The ride and engine performance Ride and handling :
The Corolla’s suspension has done duty for 80,000 kms and has been a decent job of balancing ride quality and good handling. The 195/60 Bridgestone Potenzas earlier and the Michelin PLCs presently doing duty also doing their part in providing good grip levels and cushioning from road aberrations. The suspension is set up more for ride comfort, which is evident from the body roll one gets when the car is loaded with upto 4 passengers. The Corolla’s handling never has been its talking point, but I for one found it to be quite an agile handler with the hydraulic power steering unit giving me good feedback. I have always enjoyed throwing it around corners. It has always had decent straightline stability too and has maintained its poise even when pushed upto 180 kph on good stretches of 4 lane highways.
The Laura of course is a brand new car and the suspension feels very fresh. The Laura’s suspension feels a little stiffer when going over sharp broken portion of the road at slow speeds on the 55 profile 16 inchers. But as the speed picks up the suspension soaks up everything nicely. The EPS steering has been a bit of disappointment for me. It does not feel as connected as the Corolla during cornering. Maybe it’s just me having got used to the Corolla, can’t say. But definitely more was expected. (Makes me realise now how awesome the Palio’s steering was. If it weren’t for those awful brakes it would still be in my garage) In a straight line, the stability of the car is amazing and Laura just feels unshakeable. I haven’t pushed it beyond 140 kph in the initial run in period. I must mention how the Laura masks speed. 140 kph feels like 110 kph in the Corolla. The additional 6th gear means that the engine is ticking over at just about 3000 rpm at this speed and general noise levels are very much lower. Turning radius : The turning radius of the two cars is almost identical. Ground Clearance : The corolla’s ground clearance at 175mm has been more than adequate with the car scraping its belly only when fully loaded on the tallest of speed-breakers. The corollas suspension being a bit softly sprung tends to make the rear squat when fully loaded. The Laura with 164mm GC is lower than the Corolla, but the GC is pretty adequate and has almost similar speed breaker handling capabilities as the Corolla. When fully loaded the suspension does not squat as much as the Corolla, which gives it a slight edge while negotiating those skyscrapers. Brakes : Both cars have disc brakes all round. The Corolla’s brakes back then did not come with ABS or any other fancy gadgetry, just good old vacuum assisted disc brakes. The brakes have terrific feel, are very predictable and impart good control to the driver. I have never had any issues with Corolla’s braking, be it dry road or wet. The Laura’s brakes are new and needed some running in to really be judged. Also given that I have been very gentle with the car for the run in, it is too early to judge the brakes. Thankfully Skoda has not skimped on the brakes package on this car and this car comes, with ABS, ESP, TCS et al. The brakes offer good feel and control and seem to be adequate for this power house. Engine & gearbox performance :
The Corolla’s VVTi engine produces 125 Bhp and 160 NM of torque . The motor has more than adequate pulling power and gratifies the driver with instant power delivery. The car is ever ready to lunge forward and closing gaps in traffic or making that tight overtaking move has been very easy. The motor has good torque in the bottom end and one does not need to downshift very often to get going. Which is just as well. The gear shift has been the biggest grouse I have had with the car. The shift action is very hard and unjapanese like. I have pointed this out at almost every periodic service, thinking maybe it is so only with my car, only to be told that all old gen Corollas have a hard shifting stick. Highway performance is very good, with the Corolla gamely holding its own against Laura’s , Civics, Citys, Vernas and the like during highway duels. Cruising at 150 to 160kph is not a strain on the motor and it has enough in its reserves to power on faster. At very slow crawling speeds the motor has a tendency to stall and requires generous use of the clutch.
The Laura’s motor came with enormous build up and is the USP of the petrol version of the new Laura. And it does not disappoint. The one thing that first stands out is as to how silent and refined this motor is. I had virtually no other way of telling whether the engine is running or not except looking at the tacho needle . The distinguishing feature of the 160 Bhp TSI motor is that it is Turbo charged. The 250 nm of torque which it boasts of , is almost diesel car like and unusually high for a petrol motor. I might be crucified for saying this, but the Laura feels a bit sluggish on take off and very slow crawling speeds. The motor is not as eager as the Corolla to take off from standstill and takes an ever so slight while to wake up until the turbo gets into action. Once the turbo kicks in, all hell breaks loose and the car just takes off like a jet. As turbo lags go, this TSI engine has the slightest of it. But it is still there, which has made it a little difficult for me to plan those tight overtaking manoeuvres or catch that small gap in traffic, which I would have done easily in my Corolla. Once up to speed there is no looking back and car just bolts forward. The climb from 100 to 150 is my favourite part. Just a jab on accelerator while doing 100kph and then next moment speedo shows 150. The 6 speed manual gearbox is light and accurate. Though not as slick as some Hondas, it is much more user friendly and quicker than the Corolla’s. The 6th gear also makes this car a very relaxed cruiser on the highway and helps achieve good FE figures. Fuel Efficiency: I regularly average around 10 to 11 kmpl in city conditions in my Corolla. On Highways this goes up to about 12~12.50. The Laura has returned about 9 kmpl in the city cycle during the run in period, with a very conservative style of driving. Hoping this figure would improve post run in, but may also be offset by a heavier foot on the accelerator. So I expect the FE to be in this region for this car.
Last edited by Santoshbhat : 14th July 2011 at 17:19.
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