In retrospect to 1966 in international markets, the four-door sedan Toyota Corolla cars landed on the U.S. precinct in 1968. There is no gainsaying that Corolla has become the best-selling car worldwide, having carved a niche for itself through a stalwart reputation for quality and dependability, to the tune of nearly 1.5 million per year in more than 150 countries.
Founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and integrated on August 28, 1937 (84 years ago), Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer. Since its emergence, it has been producing about 10 million vehicles yearly. Vehicles produced under Toyota were previously sold under the name "Toyoda".
Toyota found its grand success in the U.S in 1965 with the Toyota corona; a compact car made basically for the American market.
Generations Of Toyota Corolla
However, taking a look at the generations of Toyota Corolla from time immemorial, we'll see the massive improvement in the production is beyond awe, with the 1100 cc K pushrod engine being the first model and a subcompact car of Corolla introduced in 1966.
The Corolla Sprinter was introduced as the fastback version in 1968 and exclusive to a Toyota Japan dealership retail outlet called Toyota Auto Store. The 1100 cc K Pushrod and later models were a darling to car lovers due to its economical fuel consumption, which consumes from 6.7 to 7.8 liters per 100km and 4.8 to 5.7 liters per 100km diesel engines.
The longevity of Corolla's lifespan is one thing that has kept the automobile in high demand since its inception till date. A Toyota Corolla purchased in the same time frame and used efficiently as other car models and brands are likely to look and work more perfectly. This durability feature is one thing every car buyer looks out for and has been one thing that sets Toyota Corolla apart. While it is undoubtedly durable, Toyota Corolla is cost-efficient when talking about maintenance. Its spare parts are affordable for an average consumer.
After the massive acceptance of the first generation of Corolla, Toyota went ahead to manufacture even more durable models ranging from L (Entry Level Model), Luxury Edition (LE), XLE (Executive Luxury Edition), SE (Sport Edition), XLE (Executive Luxury Edition), and XSE (Extreme Sport Edition).
Each year, Toyota Corolla kept on winning the hearts of their consumers globally, and in fact, Corolla became a global bestseller by 1974. In 2020, Toyota Corolla made the highest sales ever, with sales topping 1 Million Units; this statistic means that about two Corolla cars were sold per minute, while its overall global sales dipped to 70 million units in the same year. Today, Corolla has proved itself as it is the best-selling car in the world.
However, the Corolla model had a flaw with the 2002 model. Consumers worldwide complained about the engine's excessive oil consumption, but in 2014, the Japanese automobile manufacturer once again proved its strength by launching into the auto market with what consumers considered sportier, with a reasonable oil-consuming engine, compared to some older models of Corolla.
This brought Corolla back to the fore. Looking at the generations of Toyota Corolla from time immemorial, one would see that the massive improvement in the production is beyond awe. The first generation has AE86 rear-wheel drive, and the two-door front-wheel-drive hatch was a bit of a stunner. The second generation (E90) got rid of the four-wheel drive and pop-up headlights. The third Corolla was available in sedan and hatchback and made a wave in the Toyota global TNGA platform.
The fourth was made in three kinds; wagon, sedans, and coupe. And to the fifth, Corolla became a household name as it helped solidify Toyota's reputation for legendary reliability. The sixth generation brought a feel of the 2ZZ-GE powered XRS sports model as well as the matrix. The seventh generation reveals how talismanic Toyota is, while the eighth interprets the economy package. The ninth edition was the Corolla SR5 lift-back which was road-friendly. The tenth generation, also left-back, has a derivative styling as they lost some grounds in this generation.
The eleventh generation Toyota Corolla LE(E110), also called the Toyota Sprinter, has a front-engine, four-wheel drive. Due to the recession, Toyota ordered Corolla development chief Takayasu Honda to cut costs, hence the carry-over engineering. In contrast, the 12th generation came after the recession, and the E140 was forced to ride out a rough of about five years, and that time, this made the car the third or fourth-best in terms of features, equipment, and fun.
Improved Amenities
Toyota Corolla has significantly improved, ranging from the driver's seats that feature seat ventilation and heaters, enabling cool airflow from the seat and back on warm days, heating on the driver's shoulder, and back and legs on cold days.
Another is the 1.5-liter Luxel Corolla Axio standard, which enables automatic morrow stowage and deployment with door locking and unlocking, thereby eliminating the need for switch operation when entering and exiting the vehicles. The new reverse link function allows the driver to see objects such as parking space lines by automatically angling the mirrors towards rear tires when the car is on reverse.
Top-notch safety performance is one of the key features. All remodeled Corolla models have an omnidirectional body structure that minimizes body deformation even in collision with larger vehicles. Isn't that awesome?
Final Note
Given these, according to the saying by Alexandra Paul that "the cars we drive say a lot about us". Toyota Corolla has enjoyed massive stability in the global market of car brands due to its versatility, durability, developmental process from the first to twelfth generations, and user-friendly nature.