2023 Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid Review

We test drive the new Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid ahead of its Australian launch.

From a dull also-ran to one of the most recommendable family hatchbacks out there, the Toyota Corolla has had some turnaround in this generation. The Corolla, like so many other recent Toyotas, is a compelling car that’s good to look at and good to drive.

Sensing it is on to a good thing with the Corolla, spin-offs have been made such as the excellent Toyota GR Corolla hot hatchback we reviewed recently, and now this Toyota Corolla Cross which is due for launch soon in Australia. Ahead of its touch down, we’ve tried out the hybrid Corolla Cross for the first time in Europe (we’ve driven the non-hybrid Corolla Cross petrol, too).

The Corolla Cross is officially billed as an SUV version of the hatchback. It’s a global model that’s been on sale in some markets including the US for almost a year. For this test, we tried a European-spec version in Denmark.

2023 Toyota Corolla Cross price

Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid experience

While Toyota might call it an SUV, it actually looks more like an Allroad-style jacked-up wagon. In the metal, it still looks like it sits quite close to the ground and it doesn’t appear to be the tallest visually either even though it’s officially 185mm taller than the Corolla hatchback. All this while lacking the fun styling of the C-HR (a car that still looks so fresh a good five years after launch), and the chunky, rugged appeal and SUV presence of the RAV4. It’s the gap between these two cars, however small (the C-HR is 4385mm long and the RAV4 4600mm), that the 4460mm-long Corolla Cross looks to plug.

The presence of the other recent recipient of the ‘Cross’ treatment, the Yaris Cross, which is easily one of the best-looking small SUVs out there.

So far, so safe. To drive, it’s a bit sombre and joyless, the driving experience largely dominated by the overbearing whirr of the eCVT under even lighter throttle loads. This is in sharp contrast to how calm and relaxing it is when it is running on electric power, which Toyota’s usually excellent hybrid system allows the Corolla Cross to do so for short distances in the right conditions.

Two versions of the hybrid drivetrain are offered in Australia, both based around a 2.0-litre petrol engine. The entry-level version drives the front wheels with a combined 145kW, while an all-wheel drive version is also offered with an extra 31kW motor on the back axle. Both cars share a 8.1sec 0-100km/h time, and they do feel brisk, although you’ll be putting up with that drone for 8.1sec at the same time.

What can’t be criticised is just how efficient the system is in the real-world: we saw close to 5L/100km on a mixed roads test in fairly foul conditions, which is even in excess of the official claimed 5.4L/100km figure. Nobody does real-world efficiency as well as Toyota.

Thankfully, some elements of Corolla’s dynamic competence have carried over into this raised version. It rides well and is comfortable over bumps large and small, and also has plenty of grip and a light, direct feel to the steering. But what has been lost on the Cross is the everyday handling appeal, those more intangible qualities that make something pleasing or even fun to drive. In growing in size, the Corolla has lost that extra dynamic sparkle, something felt most in the body control.

Beyond more headroom and a bigger boot (487 litres here versus 313 litres in the Corolla) that’s easier to access thanks to a wider and lower lip, the rest of the interior package is familiar from the Corolla. So it’s easy to use, with a good mix of buttons and touchscreen functionality, although the age of the dash is just starting to be felt against newer rivals.

All of which makes the Corolla Cross feel a bit disappointing, then. Shame, even more so as we’re in such a golden age for Toyotas with great-looking and fun-to-drive cars the norm now, no matter what the shape or size.

Mark Tisshaw