Team-BHP - Toyota: Corolla vs Innova Crysta, with comfort as top priority?

I wouldn't read too much into the diesel bans and associated panic. As of date, regardless of fuel type you pay 15 year life tax on cars to the RTO. Any knee jerk NGT style bans are going to be quashed by the court. Diesel cars are going to be bought, as long as they are being sold.

One thing that might happen is you might have trouble selling it off, in case you want to upgrade. By that you might be stuck with the current car under consideration for the 15 year period. I wouldn't be surprised there's something against fossil fuel vehicles in general in 10 years time.

All that said, given that you have enjoyed your Etios during its ownership. Am sure regardless of what you buy, you'll drive the living daylights out of her during the ownership.

I have travelled in the old Innova, it would've been my obvious choice given your requirements. After Shreyans Jain's comment, you should checkout both and vote with your wallet. I too would recommend Tata Hexa, but you seem to be set on a Toyota, hence will leave you at it.

Good luck with your purchase :)

Voted for the Crysta over the Corolla keeping in mind 4 occupants of medium to large build and height for the following reasons:

1. You would sit in an almost armchair like position in the Crysta. Better than slouching in any sedan.
2. More legroom compared to Corolla in both the first and second rows.
3. Higher GC means you need not mentally bother about a few speedbreakers and potholes, not to mention pesky two wheelers in traffic. Peace of mind when driving/being driven.
4. More suspension travel means a cosseting ride over all knds of roads at medium speeds.
5. Easy entry and egress for people of all ages compared to the Corolla.
6. Individual air conditioning and storage spaces to make life inside the vehicle easy.
7. Bigger greenhouse means an airy feel inside the cabin.

Let me know if you have any more questions.:thumbs up

You seem to have decided that it has to be either of the above 2, highly restricting your choices.

I would also recommend that you consider Tata Hexa and Skoda Octavia once. Just take a TD. I understand there have been reliability issues, but recent reviews are a proof that Tata and Skoda are working towards making the experience better, whereas Toyota seems to be going the other way. :Frustrati

If strictly between these 2, I would recommend Innova. It has a completely different league and a certain charm to it.

You can also consider a used older gen. Innova or a used Fortuner.

In the area of comfort, no sedan can beat a good UV with captain seats (Innova, Hexa etc.). The higher seating position, bucket seats in the middle row, ample legroom and individual armrest make for an unbeatable combination.

The only question mark is whether those family members with knee problems are okay with getting into an Innova (i.e. ingress). If yes, that would be my recommendation.

Having owned and/or driven a Corolla/Altis and the Innova (old model) when it comes to travel and comfort there's simply no competition, the Innova wins by a substantial margin. The advantages of the Innova include better suspension, roomier cabin, more comfy seats. The biggest disadvantage is the body roll, almost boat like, that can make some passengers queasy on hilly roads.

The Altis is far better in road handling, engine refinement and overall fit and finish. Make no mistake, it IS a comfortable car, especially in the backseat, compared to most choices in the D1 segment but when compared with the Innova it comes up short. Given a choice between an Altis or Innova for a comfortable long distance journey I'd always take the latter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bansal.sushant (Post 4239087)

You can also consider a used older gen. Innova or a used Fortuner.

As comfort is his first priority, the Fortuner goes out of the window, without a second thought. The ride quality of the older generation Fortuner is bad.
Of the two, I would suggest to go for the Crysta. My friend is owning a Corolla Altis AT and seating is low. Ingress/Egress will be a problem for the elderly/people with knee issues. Sitting in one for long distances can be an issue for people with knee problems. A chair like sitting position is always preferred in that case.

Innova offers better seats and ease of entry/exit but consider the following aspects when looking at overall comfort:

1. Body roll. Kerala highways can be taxing in Innova: lot of twists, frequent braking due to high traffic in narrow roads. This should not be a concern for city commute.

2. Smooth AT that can take off and halt without abrupt jerks.

3. NVH

4. Enlightened driver

For comfort, I would pick between Camry Hybrid and Innova AT depending on other practical considerations.

Quote:

Originally Posted by androdev (Post 4239356)

Body roll

The Innova is no boat....err, Xylo. Body roll is well controlled. As long as the driver takes things easy around corners (which he must do in a UV), I don't see cause for complaint.

Incidentally, we'd rented an Innova when we toured Kerala for a week. Wouldn't pick any other cab. It was mighty comfortable.

A few points to be considered:
1. Legendary resale value of the innova vs a so so resale of the corolla
2. Much better everyday pick up of the diesel due to the torque availability lower down the power band
3. Newer and better interior
4. Despite the niggles, I've sat in a crysta, a year old with 80k kms and trust me it was as good as new, it was a taxi, base models have much less of electronics, maybe leading to less niggles.
5. Corolla is almost 4 years old in the market.
6. CVT is again a very poor choice of transmission in that price bracket.
7. Missing niceties like ambient lighting on the corolla
8. You'll throw out the corolla out of the consideration set if you test drive an Octy 1.8 Tsi
9. The 2800cc mill is used in the fortuner so you can safely say it's good enough for a class above, adds to the bang for the buck equation for me

Lot of useful suggestions there !

Adding to the list, Why not consider the XUV500 ?

Its a comfortable 5 Seater / Occasional 7 Seater (with loads of room in middle row)

Monocoque, providing better ride and handling

Excellent Diesel AT-Engine combo (as per Team-Bhp reviews)

Excellent Safety equipments and AWD

Not so tall seating (ingress and egress compared to Hexa / Innova)

Well accepted in market and reliable (though with small niggles, I believe, no major issues reported yet)

If you are decided on the Toyota badge, then I would recommend Corolla. The other issues with Crysta are well documented by contributors, but I also want to point out its slightly heavier steering. If the driver will drive it all times, it may be moot, but if (like me), all family members + driver drive your car, you may want to consider that.

A "lateral-thinking" suggestion- have you explored any pre-owned Camry's ? They will come at a cheaper price and be way more comfortable than either of your choices...

If i were to buy a new Toyota automatic in this price range I would chose the Crysta AT 8 seater once again. There are no new issues to report what has been reported has been solved by Toyota to my complete satisfaction.

Corolla while it is a good car I would rather go for a rugged body on frame vehicle as a long termer for use on less than perfect roads of Kerala. That is one of the reasons which influenced my decision when I purchased the Crysta AT 8 seater (I need the bench in the middle, last row is removed).

My views. I think you have mentioned you don't need to ferry more than 5 people. If so, I would go for the Corolla. Why? The Innova has far too much body roll - so while the Captain seats are great, you get sea sick in city traffic conditions or on twisty roads. It works well on long straight highways. And if you are an urban dweller, the ground clearance does not really matter.

The diesel ban is nothing to worry about - our regulations are wonky anyway and no one can predict them.

One question (and pardon me if I missed the answer) - do you self drive. If so the Corolla is far superior to the Crysta. The only reason to go for the Crysta is because you do 1500 km a month - in ten years, the Crysta at 180 k kms would still be good, but I think the Corolla will be showing its age.

We are also in a similar dilemma, so test drove both car, back to back today. We are going to replace our Honda City iVtec 08, Corolla to me didn't feel like a proper upgrade. The plastic quality of both cars needs improvement. Coming from a Honda City, Corolla just felt like a slightly bigger car. In fact, the new City has better quality plastics.

Innova on the other hand offers more space and better ride. The quality of plastics needs improvement definitely not what you expect from a car worth 20 plus lakhs. Maybe, I have set the bar high after the test drive of Superb.

I could feel slight judder @ 20 - 30 Kmph in Innova automatic. There is noticeable drone inside the cabin at higher engine rpm, also. Below 3000 rpm, it felt smooth.