The new Toyota corolla will be out by the time you get hold of this issue. To be called the Corolla Altis, it will be the second Corolla for India, after the first one was launched in early 2003. The new corolla appears larger than the outgoing car, but in fact nearly mirrors, the dimensions of the Honda Civic its biggest rival.

Unlike the Civic, the styling of the car is more subdued and caters to a much wider audience. It is still unmistakably a Toyota, and in some ways appears like a slightly shrunken Camry. On the inside too things are new with a multifunction steering, rectangular air vents and a busy center console. The corolla for India might also come with electrically adjustable seats for the high end variants, something we do not get to see in the Civic. Expect the other usual corolla niceties, such as lot of fake wood and beige leather and interior space that can’t be the termed inadequate.

The new corolla uses the same 1.8L WT block from the old car, but instead of producing a peak power of 125 bhp, it now produces 132 bhp, and a smidgeon more torque, rated at 17.4 kgm. A 4-speed auto and 5-speed manual gearbox will be the only optional items in the drivetrain package and it looks unlikely that a diesel engine will be offered at the time of launch.

The Toyota, pricing will be crucial since the Civic has managed to take a huge chunk of sales away from the Corolla in the last two years and given the overall package that Honda has offered, it makes Toyota’s job even more difficult. Besides the Civic, the Corolla will also have to watchout for the recently launched Volkswagen Jetta and a facelifted version of the Skoda Octavia that is currently on the cards. We expect a small premium over the outgoing car, with prices starting just under Rs 11 lakh and going all the way up to Rs 13 to 13.5 Lakh for the top end manual, and automatic variants.