Toyota Corolla H2 (2006) 6000+ kms report

[samirsarkar]

Originally Posted by Rtech

Nice, safe bet for a no-hassle family car. I've driven one over a few thousand kilometers non-stop and got to love it for the seats and that 6-CD indash changer. However, the electro-luminescent instrument cluster gets extremely frustrating once the novelty wears off.

Nice review. First one I think for the forum.

With all the good points for the Corolla, my car of choice to drive would probably be a Ford Mondeo. The ride, handling and driveability are exceptional. The engine is fantastic though not as frugal as the Corolla. But more about the Mondeo in another post. Its a pity they sell the outdated Mondeos in India and a shame that Ford is not even planning to bring the Focus and the new 2007 Mondeo (seen with Bond in the driver's seat in Casino Royale) to India soon.

[subbarp]

I get between 10.5 and 10.75 in city driving with AC on @22 or 23 degrees. H2-Corolla. Go around 3000RPM but not much beyond. Do not move into the 5th gear at all in the city.

[vasudeva]

However, the grade does play a role in general engine performance and knocking characteristics. Moreover its best to stick to a particular grade of fuel and I would really not like to change the 91-octane grade I am using now.....honestly speaking, neither should you.[/quote]

This is absolutely correct. I was reading the Corolla's owners manual, and it recommends 91-octane (which would be XtraPremium?). I also used it for 2-3 fills, but on Toyota's service advice, changed it to normal, and so far have no suffered any FE loss. In fact, last week on 368 kms of driving, I got 11.3 kmpl on automatic with AC at 27-27.5C. But yes the point about engine performance is correct. I shall have to recheck with Toyota. What do you think is better:

1. saving around Rs. 80-100 per week or around Rs. 1.5/litre in using normal. On my average of 18000 kms per annum, this saves around Rs. every 200 days approx. Assuming 11 kmpl, and normal at 42.85/litre, and 91-octance at 44.35, this saves me around Rs. 2.5 K per annum.
2. using 91-octane.
3. using normal, and perhaps change to synthetic engine oil at 10000 kms (I have so far driven 3000 kms, and so service is still aound 5 mths away). I think Toyota uses its own engine oil at every change and they recommend 5W-30.

Would appreciate your feedback.
I have found that the best way to get the most of a Corolla auto is use auto AC at 27.5 for only driver, and then perhaps reduce temp by around 1C to 26.5-27 for 2-3 people (my family). In the evening, it works well at 27C for even 3 persons.
Further I switch off the AC and ignition at waiting for more than 15 secs, do not go beyond 2500 rpms (or 100 kmph), and even with the auto AC, I do not use it for around 10% of my travel, because even at 27.5C, the cooling remains for 2-3 mins after switchoff. I also do not push the engine hard, and just use a light foot on the accelerator. The Corrolla's acceleration is quite good, and so I do not find any need to floor the pedal at all.

Off course, heavy traffic takes the max. toll, no matter what you do. But I can safely say that my Corolla auto should give a worst of 9 kmpl and a best of around 13 kmpl. So far I am getting around 10.9-11.5 kmpl on automatic with variations on this range.

[vasudeva]

I know that Toyota has never actually advertised the Corolla as being the most fuel efficient in its class but the Corolla's VVT-i engine has always been known to be quite frugal, so is a specific advertisement really needed ?? In fact, you will hardly ever find Toyota advertising about its engines in any way or draw comparision sheets with other cars in the same class....neither Honda or Merc or BMW or Audi for that matter. Class establishes itself automatically I believe !![/quote]

Toyota Corolla is amongst the 10 most FE cars sold in the US today, and that includes the hybrids plus its normal competitors. Go to the US EPA site and you can confirm on your own.

Recently the Canadian Govt in its budget announced in March 2007 announced customer cash off of $1000-2000 for FE cars with amount depending on FE. Cars that will get purchasers a 2000$ incentive are all hybrids-Prius, Civic, and Camry. But Corolla is the only non-hybrid car in its class that gets a $1000 rebate. No other car incl. Civic gets this rebate for FE. The link is here.

ecoAUTO Program - Transport Canada

[ashams_s]

Would agree with the original post totally after 5k on my corolla's odo(Manual transmission). FE is pretty good..11-14kpl. on normal fuel..damn quick to accelerate and races to 100ks within no time..at around 2500rpm... mid range performance is excellent..torque tops around 4k rpm and speeds hover around 160 clicks at that mark..The engine is a touch noisy at higher rpms and doesnt inspire confidence..i suggest keeping it around 2000-3000 rpms which keeps you at cruising speeds while the engine is still sort of idling around...after all tis my engine! Ride quality is not the best and sharp "removable" humps jolt the cabin..it does pretty ok though on regular rough roads..if someone is looking for a reliable performance with good mileage and minimal maintenance, this is the one to go for. Keeping the roadsters & obscenely expensive ones aside, this will easily figure in the list of fastest equipments on indian roads.