Photo: Toyota / edited
Manufactured in Alabama, the Corolla Cross for the US market indirectly replaces the C-HR. More practical than its discontinued predecessor, the smallest crossover sold by Japanese automaker Toyota in this part of the world is recalled over a safety concern related to the front passenger's airbag.
Early last month, a plant employee identified an issue with the passenger-side instrument panel assembly. Toyota contacted Vuteq Alabama, the supplier of the instrument panel assembly, in light of this discovery. Lo and behold, Vuteq reluctantly confirmed that certain assemblies may lack the perforation for the passenger airbag on the panel's underside. The supplier allegedly skipped certain steps of the manufacturing process.
Toyota conducted a series of tests to determine whether no perforation compromises front passenger safety or not. As expected, Toyota concluded that said airbag is prone to abnormal deployment. A noncompliance with section 14.4 of the NHTSA federal motor vehicle safety standard 208 couldn't be ruled out, which is why 96,007 examples of the 2022 through 2023 model year Corolla Cross have been recalled.
The vehicles in question were manufactured in the period between September 1, 2021 and May 4, 2023. According to documents filed with the federal watchdog, a mere 1.77 percent of recalled vehicles are believed to require a replacement assembly. The part number for the instrument panel assembly is 55400-0A050. Toyota dealerships have already been instructed to inspect and – if necessary – replace the assembly at no cost to the owner. Notifications will be sent by first-class mail in the period between July 10, 2023 and July 29, 2023.
Unveiled two years ago, the US-market Corolla Cross began series production back in September 2021 for the 2022 model year. It was initially offered with a 2.0L naturally-aspirated engine. Toyota introduced a hybrid powertrain for the 2023 model year, with said powertrain built around the four-cylinder lump mentioned earlier. There are minor differences between said engines, though, including their codenames: M20A-FKS for the non-hybrid version and M20A-FXS for the hybrid.
The FKS may not be powerful, but its thermal efficiency of 40 percent is up there with the most efficient of road engines. The FXS runs a slightly higher compression ratio (14.0:1 as opposed to 13.0:1), therefore rocking a thermal efficiency of 41 percent. As a result, we're dealing with 196 ponies at full chatter versus 169 horsepower for the non-hybrid engine.
Although small, the Corolla Cross Hybrid further impresses with not one, not two, but three (!!!) electric motors. The two up front are rated at 111 horsepower combined, whereas the 40-hp motor out back enables all-wheel drive. AWD is standard, hence the $27,970 starting price of the hybrid.
Lower down the spectrum, the Corolla Cross kicks off at $23,610. All-wheel drive for the non-hybrid version is $1,300, a reasonable amount of moolah for a much superior crossover than the fancier-looking but more flawed C-HR.
Toyota conducted a series of tests to determine whether no perforation compromises front passenger safety or not. As expected, Toyota concluded that said airbag is prone to abnormal deployment. A noncompliance with section 14.4 of the NHTSA federal motor vehicle safety standard 208 couldn't be ruled out, which is why 96,007 examples of the 2022 through 2023 model year Corolla Cross have been recalled.
The vehicles in question were manufactured in the period between September 1, 2021 and May 4, 2023. According to documents filed with the federal watchdog, a mere 1.77 percent of recalled vehicles are believed to require a replacement assembly. The part number for the instrument panel assembly is 55400-0A050. Toyota dealerships have already been instructed to inspect and – if necessary – replace the assembly at no cost to the owner. Notifications will be sent by first-class mail in the period between July 10, 2023 and July 29, 2023.
Unveiled two years ago, the US-market Corolla Cross began series production back in September 2021 for the 2022 model year. It was initially offered with a 2.0L naturally-aspirated engine. Toyota introduced a hybrid powertrain for the 2023 model year, with said powertrain built around the four-cylinder lump mentioned earlier. There are minor differences between said engines, though, including their codenames: M20A-FKS for the non-hybrid version and M20A-FXS for the hybrid.
The FKS may not be powerful, but its thermal efficiency of 40 percent is up there with the most efficient of road engines. The FXS runs a slightly higher compression ratio (14.0:1 as opposed to 13.0:1), therefore rocking a thermal efficiency of 41 percent. As a result, we're dealing with 196 ponies at full chatter versus 169 horsepower for the non-hybrid engine.
Although small, the Corolla Cross Hybrid further impresses with not one, not two, but three (!!!) electric motors. The two up front are rated at 111 horsepower combined, whereas the 40-hp motor out back enables all-wheel drive. AWD is standard, hence the $27,970 starting price of the hybrid.
Lower down the spectrum, the Corolla Cross kicks off at $23,610. All-wheel drive for the non-hybrid version is $1,300, a reasonable amount of moolah for a much superior crossover than the fancier-looking but more flawed C-HR.
Google News