This doesn't really answer your questions, but they've dropped the manual transmission in the 2023 models (except the GR Corolla).
Lurking online for a few years the Toyota CVT seems to be well known to be reliable.

 

If all you care about is:
reliability: manual (CVT is still good, manual is just more proven)
acceleration: manual
Fuel mileage: CVT

Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to buy a direct shift CVT, with a physical first gear. A regular CVT will be very slow off the line and suffer more wear and tear than direct shift.
Another consideration and partly why I didn't buy one, the direct shift CVT models are significantly more expensive than the 6MT. If you're going XSE anyway then just go with what you want.

 

All 2023 hatchbacks (except GR) will come with direct-shift CVT...

2022 CVT vs 6MT price difference is $1,000:

 

after 2K km driving of my 2022SE CVT, I think 6MT is the choice of matching the marvellous 2.0 engine. This Dynamic Force engine is one of the best engine in its category, 6MT can reveal it's glorious character fully. Driving a CVT is like driving a computer.

 

My hatch is my 10th car (2nd non manual) and might be unpopular opinion, but I love this transmission. Launch gears great, in sport mode when you hit the paddles it shifts without lag, hit the brakes and it down shifts by itself. I turned off the torque demand in Techstream and with a TRD intake and Remark exhaust and I still get 34mpg with sport on almost all the time and the AC on. Could be I’m old now, but if you’ve ever been stuck in traffic daily, it’s hard to go back to a manual.

 

I found in driving in stop n go traffic in San Francisco and San Francisco Bay area traffic that it was an advantage with manual trans. because I didn't have to step down on clutch or use brakes all the time. I would just roll with the traffic. With the auto I must use my brakes. At one point I had two cars at same time to give me the best of both worlds, a 5 spd. manual and an auto.Trans.

 

Team 6 speed here. Toyota did a fantastic job with this gearbox, it feels amazing, throws are a little long, but it’s smooth as butta.
I haven’t driven the CVT version but, I have exceeded the MPG ratings on the 6mt model without any effort. 38 to work and back and 43-44 on highway trips.

 

I don’t know if both the sedan and the hatchback shares the physical launch gear or not. But I know the hatchback does. Haven’t driven a hatch yet.

 

I don’t know if both the sedan and the hatchback shares the physical launch gear or not.

Sedan with 2.0 L engine has CVT with the physical launch gear.

 

Then this ain’t it then. But held to 5k.

 

eBay has the performance answer in the flavor of small Toyota . . . .not really relevant to this thread but I could NOT resist injecting some F-U-N

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I could NOT resist injecting some F-U-N

"The car is in perfect condition." Yeah, right, it was only driven by an old lady on sunday, on the short road to church !

 

I love manuals & drove nothing but manuals for nearly 40 years until my 2022 Mazda CX-30 CE AWD 6-AT. But, my personal experience with my 2020 Japan-built 6-MT Corolla SE Sedan was that the gear-shifter was so randomly notchy to the point of feeling defective. I never had that sort of shifter notchiness in 40 years of driving Honda, Acura & Toyota manuals. Randomly not being able to enter first gear from neutral when sitting at stop light & light turned green was anxiety-inducing, in that when it happened you would have to drop into 2nd gear to resync something with the shifter & then move gearshift into now-cleared 1st (while impatient idiots behind are honking their horns, lol). I would always have to remember when coming to stop anywhere to drop gear into 2nd & then neutral or 1st to avoid the problem. Other than that glaring flaw though, the manual transmission & clutch in my Corolla had a good feel to it & was enjoyable to drive.

 

I love manuals & drove nothing but manuals for nearly 40 years until my 2022 Mazda CX-30 CE AWD 6-AT. But, my personal experience with my 2020 Japan-built 6-MT Corolla SE Sedan was that the gear-shifter was so randomly notchy to the point of feeling defective. I never had that sort of shifter notchiness in 40 years of driving Honda, Acura & Toyota manuals. Randomly not being able to enter first gear from neutral when sitting at stop light & light turned green was anxiety-inducing, in that when it happened you would have to drop into 2nd gear to resync something with the shifter & then move gearshift into now-cleared 1st (while inpatient idiots behind you are honking their horns, lol). I would always have to remember when coming to stop anywhere to drop gear into 2nd & then neutral or 1st to avoid the problem. Other than that glaring flaw though, the manual transmission & clutch in my Corolla had a good feel to it & was enjoyable to drive.

Try switching over to REDLINE SYNTHETICS just make sure they have a equivalent to the Toyota factory CVT fluid. Redline has saved me a few times from selling a car I ended up keeping for 31+ years. At that time using the factory fluid for that car proved to be unsafe and a failure. After I made the switchover that shifter was smoother than cutting a cake.😁✊👍

 

Yeah let me tell you how I know that! Back in 2006, I was driving a 2005Passat TDI automatic, after which I quickly went back to a manual) in heavy traffic. The traffic came to a sudden halt from about 70 km/h. I braked hard but had plenty of room to stop. Not so the cell-babbling bimbo behind me nor the cell babbling bimbo behind her. I was assessed at zero fault. But the car was still a mess to the tune of $5500. Bimbo no. 1 tried to squeeze herself between me and the Jersey barrier and took out the whole left side of my car. The car was never the same after that and it ended up prematurely rusted out. It did last to 300,000 km though when the transmission finally failed but by then my oldest son was driving it after having passed through my wife's hands. It was also the last automatic I've ever owned and I haven't owned too many automatics.

 

I've always preferred manual. But I bought the automatic for my wife to use it as well. I have the xse, and I seriously don't have any problems with the cvt from toyota. It has a mechanical first gear which I think helps. I've had a mitsubishi lancer with a cvt and HATED it. The toyota cvt is nothing like the cvts from other makes. It's actually pretty nice. I've got no complaints so far after 2 years of ownership.

 

The CVT probably works well with a Corolla hatch or sedan. However I drove a Corolla Cross for a couple of days while my car was in the shop trying to fix a wonky door lock sensor (smart key), and I absolutely LOATHED it. The car was just too underpowered and non-aerodynamic in that body style so the transmission was always hunting for the right ratio, and going up a hill was met with a lot of unpleasant noise. I've never driven a sedan or hatch CVT so I can't say how those are. I have driven a friend's 11th generation LE sedan with CVT without the launch gear. It was nowhere near as unpleasant as the Corolla Cross. The Corolla Cross was on my short list to replace our ageing VW wagon, but I've since scratched off the list.

 

I am 58, and grew up driving a stick. I have owned a few automatics over the years and regretted it each time. If you want to enjoy driving, always get a manual transmission. Rolling backwards at stop lights, coasting in neutral, bump starting a dead battery, just being more involved with the car, it is more enjoyable with a manual transmission. You are more connected with what is going on. Don't worry about acceleration faster or slower than a CVT, the electric SUV next to you is going to be faster anyway. But they are operating a dead box, disconnected from the driving experience. I had a hard time finding a manual transmission car in 2025, ended up buying a 2022 Corolla 6MT Apex. The transmission is great, much better than my 2007 Corolla 5speed. The Apex is fun on smooth tracks and tight corners, it is almost unbearable on normal roads with bumps. Even tar strips are painful.

 

I am 58, and grew up driving a stick. I have owned a few automatics over the years and regretted it each time. If you want to enjoy driving, always get a manual transmission.

I'm with you. I've owned many cars, most manual, and a few automatics that like you I regretted. I'm 66. Both our daily drivers are manual (2020 Corolla SE and 2018 Golf Sportagen 4MOTION). We also have a third car stashed away at our secondary residence across the country. It's also manual (another Golf Sportwagen but FWD).

I'm not sure what I'll do when it comes time to get a new(er) car. I might have to get something like a Civic SI or a WRX, neither of which appeal to me. My boy racer days are long over. I just want a good, solid mid-range car with a manual. Like the cars I already drive. Alas, no longer possible on this side of the ocean.

 

Have to find some 17” wheels/tires to take the edge off the Apex suspension maybe?
I am using some 215/45r17 Michelin Pilot Sport as4 on my factory 2009 XRS rims from my old car on my ‘22 sedan, are great. The old car had 400 pound/inch springs on it and they helped that car a lot too.

I know the CVT transmissions are programmed with keeping the engine in a more efficient range, however they are noisy and annoying to drive I noticed when I had a loaner.

 

I put an ad on Craigslist to swap wheels and tires with standard Corolla alloy, but no one has replied yet.

 

Good plan, am considering punting my oem wheels and tires also. Hardly any miles on them.
Put the money towards something decent.

 

I know the CVT transmissions are programmed with keeping the engine in a more efficient range, however they are noisy and annoying to drive I noticed when I had a loaner.
[/QUOTE]

Engine noise is music to my ears!

 

I know the CVT transmissions are programmed with keeping the engine in a more efficient range, however they are noisy and annoying to drive I noticed when I had a loaner.

Engine noise is music to my ears!
[/QUOTE]
CVT does not appear to be noisy to me.

 

This is where the classics come back. Nothing is better than a throttle cable over dbw. They need to bring back the throttle cable deal and no advanced rev matching. Takes the fun out of driving a manual.

Miata, s2k, any civic before 2003, any corolla before 2020, and so on.

 

Direct injection has its own flaws. Carbon choking on the intake valves is the biggest one.

I just purchased a Mazda 3 turbo awd a couple of weeks ago. I’m honestly not impressed with it compared to my 2012 Mazdaspeed 3. The awd is all it has going for it.

 

I think it is interesting how the various manufacturers are all trying different technology in gasoline engines. Mazda with skyactive 16:1 compression with pre-ignition to ignite the charge, Nissan variable stroke length, Toyota dynamic force port and direct injection and ability to switch better Miller and Otto cycles. It must be an interesting time for mechanics. I wonder if all have in common higher compression and the related engine drag when you take your foot off the pedal. My old Corolla seems to pick up speed when you are coasting, my new one definitely slows down.

 

I like the power behind disi. Even though it causes more carbon in the combustion chamber, it has more output.

Running port and disi will clean the carbon choke left behind. The issue I see, it’s more costly to run this setup. You have to consider return or returnless. Then use aux fuel tank to separate the e85 or methanol injection. Some designs will allow this to be better, but causes more problems in the long run.

For my mazdaspeed 3, I’m going back and forth with methanol and e85 with port injection. Methanol injection is more cost effective. The kit would run me about $1000 or less. Then I’d have to deal with how dirty methanol really is. Pre and post filtration if I’d run a return line.

Port injection is not cheap. It’ll run around $3k and 1050 ID injectors. I could run returnless setup. But the largest expense is the intake manifold.

I will be working with my machinist to see if we can modify the stock manifold to accept the port injectors. My concern is the runner layout. It’s not very flat to begin with.