Most of my US rental car experiences come from a solid day of testing, but occasionally, there are times when I have a car for longer, or in some cases less than a full day. This is one of those. I set off in a Hyundai Accent, the review of which has already been posted, and got as far as Palm Springs only for it to start making alarming noises from underneath as if something was catching or dragging on the road. Grateful for the fact that I had only a few miles to go to get to the Hertz facility at Palm Springs airport, I handed the car in and waited whilst they produced a replacement vehicle. As they were very short on fleet, it was going to be a case of taking whatever they came up with. It turned out to be a 2022 model year Toyota Corolla. Once very much the doyen of the rental fleets, the latest twelfth generation E210 model has proved relatively elusive, and although the car has been on sale since 2019, this was actually the first time I had managed to source one. Although the appearance of this generation Corolla was noticeably different from what had gone before, Toyota did not deviate far in terms of the formula which has proved so popular over the years. When you have what has until recently, depending on how you count it, been the world’s best-selling car, you would be ill-advised to do otherwise. Toyota certainly did not rest on their laurels, though, when developing this car, adding not just more equipment and safety features but also reworking the engine and transmission, the suspension and steering in an effort to make the Corolla more engaging to drive as well as more efficient. An added few inches allowed more space for people and luggage, too. American buyers are offered their Corolla as either a four door sedan or a five door hatch, whilst there is an estate car version available elsewhere in the world as well. The vast majority of US sales are of the sedan. Whilst the Corolla, like all traditional sedans, has slipped a few places in the sales charts in the all-important US market, it is still a huge seller, so the car is clearly not without appeal. With this test, which would pack in a half day what I would usually try to learn in a few more hours than that, I hoped to see how I would find this latest Corolla.

Ignoring the very different and very sporty GR Corolla hatchback for a moment, there are two states of tune for US market Corolla models these days. The test car had the less powerful of the pair, a 1.8 litre four cylinder engine which puts out 139 bhp, which sounds like a decent amount for a car of this size, but the reality is that it is only enough for this Toyota to feel adequately powered. More importantly, the engine is smooth and refined and noise levels when underway are generally low. There is ample acceleration to keep up with the flow, but this is not a car that is going to win the sprint away from the lights. After years of persisting with four speed auto boxes long after everyone had added more ratios to the transmission, you now get a CVT, and it is one of the better of its type, with the gearbox generally responding quite well to the movement in the accelerator. Despite picking the Corolla up in the middle of the day, I still managed to cover 225 miles before handing it back in Los Angeles. It consumed 5.1 gallons which works out at an impressive 44.1 mpg US or 52.7 mpg Imperial. The Corolla has always had a reputation for good fuel economy and this would appear to be the best yet.

The Corolla has also had a reputation for being a bit unremarkable to drive, and this one also continues that tradition. It is sharper than what has gone before, for sure, but enthusiasts or those looking for a sporty feel really will need to look elsewhere. The steering is light, which makes the car easy to drive and manoeuvre but there is not much feel here and the handling will not get you excited. Either. Pushed hard there is plenty of understeer, so whilst in more moderate motoring there is nothing to trouble anyone, there is no sense of fun here. The upside to this is that the relatively soft suspension and the 205/55 R16 steel wheels give the Corolla a comfortable ride. These characteristics are just what loyal Corolla buyers ask for, of course. There were no concerns with the brakes which did their job just fine. All around visibility is about as good as you get these days and there is the obligatory rear-view camera to help you when parking up.

Pleasant but unremarkable also characterises the interior. There is lots of plastic used for the dash and door casing, but the overall quality is decent enough, and everything fits well together and gives the impression of solidity. There is a plastic moulded wheel in lower trims such as this test car. The instrument cluster is simple by modern standards, with a large central speedometer and then a dial to the left which combines a rev counter and a fuel gauge whilst to the right is a dial with an econometer and trip computer data. There are two column stalks which include an auto lights function. Buttons on the steering wheel hub are for audio repeater and cruise control. In the centre of the dash, mounted high, is a simple 8” infotainment screen. It is touch sensitive but there are also buttons to either side which makes it easy to use. Features are quite limited, though, but you do get a six speaker sound system with Satellite XM radio, Apple Car Play and Android Auto as well as couple of USB ports. Beneath this unit are the switches for the single zone automated climate control.

Not surprisingly, the seats are trimmed in a pleasant sort of cloth. There is quite a wide range of adjustment, all of it manual in nature. The seat belts are height adjustable and the steering column telescopes in/out as well as up/down. I was able to get the driving position I wanted and I found the seat to be comfortable on the long haul back from Joshua Tree National Park to Los Angeles. Whilst the driver gets six-way adjustment of their seat, the passenger has to do without the height adjuster on this trim.

Had I had passengers, those in the rear would probably also have declared themselves comfortable. Successive generations of the Corolla have got ever larger, and much of the increase in length and width has been given to rear seat passengers with the result that there is now ample space. Legroom is sufficient even with the front seats set well back, headroom is sufficient and the Corolla is now wide enough to accommodate three across the seat, something you would have done with difficulty a couple of generations prior. LE trim is not generous, though, so not only is there no armrest, there are no map pockets either, so occupants only have modest door pockets for their odds and ends.

Like many cars at this end of the market, there is no external release for the boot, meaning you either need the key or to pull a lever inside the cabin. Once opened, the boot is a good size and should swallow the luggage of four people without undue difficulty. The rear seat backrests are asymmetrically split and drop down to give a much longer load platform. Inside the cabin, there is sufficient provision of places for bits and pieces with a good-sized glovebox, bins on the doors, a rather small armrest cubby and a lipped area in front of the gearlever.

The 2022 Toyota Corolla sedan comes in five trims – L, LE, XLE, SE and XSE – while the hatchback is available only in SE and XSE form. Trims with L in the name are powered by a 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine that makes 139 bhp and 126 lb/ft of torque. S models get a 2.0-litre four-cylinder good for 169 bhp and 151 lb/ft-feet of torque. Most 2022 Corollas have a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT), but you may find SE sedan, SE hatchback or XSE hatches with a six-speed manual. The entry-level Corolla rides on 15-inch steel wheels and has cloth upholstery, a six-way manually adjustable driver’s seat, a four-way manually adjustable front passenger seat, a 7-inch touch screen, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, Bluetooth, two USB ports, a Wi-Fi hot spot, satellite radio and a six-speaker stereo. Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 is standard on the Corolla and includes forward collision warning, forward automatic emergency braking, pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, traffic-sign recognition, a rearview camera and automatic high-beam headlights. The LE adds an 8-inch touch screen, as well as another USB port, remote keyless entry, automatic climate control and 16-inch steel wheels. The Convenience package adds 16-inch alloy wheels, proximity keyless entry, push-button start, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert. The Premium package includes the same equipment, plus a moonroof. In addition to the more powerful engine, the SE features a stiffer suspension and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. The hatchback rides on 16-inch alloy wheels, while the sedan gets 18-inchers. A nine-speaker JBL sound system is available on the SE, as is the content from the aforementioned Premium package (minus the wheels). When the car was new, Toyota offered two special Corolla SEs: The Nightshade Edition features blacked-out exterior trim, while the Apex Edition has a retuned suspension and sport exhaust, plus a unique front fascia, bronze exterior accents and a black roof with a spoiler. A manual transmission is available in the sedan and hatchback, as well as in the Apex Edition. The XLE is the most luxurious Corolla and gets everything from the LE’s Premium package, plus synthetic leather upholstery and an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat. The Connectivity package provides navigation, the JBL sound system and wireless device charging. Adaptive headlights are available. Combine all of the XLE’s features with the SE’s larger engine and sportier suspension, and you’ve got the XSE. The sedan comes exclusively with a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT), but the hatchback offers a manual. There’s also an XSE Apex Edition, which includes the same upgrades as the SE Apex (apart from the manual transmission option). Other available content carries over.

The summary is that this Corolla is an honest and fuss-free car but somewhat lacking in flair or excitement, just like the Corolla has always been through more than 50 years. Whilst car enthusiasts may decry that, the reality is that the Corolla formula is exactly what a lot of buyers want: a car that is dependable, easy to drive, spacious and with a proven record for reliability. This Corolla is all of those things. For sure, LE trim seems a bit basic by the standards of 2022, but you could pay a little extra for an XLE, and if you are regularly going to fill the car with people and luggage the more powerful engine may be a wise upgrade, but otherwise it is easy to see the appeal and why this car sells so strongly, even if personally, I would rather something else from what is still a hotly contested market segment.