Toyota Corolla Altis Diesel road test

So how does the 1.4 D4D engine fare in the just-launched Altis diesel? We find out.

Photo: Past 2000 rpm, the Corolla Altis diesel is super-refined

The Corolla (now in its latest Altis variant) is Toyota’s bread and butter car. This car has sold in very handsome numbers the world over for quite some time.

Till recently, you did not have many options in this segment. If had sporty pretensions, you went for the Honda Civic, and you wanted something more sedate but solid, you went for the Corolla. If you wanted a diesel, you looked at Skoda for options.

(For the Toyota Corolla Altis diesel photo gallery, scroll all the way down to the end of this story.)

Photo: Toyota Corolla Altis diesel's interior

The Corolla Altis has been feeling some competition from rivals such as the Chevrolet Cruze and the Skoda Laura with its cousin the VW Jetta, and their diesel engines were seriously tempting for those who had their minds set on diesel sedans.

From the beginning, there was demand for a diesel engine for the Corolla and Toyota never looked too interested. But work on a diesel engine for the Corolla was going on. And now it is here under the bonnet of the new Corolla Altis diesel.

We received the Toyota Corolla Altis diesel from TKM for a road test, and we took it through its paces to see how how the diesel engine performs.

Now it is not a secret that Toyota has one of the best diesel engines around. We find them in the Toyota Innova , Fortuner SUV and the Land Cruiser. The engine in the Corolla Altis diesel belongs to the same D4D engine family.

Engine and performance

Photo: The 1.4 liter D4D diesel engine is extremely frugal

The 1.4-litre four-cylinder D4D engine which on paper might seem pretty small to power a car this size. And let us say it outright – if real muscle is what you look for in your diesel sedan, that is not what the Corolla diesel offers you. What you get is a sweet machine whose primary intention is to give you mileage figures worth talking about – and do it in comfort.

The engine – code named as the 1ND-TV – is 1364cc and makes 88.4 PS @ 3800rpm and has 205 Nm of torque under its belt between 1800rpm – 2800rpm. Variable Nozzle Turbo and Intercooler helps pump up the power – and the performance of the 1.4 liter engine is clearly better than what you would expect. This very engine also powers the Toyota Yaris in some parts of the world.

Toyota has tuned the 1.4 D4D to perform better than you would expect, and while on the move, it performs very well indeed. The engine is mated to a 6-speed transmission with very well thought-out ratios to ride the almost straight torque curve from gear to gear.

Crank the motor, and let it idle. You could easily say that this is one of the quietest and smoothest diesel engines in the D-segment. The engine is quite rev-friendly engine, and there is no diesel clatter. It just idles silently under the hood.

Remember, this is not a sports car nor a super fast petrol sedan. The Toyota Corolla Altis diesel does not take off like a flash. But it is now slouch either. From a standing start, 100 kmph comes up in around 15 seconds. It does not set your heart pounding, true. But nor do you feel that the Altis diesel is lethargic.

Once on the move, the Corolla Altis diesel is very stable. As you touch 2000 rpm, the turbo takes over and life gets a lot better for the driver. The torque output is linear, and once on the highways, you will easily marvel at the smooth performance (not to mention fuel efficiency, but we will come to that later.)

The new six speed transmission offers slick gear shifts. The gear box is a pleasure to use with no false shifts. Gear ratios are well-spaced to match the 1.4 engine. This is where we answer the most important question on the minds of many potential buyers – how does it perform in traffic? The answer is, quite well indeed – but you have to work that gearbox to make the most of the D4D engine.

Suspension and ride

The suspension setup of the Altis diesel is also one of the best. The suspension setup is tuned for comfort and to deal with the bad roads that are common in India, especially in the rains. Compared to the petrol Altis’ suspension system, the Altis D has slighter stiffer springs to bear the load of the slightly heavier diesel motor. Ride quality is top notch, nothing to complain about there as well. The suspension set up works brilliantly and every bump or speed breaker and pot holes are absorbed while allowing the Altis D to smoothly sail over them.

We had a few spirited highway runs during the road test to see how the Altis D performs on the highway. On the short bursts, we managed to touch 150 kmph with quiet ease and the sixth cog made matters much calm and sober.

Toyota claims an ARAI-certified 21.43 kpl as the mileage of the car. Considering the really long 6th cog of the Altis diesel which would do a lot of the duty on highways, we think that is very achievable or even possible to exceed on the highways. In the city or in mixed driving, depending on traffic conditions and how much you have to work the gearbox, a mileage of 15-17 kmpl is quite possible.

Who should NOT buy the Corolla Altis diesel

Do you generally like cars that offer 100 bhp plus and quick acceleration? Do you dislike shifting gears too often in heavy traffic? Are you used to 1900 cc or 2000 cc diesels or or similarly spec-ed petrols? Then perhaps you should not go for the Altis diesel.

Who should BUY the Corolla Altis diesel

If you are mostly driven around by your chauffeur, you should. If you travel a lot and would clearly like to save what you can on fuel, you should. If you have always wanted a Toyota Corolla Altis but did not want to pay the fuel bills, the diesel is for you.

Interiors

We started off with the engine and other technicalities of the Altis diesel – after all, the diesel engine was the big change here. The interiors and the exteriors are identical to the petrol sibling. Loads of space inside, and small compartments for storing small items. The airconditioner, with climate control, works flawlessly. The top-end Altis diesel comes with a host of features. It has steering-mounted audio controls, wood inserts on the centre console and doors, twin opening glove box, Optitron instrument cluster with multi-info display which shows fuel efficiency, drive to empty level… Airbags, ABS, EBD,auto-dimming rear-view mirror add to the pleasure.

We are told by TKM engineers that there are three layers of insulation material between the engine compartment firewall and the cabin that prevents any engine noise or outside traffic noise from coming inside the cabin. Moreover there is an additional two layers of some more insulation to keep the road noise and tyre roll noise from entering through the floor. That also includes rear wheel arches that play their part with some insulation in keeping the Corolla Altis diesel’s cabin one of the quietest cabins among D segment diesels.

The Toyota Corolla Altis is often a chauffeur-driven car in India. So rear seat comfort matters most, and so we plonked ourselves on the rear seat. Here’s where the Toyota Altis scores against its rivals. No passenger sitting at the rear can figure out that this is a diesel-engined car, or guess that this car has a 1400 cc. This is a big big compliment for the Altis Diesel team who have done a wonderful job in making the cabin so silent and free from any vibrations and the NVH levels so low.

The seats are very supportive, while the back incline angle and under thigh support is also very good. All in all, well-designed rear seats will make you a happy customer indeed.

Exterior

On the outside the Altis has alloy wheels, printed rear windshield antenna, chrome handles, headlight washers, fog lamps, all black front grill, auto folding mirrors with integrated turn indicators, HID headlights etc.

The Toyota Corolla Altis diesel is a very good package overall. It does not have the interior style of the Honda Civic, nor it may have the power of the Skoda Laura, Volkswagen Jetta or the Chevrolet Cruze. But where it shines in is high fuel efficiency figures, refinement and in-cabin comfort level.

The new Toyota Corolla Altis Diesel comes with a three-year / 1 lakh kms warranty and its prices start at a very tempting Rs 10.95 lakhs ex showroom. It is available in 7 vibrant colors.