2014 Toyota Corolla, messing with success: Motoramic Drives

You have to hand it to Toyota: The Corolla is a true icon, one of the most popular cars ever produced by any automaker with more than 40 million sold. But even more remarkable is the reason why.

Unlike most automotive superstars, the Corolla doesn’t offer tiptop performance, bleeding-edge technology, or innovative styling. In fact, the compact car exhibits none of these attributes. Instead, it has reached rock star status by offering reliability and better than average value, something affordable to purchase and keep on the road. As Toyota's top U.S. sales exec recently said: "No one ever bought a Corolla because they thought they looked good driving one.”

And as Toyota executives were fond of saying during the unveiling of an “all-new” 11th-generation Corolla last week in San Diego: “Forty million people can’t be wrong.” Or can they?

The answer to that question depends on your perspective. The latest generation is an improvement over a model grown stale and outflanked by more attractive alternatives. But do you want to own an awe-inspiring automobile, something fun that sets you apart, or would you rather drive a sedate, rather workaday sedan that blends into any background like a chameleon? The Corolla still leans far more toward the latter than the prior.

Toyota knew that the Corolla needed a redesign to keep up with the competition, especially the Honda Civic and Ford Focus, which sport updated engines, fresh in-vehicle technology and alluring designs. Behind them ranks the Hyundai Elantra, Chevy Cruze and Kia Rio — all competitive choices, all newer than what Toyota had to sell.

Fact is, Toyota had gotten complacent with the Corolla. Aside from a few styling cues here and there, the Corolla has changed little since 2008, and even then its reputation for being the most vanilla of flavors in the dealership icebox was never at question. And since sales remained steady, Toyota didn't seem to mind.

Consequently, we were hoping to see a radical exterior redesign for 2014. What Toyota did instead was a remix; it's wider, longer and lower, with better proportions, LED taillights and a bigger interior. But those looking for sex appeal will still be asked "Why did you buy a Corolla?"

Inside, the changes are more dramatic. The dashboard arrives covered in soft-touch material with faux and real stitching depending on trim, while pinstriped accents are strewn about the cabin. All models have a new three-dial gauge cluster with chrome trim except the S model, which features a two-gauge gauge cluster containing a 3.5-inch black-and-white display with trip computer functions.