Final Report
After more than 4,000 miles, the time has come for me to bid a genuinely fond farewell to Toyota’s Corolla Commercial; and while it is by no means perfect, the negatives are without doubt more than outweighed by its plus points.
The big negative is the absence of reversing sensors, despite the presence of a rear-view camera. You need both given that the image provided by the camera can sometimes lack clarity depending on the prevailing conditions, yet you are expected to pay extra for the former.
Include them in the standard specification please, Toyota.
Nor was I happy about the absence of a spare wheel given the disgraceful state of the UK’s highway network and the damage potholes can do to tyres; damage that would on occasions defeat even the most effective inflator/sealer.
Now for the positives. A self-charging petrol-electric hybrid, Corolla Commercial is impressively frugal, rides and handles well for the most part, and while in-cab noise could be better-suppressed, it cannot be counted as a major issue.
There is plenty of performance on tap if you opt for the Sport driving mode, but you won’t be a slowcoach if you remain in Normal mode. The Eco mode is fine too if you are not in a hurry, and lightly laden.
Use the B setting on the lever that controls the single-speed Continuously Variable Transmission, and you can take maximum advantage of the regeneration system. It recoups energy that would otherwise be lost when you take your foot off the accelerator pedal and slow down, and pumps it into the hybrid’s lithium-ion battery.
In-cab specification levels are high – we’re suckers for heated seats – and while the lack of reversing sensors jars, the presence of plenty of other safety systems can only be applauded. They include the Pre-Collision System, which triggers the brakes automatically if the driver ignores an alert that they are about to collide with something.
My favourite among them is Road Sign Assist. It flags a warning should you break the speed limit on the stretch of road you are on, which will hopefully prompt you to slow down.
I’m delighted to see that Toyota does not expect drivers to use the touchscreen sitting in the middle of the dashboard for everything. You control the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning with good old-fashioned buttons and knobs.
Admittedly, the load area is not enormous and payload capacity is limited, but the vehicle can easily cope with a couple of big boxes of tools, and a lot more besides. With a rear hatch and a door on each side, the cargo bay is easy to access, and a steel half-height bulkhead topped by a mesh grille ensures that anything not secured to the six tie-down points does not end up in the cab.
Perhaps the vehicle’s biggest plus point, so far as some prospective users are concerned, is that it looks far more like a car than a van. As a consequence, it will not stick out like the proverbial sore thumb on a suburban drive, and that’s sure to be applauded by the status-conscious.
End-of-term report
Safety = 3/5
Plenty of on-board devices but making reversing sensors optional doesn’t make sense.
Options list = 4/5
It’s short, but then again the van’s specification is high.
Driving = 4/5
Rides and handles well, noise isn’t a serious issue, and performance isn’t lacking; especially if you select the Sport driving mode. Fuel economy is impressive.
Load bay = 4/5
Not vast, and payload capacity isn’t huge, but it’s accessible from three sides and can swallow more stuff than you might expect at first glance.
Cabin = 4/5
Comfortable working environment with plenty of kit and you don’t have to rely on the touchscreen to operate everything; a plus-point so far as I’m concerned.
Build quality = 4/5
Top-notch. It’s built at the Toyota plant at Burnaston in Derbyshire, and to a high standard.
Overall score: 77%
Toyota Corolla Commercial
Mileage 4,028
Official combined fuel economy (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 59.4mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000 miles
Service intervals 1yr/10,000 miles
Load length 1,558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1,430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1,798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
5th Report
As somebody who views most manufacturers’ built-in sat-nav systems with a jaundiced eye – they always want to send me to Warsaw when I want to go to Walsall – I must admit to being impressed by the one installed in Corolla Commercial. It’s simple to use, gives clear directions and, while the dashboard touchscreen is comparatively small compared with the huge screens now being fitted to some light commercials, the map is easy to follow.
In fact, the system is so good it has prompted me to abandon my trusty old Garmin; that’s right, the one you stick to the windscreen using a sucker that leaves a tell-tale round mark. Aside from any other consideration, the 12V power socket I would need to trail its cable to is inside a lidded compartment between the seats – goodness knows why Toyota has put it there – rather than on the fascia.
Idly tapping the touchscreen allows you to access a variety of useful pieces of data as well as create your own in-cab Wi-Fi hotspot. Worth a look is a neat schematic that tells you how much energy is being pumped into and out of the van’s battery.
Average fuel consumption is now 59.4mpg according to the on-board computer but rose to a very creditable 60.1mpg on my last journey, which involved a run down the M4 in appalling wet weather and a trundle around central London in typically heavy traffic. At least I had the Toyota’s exemplary DAB radio for company and was able to use the gear lever’s B setting – designed to increase the level of regeneration – as a retarder to (hopefully) help prevent me from breaching the capital’s near-ubiquitous 20mph speed limit.
The touchscreen can also tell you how much range you have left before you need to visit a petrol station; so there is no need to panic and resort to filling up on the motorway at rip-off prices because you’re frightened you will run dry. The same useful bit of information is duplicated on the instrument panel.
When you want to refuel Corolla Commercial incidentally, don’t forget to tug the lever near the bottom of the driver’s seat that pops open the fuel flap. I keep forgetting – usually in the pouring rain – and have to walk back round to do the necessary.
Sensibly, Toyota does not expect drivers to use the touchscreen to operate everything. The heating, ventilation and air conditioning system are controlled by a row of buttons and knobs just under the screen, so all you need to do is press or twist the appropriate one if you want to boost the fan speed or increase the temperature.
The package allows you and your fellow passenger to set separate temperatures according to your personal preferences and it works effectively. Just as well given that
my usual travelling companion likes it baking hot while I’m only really happy if icicles start to form above the windscreen.
I’ve previously made reference to the space left under the load bed where the spare wheel would usually be, and its usefulness as a repository for items you would prefer not to have stolen. It can swallow any number of smartphones, tablets and laptops, not to mention power tools, and I crammed it full of kit on a recent trip.
That said, I’d still rather have a spare wheel than be obliged to rely on one of those pesky inflator/sealers in an emergency.
Yes, I know it adds weight, but I also know that Britain’s roads are in an atrocious state and are getting worse; and the sort of punctures some potholes can inflict would defeat most inflator/sealers and leave a hapless van driver stranded.
Report card: Load area = 4/5
Easy to access with a handy hidden compartment.
Toyota Corolla Commercial
Mileage 2,996
Official combined fuel economy (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 59.4mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals 1yr/10,000mls
Load length 1558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
4th Report
Press a little button next to the gear shift and you’ve just switched the self-charging hybrid Corolla Commercial to battery power only; but don’t think you’ll be able to travel from Lands End to John O’ Groats by doing so.
Run solely on battery power and you will just about manage two or three miles if you are gentle with the throttle before the juice runs out and the petrol engine kicks in; and does so smoothly, incidentally. Makes you wonder why Toyota has bothered fitting a button that offers drivers a choice that, on the face of it, seems like no real choice at all.
As it happens, it makes sound sense. Vans sometimes have to enter warehouses, exhibition halls and other enclosed spaces where running a diesel or petrol engine is a big no-no because of the exhaust emissions. Select zero-emission battery power only for the 100 yards – if that – you’ll be travelling once you’re through the doors, and you’ll be complying with the rules.
Go battery-only and you will be running quietly too; something that can only be applauded if you are pulling into premises surrounded by houses and their slumbering residents late at night. Likewise, if you are delivering items to a hospital or a clinic out
-of-hours.
Remember to drive that bit more carefully if you switch to battery power though. Pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users rely on their ears (often blocked with earbuds, alas) as much as their eyes (often directed towards a smartphone screen, unfortunately) and may be oblivious to your presence.
Just as well then that Corolla Commercial has more built-in safety devices than you can shake a stick at. The line-up includes Toyato’s Pre-Collision System, which brakes the
van automatically if the driver ignores a warning that they are about to hit something.
What it does not include are reversing sensors, as I’ve pointed out before.
Sorry to harp on about this Toyota, but you really need to make them standard. Their absence is a major gap in the van’s safety armoury.
Putting this gripe to one side, after more than 2,500 miles, our long-term demonstrator is performing remarkably well. I’ve not found its limited payload capacity to be a particular problem, the load area has swallowed everything I’ve asked it to and the ability to get at it from three sides has proved to be a boon when parked in narrow side streets in Welsh towns.
No matter whether you take it down a motorway or along a twisting rural B-road, it performs well. While the steering can feel a little dead at times, the handling isn’t compromised and the van rides comfortably.
It is also proving to be increasingly fuel efficient.
I’m now averaging around 57mpg, a little bit ahead of the WLTP combined consumption figure, possibly because I’m making full use of the Eco setting. Switching to Sport is a temptation given the major jump in acceleration it delivers, but one that I’m for the most part managing to resist.
The Toyota is proving to be reliable, and nothing has broken or fallen off.
It’s also proving to be a bit of a surprise to casual passers-by who can’t believe that it’s a van; until you point out the opaque rear side windows and show them the load area.
For many prospective users who do not want something that is clearly a commercial vehicle parked on their drive, that might be its biggest plus-point. Yes, it’s a van – but at least it has the common decency to be discreet about it.
Report card: Fuel economy = 4/5
Gets better and better.
Toyota Corolla Commercial
Mileage 2,590
Official combined fuel economy (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 57mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals 1yr/10,000mls
Load length 1558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
3rd Report
In recent weeks the Corolla Commercial has shifted a mountain of packaging waste, time-served office furniture, including a decrepit and fast-disintegrating office chair, some ancient electrical equipment and a pile of theatrical costumes. Roomier in practice than it appears to be on paper, the load area swallowed the lot at different times without complaint.
Shoving all these items aboard then unloading them at their various destinations underlined how easy it is to access the cargo bay, with a rear hatch plus a hinged door on each side. A sliding side door would probably be better, but Corolla Commercial uses the five-door Corolla car bodyshell, and you can’t have everything.
Payload capacity is modest, but that didn’t matter because everything we carried was bulky rather than heavy, apart from the aforementioned chair.
What did matter was the reassuring presence of a solid steel half-height bulkhead topped off by a mesh grille. Neither the driver nor the passenger had any desire to be walloped between the shoulder blades by a flying pierce of office kit or to be engulfed by a cascade of packaging waste the first time the van braked heavily.
We could have secured some of these items by lashing them to the load bay’s six tie-down points. But we didn’t.
We cannot help but wonder whether Corolla Commercial with its 1.3m3 cargo box ought to be considered as a serious alternative to a high-cube van with a 2.0m3-plus cargo box by businesses that seldom use the carrying space the latter offers, and that aren’t on payload-sensitive work.
The Toyota looks a lot more attractive than any high-cube we can think of, especially when parked on a domestic drive. Nor is there any risk of it fouling overhead obstructions in locations where height clearance is tight, although high-cubes do have the advantage that they are invariably fitted with side doors that slide.
Corolla Commercial’s rear side windows are opaque, which helps shield its cargo from prying eyes. The hatch-type back door is glazed however, and although the glass is tinted which makes peering in more difficult, there is always the risk that someone will smash it to get at the load bay’s contents.
Our advice would be to mount a sturdy security grille on the inside of the glazing; just in case.
It is also worth bearing in mind that the absence of a spare wheel (you get a tyre inflator/sealer instead) has created a long, wide and deep space beneath the load bed. It can be used to conceal power tools and other items you would prefer not to lose.
Repeated runs backwards and forwards down the A40 between Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire, and Monmouth just over the Welsh border, have left us mightily impressed by Corolla Commercial’s performance. Even when you leave it in Eco driving mode it still accelerates strongly, which means you can whip past slower-moving traffic with ease.
As a consequence one of the van’s most-useful built-in safety devices has turned out to be Road Sign Assist. Among other things it flags up a warning the minute you break the prevailing speed-limit, which should prompt you to back off.
Opting for Eco does not appear to have a dramatic effect on the way the cab heater operates as can be the case with some light commercials. Nor does it stop the heated seats from working.
As yet we have made no use of the little switch between the seats that engages and disengages the electronic parking brake. We haven’t needed to, because the brake can set and un-set itself automatically.
The handbrake lever is fast disappearing. Could the switch that has succeeded it be destined to go the same way as quickly as it has arrived?
Report card: Equipment = 3/5
Decent but where are the reversing sensors?
Toyota Corolla Commercial
Mileage 2,041
Official combined fuel economy (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 55mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals 1yr/10,000mls
Load length 1558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
2nd Report
Lift your foot off the Corolla Commercial’s accelerator for a moment and you are immediately conscious of the regeneration system kicking in as you slow. Energy that would otherwise be lost is recovered and pumped into the hybrid van’s battery.
Unlike some systems we have encountered it is not aggressive, and there is no danger that you will end up with your nose pressed against the windscreen. You know it is there, but it does not make its presence felt unduly; and it does, of course, help keep fuel usage down.
If you want to take matters a stage further, however, then deploy the gearshift’s ‘B’ setting when you are going down a steep hill. Doing so slows you immediately, but again, not in an aggressive fashion, and sends more energy that would otherwise be wasted in the battery’s direction.
I’ve been using it at every opportunity, even on quite gentle inclines, and especially when there are speed cameras about. Being able to shave three or four miles off your speed immediately could help ensure that you are not penalised.
As well as the B setting, and again with the aim of saving energy, I’ve been making extensive use of the Eco driving mode. Resorting to it still allows you to make decent progress unless you happen to have a lot of weight on board.
Fuel economy remains steady at 55mpg, and I’m feeling quietly smug about the Corolla Commercial being petrol-powered. At the time of writing diesel was 18p a litre more expensive than petrol.
My eagerness to save energy does not prevent me from making full use of the heated driver’s seat though. It’s more than welcome on a chilly morning, or if you’re driving home after a hard day’s work and your back and legs ache.
Among the Corolla Commercial’s latest missions has been to collect a leaf blower powered by a small two-stroke motor from a local repairer.
I’d managed to wreck it in my usual ham-fisted manner. Unable to fix the damage myself, I’d been obliged to take it to a specialist.
Clearly somebody that ham-handed needs a van fitted with every conceivable safety device to ensure he doesn’t inadvertently come to grief. So why let him loose in a van without reversing sensors?
That alas is one of the oddities of the Corolla Commercial.
It has a rear-view camera but is minus the sensors that should go with it. They are an extra-cost option which will cost you £245.83, and, in my opinion, should be included in the price.
On the face of it their absence shouldn’t matter. If you’ve got the camera, then why would you need sensors as well?
The camera after all enables you to see where you are going, and should allow you to avoid walloping lamp posts, walls and other vehicles; not to mention unwary pedestrians.
The difficulty is that we are so used to the gradually intensifying beep-beep-beep of the sensors fitted to so many light commercials that it has become increasingly difficult to reverse in safety without them, even with a camera present. Maybe it is just one more example of the way in which technological change is de-skilling and infantilising light commercial drivers.
The absence of reversing sensors is especially strange given that Toyota has so many other safety systems built in, including Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Departure Alert and Pre-Collision System. The last-named brakes the van automatically if the driver ignores a warning that he is about to hit something.
Happily it’s not kicked in yet – but there’s always a first time…
Report card: Build quality = 5/5
Top notch.
Toyota Corolla Commercial 1.8 Hybrid
Mileage 1,645
Official combined consumption (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 55mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals 1yr/10,000mls
Load length 1558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
1st Report
When a light commercial joins the What Van? long-term test fleet it can look forward to a bit of hard graft.
One of the first tasks of the latest arrival – Toyota’s Corolla Commercial – was to ferry bags of road salt plus a salt bin to a parish council storage facility (a lock-up garage, in other words) in south Herefordshire. Hopefully they won’t be required until next winter; but you never know.
Derived from the Corolla Touring Sport 1.8 Hybrid car, the five-door Corolla Commercial is now the only traditional car-derived van on sale in the UK if you ignore van versions of taxis and SUVs.
Built in Britain, it is a self-charging hybrid which can run on zero-emission battery power, but can switch to a combination of petrol and battery power as and when required. Its ability to charge itself avoids the hassle of having to plug the battery into a charging point.
It comes with one level of specification and it is quite a high one, with heated seats, a reversing camera and air-conditioning. The driver and passenger can set the temperatures they require individually.
Keyless ignition is fitted and the electronic parking brake can be applied or released manually or automatically.
An 8in touchscreen dominates the dashboard with a DAB radio. Smartphone integration is provided with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto along with Bluetooth compatibility.
Access to the modest 1.3m3 cargo area is by means of a glazed rear hatch-type door plus a hinged door on each side with its windows covered with opaque film. The ability to get at the load bay from three sides makes life a lot easier.
The car’s rear seats have been replaced by a timber cargo bed covered by a tailored rubber mat with half-a-dozen load tie-down points. A steel half-height bulkhead topped off by a mesh grille should protect the cab’s occupants if an unsecured load slides forward.
On the subject of safety, the sleek-looking Corolla Commercial comes with a host of built-in devices. The roster includes Pre-Collision System, which brakes the van automatically if the driver ignores a warning that he is about to hit something.
Present too is Adaptive Cruise Control, which helps you maintain a healthy distance from the vehicle in front.
Lane Departure Alert triggers a warning if you begin to wander out of your lane on a motorway or dual carriageway. It also delivers steering input to nudge you back onto the right path.
The van’s power pack consists of a 120hp 1.8-litre petrol engine which works in conjunction with a 53kW electric motor/generator and a lithium-ion battery. A single-speed Continuously Variable Transmission delivers the power to the wheels.
The van pulls away from rest using the electric motor. In most circumstances thereafter the petrol engine takes the lead, leaving the motor to act as a generator and charge the battery.
Put your foot down and the battery’s power is added to that of the engine, delivering extra impetus.
Energy that would otherwise be lost when the van slows is recovered and pumped into the battery. To maximise this effect, push the gear shift lever to the ‘B’ setting when you are descending a steep hill.
Three different driving modes are available; Eco, Normal or Sport. The first two are fine in most circumstances, but switch to the last-named if you are in a hurry.
Corolla Commercial rides and handles well for the most part although there are occasions when the steering can feel a little dead. In-cab noise levels could be better suppressed when the engine is running, but cannot be viewed as a major issue.
Service intervals are short – not always a bad thing – but the warranty is long, and fuel economy is a plus-point. So far, the impression is a positive one – let’s see if this changes in the coming months.
Report card: Cab = 4/5
A pleasant working environment.
Toyota Corolla Commercial 1.8 Hybrid
Mileage 492
Official combined consumption (WLTP) 55.6mpg
Our average consumption 55mpg
Price (ex VAT) £23,553
Warranty 10yrs/100,000mls
Service intervals 1yr/10,000mls
Load length 1558mm
Load width (min/max) 952mm/1430mm
Load bay height 682mm
Load volume 1.3m3
Gross payload 425kg
Engine size/power 1798cc, 120hp
CO2 115g/km
