, and in the hatchback bodystyle, it starts from £29,610. For this, you get 16-inch alloy wheels, a wireless charger, keyless entry and front and rear parking sensors. In addition, there are LED headlights, fog lights, dual-zone automatic air conditioning, reversing camera and heated front seats. The Touring Sports bodystyle can also be had from Icon guise and up. 

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Above this, there’s Design from £31,180, which adds 17-inch alloy wheels, bi-LED headlights, tinted rear windows, auto-folding door mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, ambient cabin lighting and the option of a panoramic roof.  

The GR Sport is the sportiest version of the new Corolla (as we’re not getting the 295bhp GR Corolla in the UK). It starts from £32,390 and offers a unique bodykit, 18-inch alloys, GR sports seats and on the Touring model, a hands-free powered tailgate. The GR Sport also offers exclusive paint finishes. 

The Excel model starts from £32,800 and features 18-inch alloy wheels, adaptive headlights, leather sport seats, a head-up display, rear-seat air conditioning, blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert.

All versions of the new Corolla come with the choice of the ‘self-charging’ hybrid powertrain in either 1.8 or 2.0-litre guise, with both options receiving more power in this facelift. The former now produces 138bhp while the latter has been tuned to deliver 193bhp. Both are still mated to a CVT automatic gearbox driving the front wheels.

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The 1.8-litre model’s 0-62mph acceleration time now stands at 9.2 seconds, while the 2.0-litre will complete the same sprint in 7.5 seconds. Despite the increase in performance, CO2 emissions remain unchanged at 102g/km for the 1.8-litre model and 107g/km for the 2.0-litr version. 

Toyota also says the Corolla should feel more refined thanks to a recalibrated throttle set-up and further refinements to powertrain noise under acceleration, making it quieter.

Check out our review on the new Toyota GR86 here...