Used Toyota Corolla Touring Sports 2019-present review

Traditionally, the estate car has been most commonly associated with the practical and sensible. For instance, in TV's Friends, Phoebe talks about Monica and Chandler settling down, saying "maybe they're going to have to leave the city to be near a Volvo dealership" – that brand was well known for its boxy estate cars at the time.

Now, we're not claiming the Toyota Corolla Touring Sports does a complete u-turn on tradition, but Toyota clearly wanted to bring some dynamism to the table. Why else would the model be dubbed the 'Touring Sports', rather than the Corolla Estate?

Engines & Performance: Like the Toyota Corolla hatchback on which it's based, you can buy the Touring Sports with a 112bhp 1.2-litre petrol engine (although few original owners went this route, leading to the engine’s removal in 2020). Instead, most people go for one of the two petrol-electric hybrid set-ups. The first consists of a 1.8-litre engine and electric motor that makes a combined 120bhp. The second is a 2.0-litre engine and electric motor that, together, possesses 178bhp.

In 2022, the Corolla received an update and, as well as some subtle styling changes, interior tweaks and infotainment updates, the engine range saw a few upgrades. Now, the entry-level 1.8-litre option has 138bhp at its disposal. The 2.0-litre one has risen to 193bhp.

The lower powered Corollas – the 1.2-litre petrol and 1.8-litre hybrids – offer acceleration that’s acceptable in most situations, including joining motorways. The 2.0-litre hybrids are punchier, plus they respond far more eagerly when you squeeze the accelerator pedal.

Do you notice the extra poke of the later hybrid engines over their predecessors? Well, slightly, but it’s far from a night-and-day difference.

Ride & Handling: What we have here is effectively the class Goldilocks when it comes to ride quality, striking an almost perfect balance between suppleness and control.

By being firmer than the Skoda Octavia Estate but softer than the Ford Focus Estate, the Touring Sports has enough compliance to take the worst out of big bumps and potholes, yet it never feels floaty over sudden crests.

When driven in a leisurely fashion, the Touring Sports handles well enough. The steering is fairly accurate and builds weight in a predictable and reassuring fashion. There’s a decent feeling of composure, as long as you don't expect really quick changes of direction.

When you start to push harder, you notice that the car is less keen to tuck its nose in to corners than the Focus Estate or even the Octavia Estate, and runs out of front-end grip sooner than either. Put simply, if you want a car that’ll have you grinning on a challenging road, there are better options.

Interior & Practicality: At first glance, you might be slightly underwhelmed by the Touring Sports’ interior. The design is restrained, conventional and – dare we say – even slightly old-fashioned.

However, when you start properly poking around, you soon realise that Toyota has used high-quality materials that are screwed together in a way that puts most estate cars – including the Ford Focus Estate and the Peugeot 308 SW – to shame. It's no Audi A4 Avant or BMW 3 Series Touring, but those cars are generally more expensive to buy.

The Touring Sports is usefully more spacious in the rear than the Corolla hatchback. In fact, there’s fractionally more leg room than you’ll find in a Skoda Octavia Estate. Head room is slightly tighter, but six-footers should still be able to fit with relative ease.

There’s plenty of space for three children to sit side by side and the central tunnel is much smaller than the one in the Octavia Estate. That makes things a whole lot more comfortable for the middle passenger because they don’t have to place their feet either side of the hump.

As with the Corolla hatchback, the Touring Sports' boot size depends on what engine you choose, but all of them are big enough for a couple of pushchairs or a decent haul of shopping.

The 1.2-litre and 1.8-litre models can each muster 596 litres of carrying capacity with the seats up, while the 2.0-litre model cuts it to 581 litres. That's because the bigger engine doesn’t leave enough space for the hybrid battery under the bonnet, so it lurks under a cover on the right side of the boot floor. For reference, the Octavia Estate can take a whopping 640 litres.

Trims & Equipment: Entry-level Icon trim is well equipped, getting dusk-sensing headlights, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, heated front seats and 16in alloy wheels. Icon Tech adds some extras, including sat-nav and parking sensors.

Design brings 17in alloy wheels, heated door mirrors and privacy glass. Excel adds part-leather seats and even bigger (18in) wheels, while sporty looking GR Sport trim adds some styling tweaks and 18in wheels.

Interested in buying a used Toyota Corolla Touring Sports? Visit our Used Cars For Sale pages to find lots of cars listed at great prices.

You can buy a used Toyota Corolla Touring Sports for around £12,000. For the money, expect an early 1.8-litre car in Icon or Icon Tech trim. The 2.0-litre model rises to around £16,000.

Have around £20,000 if you'd like a facelifted 2022 car with the 1.8-litre engine. Up your budget to around £22,000 to see equivalent 2.0-litre cars.

For a nearly new Touring Sports, have at least £25,000 to spend.

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MPG: If you're gentle, every hybrid Corolla Touring Sports should return more than 50mpg, with the 1.2-litre petrol dropping to around 44mpg. The facelift improved fuel economy figures slightly, with official averages being a smidge more than 60mpg for both hybrid engines.

Road tax: The 1.2-litre petrol will set you back £180 per year, while the hybrid engines attract a road tax fee of £170 per year.

Insurance and servicing: Insurance groups waver around 20 (out of 50), which is reasonable for the class.

If you buy an approved used Toyota, you can pay £24.74 for three years and receive three services in return.

Going for the 2.0-litre Corolla has its advantages, but the 1.8-litre model (even the earlier one) is still great. It’s also cheaper to buy and run, so it’s the one we’d go for. We’d also choose the most affordable trim, Icon, because it’s already well equipped. A few Icon Techs can be found for similar prices, mind you, so you might want to consider that trim as well.

Our favourite Toyota Corolla Touring Sports: 1.8 Hybrid Icon

An alternative to the Corolla you might want to consider is the Ford Focus Estate. It’s not available as a full hybrid (just a mild hybrid), but it’s good to drive and cheaper to buy.

If you have a bigger budget – around £20,000 – and want something more premium, then have a look at the BMW 3 Series Touring 330e. It's a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), so you'll go further on electric power alone (as long as you plug it in and keep it topped up with electricity). It's also great to drive.

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Interested in buying a used Toyota Corolla Touring Sports? Visit our Used Cars For Sale pages to find lots of cars listed at great prices.