hey guys...corolla xrs

[cocoLatte]

hey guys,

im in the market to buy a new car...the only cars i had in mind was civic ex w/navi, honda fit, or scion xb. i tried the fit..thought it was too small and interior was cheap quality....civic was nice..but it was slow...seems like slower accereralation than the fit...saw scion's interior..didnt even test drive it cuz it was so ugly inside...and when i thought i had to start all over again..i spoted a nice sporty looking car..it was a corolla in xrs trim.

i checked it out and loved it.. didnt test drive it since that particular one was sold..but yeah i am wanting a xrs now.

i plan to get either a magnetic grey or a super white xrs with navi/ automatic tranny (for comfort)

my questions are:

1. is 22k-23k OUT THE DOOR worth it? auto, navi, sunroof.

2. how many watts of audio power does the stock xrs have? (no updgrade to the jbl thing)

3. i was reading on some threads and "imEric" had a tranny changed...so are the auto tranny unreliable on these cars?

4. my mom have a 04 camry le....i know it uses the same engine..but i feel that the camry feels bloated...does the corolla feel this way when driving? and im imaginng its a lot faster due to lighter body compare to hte camry?


thanks a lot guys!

[NIKKICHICK]

In Canada we don't get the NAV option, but the automatic transmission is nice because it is also a "Sequential Multi-Mode Shifter", which is fun to drive when you choose.

The 2009 Corolla is a new model so there are no reliability reports out yet. All you can do is count on the Toyota reputation, or wait and see.

I don't find it to be underpowered as far as weight to power go. I tend to zip past other vehicles quite regularly. I pay for it by using more fuel of course.
It also has lots of usable torque (more on paper than lots of the competitors anyways).

[VisualSpoiler++]

1. That's a pretty good deal for an auto with nav.

2. Dunno about the numbers, but I can tell you that it's not enough for an audiophile.

3. Can't comment on this since I drive a stick. However, do remember it's a Toyota you're looking at.

4. The thing absolutely most guaranteed flies.

[NIKKICHICK]

This chart gives you lots to compare.
I think a lot of the specs compare well with the competition. Not sure why the review didn't choose the Corolla all out.

[silver04rollas]

Some objective opinions:

1 - 22K - 23K is OK if you really love Toyota, only can drive an automatic car and have owned a lot of Toyotas in the past. Personally, the new XRS with 22 - 23K puts it right in competition with the Civic SI sedan, which offers far more value for the money especially considering the race-bred K20 RSX Type S performance motor with an 8000 rpm redline. I like the styling of the new XRS more and the fact that XRS is easier to drive around town with much better torque, but the SI is more bang for the buck in just about every other category. Although, similar weight of close to 3000 pounds, but it makes 40 more HP and has aggresively geared 6 speed manual. If you can drive a 6-speed manual, highly recommended to check out the Civic SI sedan for the same money.

2 - Toyota stereo systems are generally very good. I would say around 200 W PMPO output. My stock 7 speaker stereo system in the 2ZZ-GE XRS trounces the upgraded 6 speaker stereo system in my friend's loaded Civic EX. The upgraded one should sound very nice without a doubt. You should not worry much about the stereo system.

3 - Just because one owner had to switch out the auto tranny does not mean it has a bad tranny. 2AZ-FE and the automatic transmissions (both 4 speed and 5 speed) have been around for several years since the early 2000s so they must be very reliable.

4 - Having test driven a 5 speed manual Corolla XRS, the 2AZ-FE makes healthy torque of 160 ft-lbs so it will have decent get-up-and-go especially compared to the 132 HP 2ZR-FE base model Corolla. Compared to your mom's Camry 2004 LE, the 2AZ-FE XRS weighs only 150 lbs less (2960 lbs for the XRS auto vs 3100 pounds for the Camry LE 2004) so the reduced weight and better gearing with the 5 speed auto (your mom's Camry has 4 speed auto) should help in get up and go feel much better and peppier, but do not expect it to be radically different than the performance of your mom's 2004 Camry.

http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/sp...amry&trimid=-1

http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/sp...olla&trimid=-1

[sinnaever]

Dont worry about the tranny... The issue has been isolated to a few cases in Canada. The US has not had any complaints that Toyota Canada knows about. So you shouldn't have to worry about the Transmission.

[GatoradeBoy]

You say you plan to go for the Grey or the white, but I would advise the black or the metalic blue. the added under spoilers on the body look much more integrated in these shades