Coming Soon: 2008 Toyota Corolla and Pontiac Vibe
By Matt Nauman
Monday, June 4th, 2007 at 11:26 am in General, Toyota, NUMMI, Pontiac.
I mention this for a few reasons. First off, the Corolla and Vibe are built here in Northern California, at NUMMI, the Toyota-GM joint-venture plant. (It also builds the Toyota Tacoma pickup.) 07Corolla
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Production of the 2008 models of the Corolla and Vibe begins today at the Fremont factory.
Secondly, the Corolla is the bestselling vehicle of all-time, with more than 30 million made, sold and driven. (I’ve included photos of the ‘07 Corolla sold here in the States as well as the Corolla Ultima that just went on sale in Australia.)
Toyota has announced pricing on the Corolla sedan. It ranges from $14,405 for the CE with a stick to $16,415 LE automatic. That’s a bump of about $100, or less than 1%. The vehicle goes on sale before the end of the month.
GM hasn’t announced ‘08 Vibe pricing yet. It’s a wagon, and essentially the same car as the Toyota Matrix. The Matrix, however, isn’t built in Fremont; it’s made in Canada.
Mostly, though, it’s interesting that this becomes the 6th model-year version for this ninth-generation Corolla. Five years is the Toyota norm. It arrives in 2002, as a 2003 model. The arrival of the new one was delayed about a year ago as Toyota shifted its priorities to other models, ranging from the full-size Tundra pickups, to the Scions, to all of its hybrids. Changes are insignificant to the ‘08 model. The biggest news occured a while ago when Toyota dropped the 170-hp XRS hi-po version.
Expect the ‘09 Corolla to arrive fairly early next calendar year. You’ll see a ‘09 Vibe at that time, too, Pontiac sources tell me, although much speculation remains about that brand and its lineup.
(Photos of the 2007 Toyota Corolla (US) and the 2008 Toyota Corolla Ultima (Australia) courtesy of Toyota.)
http://www.mercextra.com/blogs/nauma...-pontiac-vibe/
