PLANO, Texas (September 1, 2019) – Toyota sprung – or, rather hatched – a driver’s surprise with the introduction of the new-generation Corolla Hatchback in 2019 and keeps the heat on for 2020 with new design, audio, connectivity and utility upgrades. It’s a very good time to be a hatch fan.

The high-style, high-spirited Corolla Hatchback struck a resounding chord with drivers who value authenticity, utility, practicality and style – all packaged with Toyota’s renowned quality, durability and reliability. Now, for 2020, Corolla Hatchback completes the connectivity trifecta by adding Android Auto compatibility to the Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa connectivity that debuted in the 2019 model. Expanding listening choices, the super-well-equipped SE grade joins the XSE in making SiriusXM All Access Satellite Radio standard with a three-month trial.

That’s just for starters. Blackout trim is the hot trend among luxury and performance cars, and it look fantastic on the Corolla Hatchback, too. For 2020, there’s a new black roof option available in combination with the Blizzard Pearl, Oxide Bronze, Classic Silver Metallic, Smoked Paprika and Blue Flame exterior colors. Next, the new Nightshade option makes the Corolla Hatchback look like it has been through a high-end custom paint shop without the high price tag. It’s available for the SE grade with Dynamic-Shift CVT option.

The Nightshade Edition starts with the blacked-out 18-inch alloy wheels from the Corolla XSE grade. In between, the blackout look permeates the lower rocker panels, front valance, door handles, mirror caps, shark fin antenna, rear roof spoiler and headlight inner frames.

Hatchback buyers like utility as much as style. For 2020, the new Enhanced Cargo Space option for the Corolla Hatchback SE adds six cubic feet of space by lowering the cargo floor, made possible by switching out the spare tire for a tire repair kit.

TNGA and TSS: Strength + Safety

The Corolla Hatchback is based on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA). Much more than a new body structure, TNGA also brings together new approaches to engineering, design, assembly, and materials.

TNGA makes both Corolla Hatchback and Sedan styles into engaging driving machines while bolstering their renowned value, durability and reliability. The elevated feeling of quality in every surface, switch, and control the driver sees and touches is also a function of TNGA.

Most critically, TNGA delivers on Toyota’s commitment to a high level of driver and passenger protection with the Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 suite of active safety systems, standard on every model. The roster includes:

• Pre-Collision System with Pedestrian Detection (PCS w/PD)
• Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (DRCC)
• Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist (LDA w/SA)
• Automatic High Beam (AHB)
• Lane Tracing Assist (LTA) (standard on CVT-equipped vehicles)
• Road Sign Assist (RSA)

In addition, Blind Spot Monitor (BSM) is standard on XSE and available on SE.

Design: Every Side is Its Good Side

The bold look of Corolla Hatchback begins with its rounded, muscular physique accented by chiseled character lines and simple, condensed three-dimensional highlights. Combined with the 16 or 18-inch wheels, the shape gives the Hatchback an active, well-planted attitude.

Slim, J-shaped Bi-Beam LED headlamps wrap deeply into the front fenders and give Corolla Hatchback a distinct expression. It’s functional, of course, with precise illumination. The all-LED taillamps feature a diffusing inner lens designed to highlight the Corolla Hatchback’s stout stance.

The car’s profile and hatch area underscore Corolla Hatchback’s athletic presence. The hatch’s slope catches the eyes while eluding the wind. Made from TSOP (Toyota Super Olefin Polymer) and ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), the lightweight hatch is easy to open and close and helps aid fuel efficiency.

The SE and XSE model grades are easily distinguished at a glance. Both feature LED headlamps and taillights, chrome rear diffuser and alloy wheels. The XSE ups the ante with 18-inch wheels, LED fog lights, chrome front grille surround and an available (with CVT) Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS). The Bi-Beam LED units move vertically and horizontally to help provide optimal light output by analyzing steering angle, vehicle speed and the vehicle’s longitudinal angle to adjust the lamps.

Corolla Hatchback’s electrifying color range includes Blue Flame, Blizzard Pearl, Classic Silver Metallic, Midnight Black Metallic, Galactic Aqua Mica, Smoked Paprika Metallic and Oxide Bronze.

Inner Emotiveness … and Peace and Quiet

Simple. Warm. Inviting. Sensuous. You’d expect such adjectives from the luxury car realm, yet these also inspired designers when visualizing Corolla Hatchback’s cabin. The result is called “Sensuous Minimalism.” It’s equal parts sporty and elegant, and, as always, Corolla-comfortable and durable.

Minimized gaps between buttons and switches, along with the elimination of unnecessary lettering on switchgear, adds to the premium ambiance. Consistency in all materials’ and elements’ shape, color, grain and gloss help maximize continuity and aesthetic quality.

The standard 4.2-inch or available 7-inch thin-film transistor (TFT) Multi-Information Display (MID) is located between the tachometer and speedometer. With the larger display, the driver can switch between analog and digital speedometer styles.

Featuring rich graphics, the easy-to-read MID can be custom configured by the driver and offers intuitive operation to access information for the audio and multimedia systems, including: hands-free phone operation; navigation; vehicle information including fuel efficiency and tire pressure; Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (DRCC), and other important parameters and system settings. The driver can operate the system via steering wheel-mounted controls and voice command.

Powertrain and road noise in the Corolla Hatchback are hushed thanks to drivetrain efficiencies and the widespread deployment of sound-absorbing materials, including Thinsulate®, sealants, foams and silencer pads. As one example, the floor silencer pad is one large piece, instead of many smaller elements. The TNGA structure employs additional seals in body gaps to insulate noise penetration and enhance air-sealing performance. Even Corolla Hatchback’s Aero Stabilizing Fins on the taillights helps by combatting wind drone.

Comfort and Convenience, Corolla Style

Combine all of that with Corolla’s quiet powertrain, and the Hatchback is the ideal space to enjoy music through the Toyota Audio system with a standard 8-inch multimedia touchscreen. This intuitive portal provides access to vehicle settings, audio controls, navigation, smartphone and App Suite 3.0. Climate controls, located below the multimedia portal, are fashioned in a bright, highly visible digitized configuration.

The center console incorporates a tray ahead of the gearshift that can hold small items such as a smartphone or wallet or, if outfitted, serves as the Qi wireless device charging area. A 5.5-inch smartphone can easily fit inside the center console box. High-gloss materials are paired with matte elements – silver accents with Piano Black and available contrast stitching – to accentuate a premium look and feel.

Seating comfort, always a Toyota strength, is optimized in the Corolla Hatchback to provide a more natural body posture and position for ideal access to the multifunction steering wheel, pedals, and gearshift. Ample front door storage includes cup holders that can fit 24-ounce bottles. Rear seat passengers have upper door cup holders that hold 16-ounce bottles.

Toyota Value Wins Again

The Corolla Hatchback upholds the brand’s penchant for high value. Nearly 50 years ago, that meant making such features as radial tires, reclining front seats and a rear window defogger standard on Corolla when most small cars made such features extra-cost options, if they offered them at all.

In 2020, it’s a whole different landscape, of course, but the value principle remains. The Corolla Hatchback SE grade comes standard with single-zone automatic climate control, leather-wrapped shift knob and, with the optional CVT, paddle shifters located behind the steering wheel. An electronic parking brake, three-door SmartKey system, automatic up/down windows and two front USB ports are standard as well.

The XSE grade builds on the SE with dual-zone climate control, combination leather (leather with mélange-like fabric) seating, unique stitching on the instrument panel and doors, heated front seats, and an eight-way power driver’s seat.

Multifaceted Multimedia

There’s no shortage of entertainment and connectivity inside Corolla Hatchback. For SE, standard Toyota Audio includes the 8-in. touchscreen; six speakers; Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and Amazon Alexa compatibility; App Suite Connect; Safety Connect; Wi-Fi Connect; Scout GPS Link Compatible; Siri Eyes Free; Auxiliary audio jack and USB 2.0 port with iPod connectivity and control; AM/FM; MP3/WMA playback capability; SiriusXM All Access satellite radio with three-month trial; hands-free phone capability; voice recognition and music streaming via Bluetooth.

Toyota Audio Plus, standard on XSE and optional on SE (with CVT), adds HD Radio and Weather/Traffic info; Connected Services; Service Connect and Remote Connect.

Topping the range, available Premium Audio for the XSE grade (with CVT) delivers a sonic knockout punch. The JBL 8-speaker, 800-watt system includes Clari-Fi technology, which analyzes and restores audio signals that were degraded by digital compression, making these formats sound more “open.” This system also includes JBL Dynamic Voice Recognition, Dynamic Navigation, Dynamic POI Search and Destination Assist Connect.

Highlights of the 8-speaker array include free-standing horn tweeters in the A-pillars, 6.7-inch door subwoofers and sealed inner door panels to promote cleaner, more powerful bass response. Whatever kind of music fed into it, this system rocks. Rounding off connectivity are two USB ports (located inside the center console and instrument panel) and one AUX port (located on the instrument panel).

A Driver’s Hatchback

Here’s another thing that hatchback customers enjoy: driving. Toyota designed the Corolla Hatchback as a complete driver’s package, with a seamless combination of comfort and sporty controllability that begins at its TNGA-C platform.

The structure employs a mixture of adhesives, spot welding, and additional bracing – top to bottom, side to side – to create a super-strong, super-tight platform for ride comfort and handling agility. The effects of TNGA’s extensive use of aluminum and high- and ultra-high tensile steel in the structure can be felt in the premium on-road feel and can be appreciated in the fuel efficiency.

The MacPherson strut front suspension employs sophisticated techniques, including a strut bearing mounted coaxially with the kingpin axis. This feature allows smoother upward suspension travel, especially while traversing bumps, resulting in more comfortable steering feel. The multi-link rear suspension is highly adept at comfortably absorbing bumps while also giving agility an edge.

The result: A Corolla Hatchback that possesses an uncanny blend of balance, composure, and feel that invites the driver to seek out twisty roads.

Dynamic-Force is Aptly Named

The 2.0-liter Dynamic-Force direct-injection inline four-cylinder engine is also a product of TNGA development. The engine earns its name from an exemplary combination of high performance and high fuel efficiency.

The hardware in this 2.0-liter powerhouse is impressive, including a very high compression ratio (13:1); ultra-low internal friction; Toyota D4-S fuel injection combining direct injection and secondary port injectors; high-speed combustion; VVT-iE intelligent variable valve-timing on the intake side and VVT-i on the exhaust. (VVT-iE uses an electric motor instead of oil pressure to control the variable valve timing.)

That all adds up to exuberant performance from 168 horsepower at 6,600 rpm and 151 lb-ft peak torque at 4,800 rpm. Features like a rigid crank case with integrated stiffener, a lightweight resin camshaft cover and a ribbed oil pan help to make the engine a smooth and quiet operator.

All of that tech helps with low fuel consumption, with 32 city / 42 highway / 36 combined manufacturer-estimated mpg estimates (CVT). A continuously variable capacity oil pump and a variable cooling system with electric water pump help maximize engine performance and efficiency. The more efficient cooling system also ensures quicker cabin heating on cold days and quicker cool-down when the air conditioner is used. Automatic Stop/Start reduces fuel usage in urban driving.

The 2.0-liter Dynamic Force engine can achieve 40 percent thermal efficiency, which is among the highest in the world for a passenger vehicle engine and is a true measure of how well the engine converts fuel to energy.

Transmission Mission

Be they commuters or canyon cruisers, Corolla Hatchback drivers will appreciate the choice between two transmissions: the Dynamic-Shift CVT or a 6-speed iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission). The CVT offers simulated 10-speed Sequential Shiftmatic steps, Sport Mode, and paddle shifters. Unique among transmissions of this type, the key to the Dynamic-Shift CVT’s distinct performance feel is a gearset used as a “first” gear for start-off acceleration, before handing off to the CVT’s pulley system.

Because the launch gear is handling the higher input load at launch, the size of the CVT’s belt and pulley components could be reduced, yielding shifting speeds that can be 20 percent faster than in a conventional CVT.

The result is a quicker, more linear acceleration feeling from a stop, while maintaining the benefits of a CVT at mid-range and higher speeds. Also, because the gears reduce the need for the CVT’s pulleys and belt mechanism to be used in the low-ratio range, more of the CVT’s expansive 7.5 range can be dedicated to mid- and higher speeds, helping to maximize fuel efficiency.

The six-speed iMT with downshift rev-matching control is like something from a sports car. The iMT controls automatically adjust engine revs when changing gears, ensuring smooth gear shifting that makes any driver feel like a stick-shift pro.

Toyota Safety Tech

The 2020 Corolla Hatchback has eight standard airbags and Toyota’s Star Safety System, which includes Enhanced Vehicle Stability Control, Traction Control, Electronic Brake-force Distribution, Brake Assist, Anti-lock Braking System, and Smart Stop Technology. Corolla Hatchback also comes equipped with a standard backup camera.

Limited Warranty and ToyotaCare

Toyota’s 36-month/36,000 mile basic new-vehicle warranty applies to all components other than normal wear and maintenance items. Additional 60-month warranties cover the powertrain for 60,000 miles and corrosion with no mileage limitation. The Corolla Hatchback also comes standard with ToyotaCare, a no additional cost plan that covers normal factory-scheduled maintenance for two years or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first, and 24-hour roadside assistance for two years, unlimited mileage.