• Spacious cabin mirrors that of the hatch
• Well built, comfortable and more interesting than Auris
• High seating position and some dials can be hard to read

How is the quality and layout?

The Corolla Touring Sports shares the same cabin design as the Corolla hatchback, meaning it doesn’t take long to notice how tightly screwed together it all is. The design is clean, with a simple and modern touchscreen and climate control arrangement. There’s a faint whiff of C-HR in here, but it’s less colourful and futuristic.

Everything is soft to touch and sculpted to look at – it feels plush and is a nice enough place to spend time in. There are a few foibles though. Higher spec models come with a large 12.3-inch driver’s instrument panel screen, which isn’t the easiest to read in sunlight, and the sat-nav is far from being the most user-friendly.

It’s also unremittingly dark inside. Toyota uses exclusively black plastic with no options to lift the cabin with some lighter upholstery or fabrics, so it can feel a little claustrophobic.

Infotainment and tech

For the 2022 facelift, the central screen size expanded to 10.5 inches as standard – it brings with it a much improved user experience. It loses the physical buttons, but we found the screen responsive enough to avoid this being too much of a concern.

Both Apple CarPlay or Android Auto are available. Wireless charging for your phone is available and the optional JBL stereo is clear and punchy, even if it’s only limited to 2.0-litre models.

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Comfort

• Comfortable and spacious interior
• Good ride quality but noise suppression suffers over the hatch
• Avoid optional 18-inch wheels for best comfort

The cabin of the Corolla is already a spacious and comfortable place to be, with supportive front seats that come with heating and adjustable lumbar support as standard. The sportier items found on Excel models come with extra side support and it’s easy to find a comfy driving position before you set off on any model.

The view out is good, although some may find the seating position a little high compared to rivals. It’s worth taking note whether your model of choice comes with a black headliner as that can make for a darker cabin – the optional panoramic roof may work well here, although it’s worth noting that it can rob some headroom.