Toyota has released 2017 prices for some of its small cars, and it looks like a name change (and modest power increase) tacked a slight premium onto the Toyota 86, formerly the Scion FR-S.
A sign of our automated times, it looks like the manual transmission’s days could be numbered in the Corolla lineup.
The rear-drive 86 sport coupe benefits from a mid-cycle restyle in addition to its name change, while its engine adds five horsepower and five pound-feet of torque, for an output of 205 hp and 156 lb-ft. Pricing starts at $26,255, an increase of $950 over 2016 models. At $26,975, automatic transmission versions see a $570 price bump over last year.
The Corolla lineup sees a significantly higher base price, thanks to a standard continuously variable transmission on the base L trim line. With an MSRP of $18,500, the base L is $600 more than a comparatively equipped 2016 model, and $1,200 more than a 2016 L with a 6-speed manual transmission.
So, the base stick-shift Corolla will soon be a thing of the past. While it appeared on the L, S, and SE models in 2016, in 2017 the manual tranny is only offered on a single model, the sport-oriented SE. The price of that model doesn’t change, while others (with the exception of the new XLE and XSE trim lines) rise. The S model will disappear from the lineup.
All Corollas gain a freshened face with new grille and LED headlamps, as well as audio and connectivity upgrades. The higher base price of the L model includes a standard backup camera.
The Corolla iM, formerly the Scion iM, sees an inflationary price bump for both manual and automatic variants. A manual iM carries an MSRP of $18,750, a $290 increase compared to 2016, while the automatic version sees an identical price bump to $19,490.
iM models gain Toyota’s TSS-C safety package for 2017, containing a lane-departure warning system, automatic high beams and a pre-collision system. The automaker claims the rebadged iM offers a broader torque curve, thanks to continuously variable valve timing technology.
[Image: Toyota]
because the FR-S wasn’t already way overpriced. I do not get the appeal of this thing.
The appeal was for a very vocal subset of enthusiasts and magazine types who wished for the low powered coupes of thier youth. Unfortunately in a world where even grocery getters have 300 horsepower the Toyobarus look boring on paper. Especially when the guys buying them have dreams of beatiNguyen up on domestic pony cars
“The appeal was for a very vocal subset of enthusiasts and magazine types who wished for the low powered coupes of thier youth.”
Nonsense. It’s for a subset of enthusiasts who want a sporting and reasonably priced rear drive coupe, and were willing to put up with the modest power the FR-S/BRZ comes with in order to have those other things. I doubt that there’s a one of them that would turn down another 50 hp if it were on offer. As one might imagine, there’s now a substantial cottage industry devoted to various remedies for this.
I don’t own one, but a couple of my friends have them, one of which I’ve driven on the track. Nice handling, very smooth engine, could use both more brakes and more go. Very comfortable and pleasant car for the street, where it has adequate power for everyday use.
Which begs the question “why give up the cheapest thing toyota could supply for the most expensive features”? Of course the real question is why Toyota insists on making this stupid question.
Go read the FiST review right after this and tell me why you should cough up an extra $10k for RWD. I drove the hell out of my father’s AE-85 (although wiki thinks its an 86, I’m pretty sure the gutless SR-5 was an 85). While I’d love to have a redesigned one, two things I wouldn’t want is the low power and the way it tried to shake itself to death at 80mph and above (not that I did that on the roads of course). The low power sounded adequate back when it was being hyped to high heaven (especially places like this) but doesn’t seem to work as well in real life.
I’m not surprised to see the Corolla lose its manual transmission. It seemed to me the only reason any Corollas had a manual was to offer a price leader, and especially now with two lower priced cars in the lineup, a cheap Corolla doesn’t make much sense.
I’d expect the manual to start disappearing from other makers’ compact offerings shortly.
Except the Corolla didn’t lose its manual transmission. I’m
I should have been more specific. The Corolla loses its stick shift in its lower trim lines.
The world will not lose anything if Corolla lost its manual transmission. What enthusiast will want to buy Corolla? So, it is actually smart move to have manual in S model only. 5 years ago I drove Corolla S manual. It had the worst clutch/shifter combination I ever drove. My test drive was over in less than 300 yards. Would be interesting to try how does it feel now.
The best Corolla is the one being built by Mazda in Mexico. And the Yaris IA, or whatever it’s called, will still have a great Mazda manual.
Corolla needs a lot more than a manual transmission to become fun to drive anyway. Smart move. I don’t lament the death of stickshift Camrys and CR-Vs. It’s the lack of stickshift’s availability in cars like the ATS 3.6 and the S3/TT that worries me.
An XSE Corolla with the same 1.8 that earns it bottom tier acceleration going up against the Civic 1.5 and Mazda3? Just another chance for the car mags to publicly kick it in the groin and it will deserve it.
If the XSE tunes the suspension to similar effect as the Camry XSE, that’s a good thing but without more power you are only going to appeal to people who like the additional feature content or see bumper flourishes and red stitching on a coal-black interior as sporty. There’s probably more of those people anyway, but the Corolla would be a much more honest product if they focused on ride quality and interior appointments rather than a fake sport trim. I can respect a soft, dull, somewhat upscale-for-the-class car that was deliberately engineered as such for a certain buyer. A 132hp “sport” version is disingenuous.
Normally I’m against boosted small fours replacing larger fours, but given how wimpy the Corolla is, a 1.6 turbo version of the current engine with at least 175 horsepower would be a welcome change.
Indeed, but I don’t see conservative Toyota developing a new engine just for one trim of this car. They’ve got a 178hp 2.5 on the shelf already and have shoved it under the hood of Corollas in the past. It still wouldn’t catch the Civic or 3, but it probably would be in the ballpark. Toyota seems to do well enough sales-wise with their odd approaches to “sporty” that they don’t need my advice to sell cars, but this XSE Corolla looks like a joke to me.
Well presumably it would become the new base Camry engine, with that new Lexus turbo 4 replacing the V6.
The XSE does tune rge steering and suspension from other models. This gen Corolla sport models starterd having mechanical differences where as past gen S models were appearance package.
That’s good, I like the XSE tuning in the Camry and think it makes a very noticeable and appreciated contrast to the softer LE/XLE trims. But the Corolla 1.8 is just too weak in a world with far more powerful yet efficient competitors, so if I wanted an engaging mainstream compact I still wouldn’t be stopping by the Toyota dealership.
Let’s face facts: Corollas are sold either to fleets (which by definition, buy automatics), or to individuals who don’t care about anything other than reliable transportation (having a car with some soul and a true driving experience don’t matter to them). So the Corolla losing the manual option is probably a given.
Oh can it with your holier than thou “they don’t care about a car with no soul” BS. Take your “facts” (which are anything but) and shove em up your tailpipe.
Please don’t give the rest of us appliance lovers a bad name with your d*ckheadedness.
Let the man have his druthers, we always win anyway.
Who always wins? Those who prefer cars with no soul (like the Corolla)?
Yes, those who just want to effing get where they need to go every day with no drama or discomfort.
Dude, why so harsh, and what do you mean?
Prove him wrong.
Wait, you can’t.
Geez, make one comment about people who prefer cars with no soul and get personally attacked. Some folks wear their feelings on their sleeves. But you’re correct, they can’t prove me wrong.
Kit4
Oh come on. In the corollas case it’s reasonable to assume this, and even to label an enthusiast’s new purchase of one a mistake even (sorry, not sorry). The civic and the mazda3 stand there, arguably the two best handling c segment offerings, and both exist in comparable non turbo equipment levels, with similar price and reliability results. One could buy a corolla and improve it, which would be fun for sure, but even then you’d be at a steering feel, shifting feel and options for tuning disadvantage vs the other two. If you include the turbo competitors it turns into a slaughter, at a very similar price no less.
It is better than the sentra, and to a significant degree, but that’s not winning really. The corolla is an old car now, and it’s running on very last generation drivetrain options exclusively. Id expect major changes from Toyota when it comes time for a new chassis redesign.
I always liked the Subaru BRZ better, but this new front-fascia is just hideous. Is Toyota dead-set on ruining every one of its cars? Yeesh!
The people at Toyota must have thought they had another Mazda to rebadge. They forgot that Scion ever existed. Yes, the Subaru is definitely the better looking car.
They’re trying to Lexus-up their cars in the cheapest manner possible.
Agreed, although from some angles, the current Camry is far better than anything they’ve had since the early 2000s.
Still not a looker that the Mazda6, Kia Optima and Ford Fusion are.
Hell, the 200 looks classier, even if its terrible underneath.
I do agree whole-heartedly that the Subie is the better looking of the two coupes. Its certainly the one I’d have, and since Kia decided to try to make a four door 5 series wannabe instead of the sexy GT4 Stinger coupe, its the only choice that isn’t a Camaro or Mustang.
I was absolutely not aware the Corolla could still be had with a manual.
It was available with a 4AT prior to MY2017.
Now I DID know about the 4AT. I have driven a couple examples. Made me haz a sad.
My mother actually opted for the 4AT over the others because it could tow a (very small) trailer.
*Zoolander voice*
What is this, a trailer for ants?!
Yeah it had a 4AT in a model that consisted of less than 10% of the sales and only existed mainly for a loss leader for cheapskates. You never saw them on dealer lots. Only LE, S, S plus models.
They offered two lousy choices (besides the manual) – either the 4AT, or the CVT. No 6AT. They’re just phoning it in now. The last sporting Corolla they offered was the 2005-2008 XRS, with the 2ZZ-GE and 6MT.
Ruining the cars with bizarre styling? The answer is Yes.
No word on the iA? will it continue as the Yaris or a different model?
I believe it will be the Yaris.
It will be the Yaris iA. IA? Ia? Ugh, just use words.
The Yaris will become the Mazda 2 yes, hopefully this means it’ll loose its quite primitive drum brakes!
So instead of making me click the AT upgrade on the build page and watch the accompanying price hike I’ll now just see the price for the AT right off?
Corolla XSE? hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Camry XSE with I4 standard? hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Camry SE has always been I4 as standard. The V6 was an available upgrade.
The XSE just means SE with leatherish seating. The SE trim for Corolla seems to just be bringing the Corolla trimlines in line with the rest of the Toyota lineup. Yaris, Camry, Sienna, Highlander, Rav4, etc all had SE trims while Corolla had an S trim. Like Camry, XSE is leatherish seat SE the way XLE is leatherish seat LE. You’re mistaken in believing that SE means anything more than sportier looking and stiffer suspension.
Re: Camry SE has always been I4 as standard
…not if you count the venerable 3rd gen (US) Camry, in which the SE had the 3.0L V6 standard.
“Camry XSE with I4 standard? hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha”
Yeah, the whole concept of sporty 4 cylinder midsize family sedan! is a bit odd. But it’s not the only offender in the class–Honda actually puts “sport” on the trunklid of CVT 4-cylinder Accords and Mazda installs 19 inch wheels with rubberband tires on the 6. The availability of a manual helps on those, but still..
“The XSE just means SE with leatherish seating.”
Really? I heard it was grounded to the ground…
But the Honda and Mazda drive with some sporty character. The I-4/CVT Accord LX coupe I drove was far more engaging than Camrys or Altimas I’ve driven.
I’d be happy as hell with an Accord Sport coupe with a manual mated to its smooth and willing I-4.
Yeah, Toyota is also laughing its way to the bank, year after year.
Yes, selling old cars with updated styling to those who mistakenly believe they are better than their competitors (but don’t bother to actually research their assumption) is quite profitable.
Its not hard to figure out, and its nothing to be proud of.
“nothing to be proud of”
If *I* were perpetually making infinitely more money each year than JohnTaurus Enterprises Ltd. in the most competitive and open automotive market on Earth, I might not be *proud* per se (such a low bar) but I’d certainly not be ashamed.
TSS-P is standard on the sedan, but TSS-C on the hatch. Anyone know why? besides the cars being built in different factories for the NA market.
This car never really hit the mark. It’s too expensive for the people who have seen initial D, it’s too slow for bench racers, and it’s too impractical for people who use their cars to move apartments / shuttle friends around.
And they’re hanging onto their value too much!
Wouldn’t retaining value on the used market imply that they are hitting the mark? The only people I hear who hate them are guys on the internet. Everyone I know who actually owns one loves theirs.
Also, not that everyone would do it, but you’re $4500 away from 240HP at the wheels (so more like 265-270 crank) with a fairly easy install if you grab a Sprintex supercharger kit.
For dropping the stick-shift Corolla, I can understand the change for the US, but I wonder what Toyota Canada will do – I’d find it very surprising if they also dropped the base manual.
I’m in Quebec, and it’s a popular choice here: the (base) “CE” manual retails for only C$17,750 whereas the CE 4AT is C$20,670, nearly $3000 more. Manual and base-model take-up is much higher in Quebec than other provinces or in the US – there are loads of manual Corollas here.
They should pay people $3k to buy a 2016/17 car with a 1995 automatic transaxle.
If we’re going to sit around here and pretend that the loss of a manual transmission option in the feckless Corolla has any bearing on anyone, much less the statistically insignificant enthusiast market, I think it’s about time we started finding new hobbies.
You’re not wrong, but I don’t believe the writer was trying to pass off the manual base model Corolla as an enthusiast’s car, only to point out that its another example of fewer manual-equipped cars to choose from.
It’s amazing how many people failed to read the part that the Corolla will infact continue to offer a manual transmission. Reading comprehension went right out the window in the race to see who could crap on Toyota first.
I guess I’m not seeing the same comprehension fail that you are. That bulk of the responses seem genuinely surprised that the Corolla still offered a manual in the first place. The fact that you can still get it on the “sporty” Corolla seems pretty irrelevant; I mean, S model has always been a joke regardless of transaxle choice, while at least selling a strippo manual let dealers advertise a cheaper base price. I’d be absolutely shocked if they sold even a thousand manuals next year and that’s being generous. The added manufacturing inefficiency can’t be worth whatever lame attempt at street cred Toyota’s trying to maintain. Or whatever their motives for continuing to stubbornly market such a frumpy, class-trailing product may be.
Instead of whining about commenters mischaracterizing Toyota’s product lineup, how about providing a reason why anyone on this blog should give two craps about a non-4×4 Toyota without referencing Consumer Reports? Because I’ve got nothing. Many of us are quite fond of Toyotas past and would readily consider another if they’d just stop phoning in the engineering and ditch the deranged Pokemon styling.
To quote yourself:
Oh can it with your holier than thou “Reading comprehension went right out the window” BS, Take your “facts” (which are anything but) and shove em up your tailpipe.
^this.
Its amazing how you rush to defend Toyota, yet can only throw a temper tantrum and offer 0 reasons why we are wrong.
Go stomp your feet and hold your breath now, Toyota’s cars will still be milquetoast at best when you’ve had your nap and have calmed down.
People will spend money to tinker with their cars to gain a few horsepower , then beat the crap out of it, do time checks, look for mutual ding-dongs to race at lights, and spend more money fixing broken parts. I guess having a hatch back makes it easier to put boxes of parts and energy drinks in the trunk. Wow. What fun! Sleeper cars that resemble soccer mom grocery shoppers with front drive turbo toys. We don’t need another Fiesta ST , Focus ST, or any other Fred Flintstone looking hatch. So yeah, Toyota did a fine job with the 86. Front end finally looks like a make believe Vette rather than that “black tounged bumper” that the BRZ still has the last I checked.
Other than that, I guess people don’t realize what insurance costs when you get much more than 200hp in a small car. Oh! Wait! Money is no object, right? We choose cars under 30k (hopefully-depending on extras) because we just like not being to incredible on the street even though we’re loaded. Sure.
As far as I’m concerned, they should make ALL so called sports cars for the masses as roadsters with hardtops. Unless having back seats is required for non single men to convince their signifigant other of the practical nature of buying a sporty car. I wonder how many buyers actually drive these cars for what they were intended instead of just going to work and tinkering under the hood on weekends? Wow. But, great job Toyota. Looks great inside and out.