Review: Toyota Corolla Cross GR-Sport
Toyota is one phenomenal brand with a plethora of good vehicles, which have been praised for their durability and quality, their cars basically outlive you. The Corolla Cross launched locally about 2 years ago, and has seen great success in sales. We all know the GR (Gazoo Racing) nameplate is attached to performance but on this model, it is mainly aesthetics and other minor tweaks.
The Corolla Cross GR-Sport is powered by a 1.8l engine that produces 103kW/174Nm, mated to a CVT transmission. I did my research and apparently the car does have some mild performance enhancements to it, mainly better handling. The car drives well, albeit the noise insulation is not the greatest. I also picked up quite a lag in gear changes, which can get frustrating on city driving. I do however, think this is actually an ideal car to have on a daily as it is spacious, practical and the GRS trim is absolutely stunning to look at.
The interior is such a lovely place to be in, you are met by red accents all over and on the aircon vents, red stitching and really cool GR logos on the seats. The car is fairly comfortable, it would work really well on long distance and as mentioned, it is a very spacious and practical vehicle. One can easily haul the kids and do the grocery run seamlessly. I averaged 8.9l/100km during my test period.
So, should you get it? I say yes. Albeit I did not entirely have an exciting time regarding the drive, I can appreciate it for what it is. Point blank, it is a good car. It aims to rival vehicles such as Haval Jolion and Honda HR-V, and having only tested the latter so far, I can say this is the best option currently in the segment. Priced from R453 200, it’s certainly not on the cheap side but, for what you are getting, you will be quite happy with your choice.
