The platform allows for a lower center of gravity, a Corolla body that is 60 percent more rigid, and the addition of a multilink rear suspension, replacing a torsion beam, and active cornering assist to deter understeer.
The Corolla hybrid is being added to serve as another entry point for Toyota’s family of gasoline-electric cars, slotting between the Prius and the Camry hybrid.
The sedan is expected to account for 90 percent of Corolla sales, with the hatchback introduced last year representing the rest. Toyota forecasts the hybrid could account for up to 6 percent of sedan sales.
But Toyota is setting modest expectations for the 12th-generation Corolla, even as it hatches plans to produce the car at two North American assembly plants.
Ed Laukes, head of marketing for the Toyota division, said the company sees U.S. sales of the Corolla totaling about 250,000 this year, a drop of about 18 percent from 303,732 in 2018.
Since U.S. compact car sales reached 2.22 million units in 2015, they have declined three straight years, including a 14 percent drop in 2018.
But Laukes says the decline in car sales has not been as severe in several key regions — notably Southern California, Northern California, Florida and other markets in the Southeast — where Toyota’s lineup still fares well.
“It’s still good business for us,” Laukes said of the car market. “And we’re happy to grab share as others leave the segment.”
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