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Pre-worshipped car of the week: 11th-gen Toyota Corolla Altis

The 11th-generation Corolla was launched in 2014, followed by a facelift in 2017. The Corolla is known for its reliability and fuss-free ownership; some say it can outlast its owners! While the previous generation Corollas were loaded with features, and were more luxurious than sporty, the 11th-gen came with minimal features and tried to be more sporty. But this didn't fit the target audience for the car. That, and the declining interest in D1 sedans, eventually saw Toyota pulling the plug on the Corolla (when the BS6-emission norms came into effect). To its credit, Toyota had tried to fix some issues with the facelift, but the segment had declined rapidly by then as all customers had flocked to the SUVs.

Positives:
• Highly practical sedan. A fuss-free point A -> B car
• Fantastic driveability with the 6 speed MT. The AT is one of the best CVT gearboxes even today
• Excellent refinement inside the cabin that just shuts the outside world once you're inside
• Came with some unique features like reclining rear seats. Facelift also got more airbags
• Improved dynamics vs the 10th-gen Corolla as well as better ground clearance
• Toyota's reliability, durability & superb after-sales service
• The Corolla Altis ages very well. Durability is topnotch. Screwed together in a way that it should last forever
• Sportier styling vs the 10th-gen car

Negatives:
• The early build years had very basic features. No sunroof, no rear A/C vents and only two airbags. It even lost a couple of features (e.g. sliding armrest) vs the 10th-gen
• Holds its value fairly well, which means you'll pay a higher price
• Basic audio system which is nonintuitive to use and offers limited connectivity features
• Rear seat legroom is decent, but lesser than the Honda City. You'd expect more from a segment up
• Not as solidly built as the previous generations. Felt lighter overall
• Did not feel as luxurious as previous Corollas. Interior design was more sporty than luxurious which did not appeal to the Corolla's target buyer
• You can get a 5th-gen City (comparable size) for not much more $$$ than a 3-year old Altis

Related Threads:

Severus' Toyota Corolla Altis VL S-CVTi
Hypermiler's Toyota Corolla Altis VVT-i MT
Bhutan in a Toyota Corolla Altis

Mod Potential:

Don't go overboard as this isn't an enthusiast's driving machine. Better to use it as a premium family car.
Image Source

Availability:

Average. The D1 sedan segment had already started declining when Toyota launched the 11th-generation Corolla Altis in India. By the time the issues were resolved with the facelift, the segment was almost dead (related thread).

Here are some on sale - 2014 77,000 km Petrol AT, 2015 59,000 km Petrol AT, 2016 17,200 km Petrol AT, 2017 39,144 km Petrol MT, 2017 45,643 km Diesel MT.

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