New Toyota Corolla Altis versus rivals: price comparison

At a starting price of Rs 11.99 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) for the starting J (S) petrol variant and Rs 13.07 lakh for the diesel in basic J trim, it seems like great value for money. But does the rest of the range offer the same value? And how do its prices stack up against the other very capable competition in this small but quite competitive segment of executive sedans? Here’s a quick breakdown.

Petrol manual variants
At Rs 11.99 lakh, the Toyota Corolla Altis J (S) petrol variant is currently India’s most affordable executive sedan. The rival that gets closest to it is the Hyundai Elantra S petrol, which costs Rs 12.73 lakh. While the two Asian carmakers use traditional 1.8-litre, naturally aspirated petrol motors, their European counterparts use high-tech, 1.4-litre, direct injection turbo-petrol engines, and this is reflected in their prices too.

Take the base-model Volkswagen Jetta, the 1.4 TSI Trendline, which at Rs 13.20 lakh, is Rs 1.21 lakh more than the Altis J (S) petrol. Then there’s the Skoda Octavia 1.4 TSI Active; at Rs 13.95 lakh, it’s a whopping Rs 1.96 lakh more than the base Corolla.

What’s really interesting though is that while the Corolla’s middle G petrol trim (Rs 13.74 lakh) is still cheaper than the higher variants of the petrol manual Elantra, Jetta and Octavia, the top-end Corolla GL petrol manual, at Rs 15.38 lakh, is more expensive than all of them.

Petrol automatic variants
As with the last Toyota Corolla Altis, the new version gets the option of a CVT automatic with the petrol engine. The CVT is available in mid-spec G and top-spec VL trims, priced at Rs 15.04 lakh and Rs 16.89 lakh respectively. Hyundai offers the Elantra petrol automatic in one high-spec SX variant that costs Rs 14.91 lakh. That makes it Rs 13,000 cheaper than the automatic Corolla Altis in G spec and a full Rs 1.98 lakh cheaper than the VL spec, so consider the Hyundai if you’re after an automatic petrol.

While both the Octavia and Jetta’s 1.4 TSI engines are only available as manuals, the Skoda offers a bigger petrol engine – the 1.8 TSI – with an automatic. This single top-spec Octavia 1.8 TSI Elegance costs a whopping Rs 18.25 lakh; Rs 1.36 lakh more than the top Corolla Altis VL automatic.

Diesel variants
Like the petrol variants, the Corolla Altis diesel variants too square off against the Hyundai Elantra, Volkswagen Jetta and Skoda Octavia. However, it also competes against the Chevrolet Cruze and the recently updated Renault Fluence, as both these cars are sold only with diesel engines.

Also, while the diesel-powered Elantra, Cruze, Octavia and Jetta can be had with automatic gearboxes, the Corolla Altis diesel is only available as a manual, which is a bit of a missed opportunity in this segment. It should also be noted that the Corolla’s 87bhp, 1.4-litre diesel is the smallest and least powerful motor here by a considerable margin.

The Altis 1.4 diesel in the basic J variant sports a price tag of Rs 13.07 lakh. Again, the Hyundai Elantra’s base diesel variant is the next cheapest, with a price of Rs 13.51 lakh, followed closely by the Chevrolet Cruze 2.0 LT trim at Rs 13.79 lakh, and the Renault Fluence E2 at Rs 13.99 lakh.  

And once again, it’s the VW Group cars – the VW Jetta 2.0 TDI Trendline (Rs 14.65 lakh) and the Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI Active (Rs 15.55 lakh) – that are a noticeable step higher on the price ladder in base guise.

The thing is, in diesel guise, the Corolla is available in four variants, and while the first two trims –J and J (S) – easily undercut the competition, the higher two trims – G and GL – are on par, if not more expensive than some of the others. In fact, the Corolla Altis GL diesel (Rs 16.68 lakh) is more expensive than every other diesel manual car here, save for the top Jetta TDI Highline (Rs 18.18 lakh).

How it all pans out

It’s clear that while Toyota has managed to nail the starting prices of the petrol and diesel versions of the new Corolla Altis, notching in below the competition, the higher trims are where things start to balance out. The CVT automatic variants are more expensive than the well-equipped Elantra, and the top-end petrol and diesel manuals are right up there with the Jetta and Octavia. Yes, the way these cars are equipped affects their price, and delving into all of these cars’ equipment lists would be chaotic to say the least. But one thing’s for sure, in their highest spec, each of them has enough kit for the average executive car buyer. The last-generation engines and lack of a diesel automatic option also work against the Corolla Altis, but there’s no doubting the peace of mind that comes with owning any of Toyota’s cars.