Team-BHP - Toyota Corolla Altis (1.4 D-4D) Diesel : Test Drive & Review

Thanks for the compliments, guys.

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Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2006955)

But tell me, in typical day to day traffic situations, it wouldn't feel too different from any other sedan in its segment from the driver's PoV, right GTO?

Good point. The Cruze & Laura also suffer from turbo-lag in the city (Cruze especially, Laura lesser). However, on the open road, they offer vastly superior performance.

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Originally Posted by sidindica (Post 2006995)

Like I said earlier-sensible hassle free entry luxury diesel car for Indian market. It will please most of the chauffeur driven people, yet excite none.

Bingo!

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Originally Posted by .anshuman (Post 2007010)

^^ My Elantra's mats have a similar hook.

Got a pic to share?

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Originally Posted by HammerHead (Post 2007018)

I wonder why someone will go for Altis D over Cruz! The only reasons I see is Toyota badge and corolla's image.

Space, space and more space. The Altis is way more comfortable than the quick Cruze. It has decidedly more room, and far better ride quality within the city.

I was awaiting this review since this is on my "next car" list. Great Review GTO. The least toyota could have done is make the car more driveable (fiesta of the C+ segment maybe). I really don't care much about 0-100 timing but turbo-lag is a strict no no for me. But this car will sell because of the badge and Toyota reliability and service.

Thanks for the wonderful review.

Observed one thing , generally in high segment cars , common stuff like cigarette lighter, cup holder etc are always covered unlike in entry cars. No doubt to maintain overall theme and looks.

Hooks to hold foot mats, goggle holder etc - why cant entry/mid cars have them? Are these too expensive to incorporate?

Those hooks for the mats are not there in the Petrol variant.

Does the diesel have drive by wire or is it cable operated?

Like I said in the other thread, extremely practical sedan and will find it's fair share of buyers. I mean look at the FE figures.

Maruti should be looking at this carefully. If the Altis D-4D does well, then I'm sure Maruti will contemplate the SX4 with the 1.3MJD.

ps: the diesel front grill looks sportier than the Petrol. I'm going to see how much it costs. :-)

Excellent Review Rush !! Im just hoping the 1.4 diesel in Altis does'nt motivate other manufacturers to plonk their already existing diesel in a lower segment in C+ segment. Else we shall see a 1.4 TDCI in future Focus model , 1.3 DDIS in Kizashi:D. I would prefer Toyota giving us a alternative diesel engine after 1.4 is shared with the Etios.

The Most "Sensible" C+ sedan available today.
The Corolla Does Everything apart from scorching performance Humbly without any fuss what so ever.
This car should return much better FE that all its competitors(cruze owners in General get a meager 9 in the city).

Surprisingly 14 seconds is not bad considering the amount of criticism people were giving the engine and comparing it to the vgt punto which being lighter is slower to the ton.

This is going to be a Big Trend IMO, after the success of the altis .Putting Small Fuel efficient Engines in larger car will be a strategy adopted by many Car manufacturers .

As always ,space is supreme compared to its rather cramped rivals. This car is one of the best chauffeur driven cars out there.

P.S excellent effort GTO! I know it takes a lot of time and effort to make time for doing comprehensive reviews for people whose primary profession is not related to the Automobile industry(assumed :))

Thanks GTO for an excellent review.

It is shocking that Toyota has removed many features from the diesel version, relative to the petrol Altis, like the 8 way powered driver seat adjustment, lumbar support (not even manual), rear windscreen sunshade, cruise control and the optional automatic transmission. These were great features except for the cruise control which I find useless in Indian driving conditions. The auto box is great, very smooth and a boon in the crowded NCR region. Although here also Toyota saved costs by providing a 4 speeder instead of at least a 5 speeder.

Toyota seems to be learning from bad habits of Honda of "Providing least value at maximum price". However I doubt that the D-4D will replicate the success of NHC because NHC had no competition in its segment while Altis faces some very worthy competitors and Customers have also become more demanding and have started looking beyond the 'mileage' factor.

However as a no nonsense, comfortable and practical car with least cost of ownership, Altis Diesel seems to be an unbeatable car at the moment.

Excellent review.

An AT may never come in diesel engine as an AT with 1.4 liter will not find many takers. Even Hyundai when launched AT on i20 did that on 1.4 liter engine and not on 1.2

Why not an AT in the innova now !

I liked the flat bed on the rear portion, very much like civic and the headlamp washers, hadnt seen them in action till now. Good picture.

I have a question, how will this car perform on steep slopes with AC on and full load ? Like going to a parking lot in the mall with 5 people in it and AC on. Hope, it will go smoothly.

Personally, the only use case for this car is chauffeur driven or as a Taxi. I doubt if anyone spending 13L+ to drive would prefer to drive a car which is so slow. While i wish it doesn't get as much success to teach Toyota a good lesson to release cars here with good engine options (especially when they charge a premium), i am more or less sure that it will go on to become a hit because of the brand name and hassle free experience.

GTO - as always a through review, and brilliantly written!

A Small capacity diesel with huge turbo lag and six gears is not a very comfortable to drive combo. The Altis D makes sense only for those who want a chauffeur driven car or allergic to performance.

Even the Skoda Laura has FE figure of 20kpl.

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Originally Posted by tanwaramit (Post 2007237)

Excellent review.

An AT may never come in diesel engine as an AT with 1.4 liter will not find many takers. Even Hyundai when launched AT on i20 did that on 1.4 liter engine and not on 1.2

OT: Hyundai's AT saps too much power. TD a Verna CRDi AT and i20 AT check it out. The i20 1.4MT is slower than even 1.2MT. Hyundai's range of AT gearboxes sold in India are inefficient and dated.