Thread: Toyota Corolla Vs Honda Civic-Features And Suspension

The Corolla has the Civic beat hands down when it comes to the features list. Toyota has simply taken the long list of features available in the Camry and dumped most of it into the Corolla Altis. But not all variants as are packed as the top-of-the-line 'V' variant we were driving. In this variant you have cruise control, audio controls on the steering wheel, a multi information display and electronically controlled seat adjuster. The driver side seat has electronically adjustable lumbar support, convenience lights that light up the footwells, twin glove box and cup holders for both front and rear passengers.

None of these features are present in the Civic which only reduces its appeal to someone hunting for a car packed with goodies. On the outside, the Corolla Altis also has rain sensing wipers, automatic headlamps which switch on soon as it gets dark and head lamp washers, not to mention HID lamps, a feature that I hold in the highest regard.

This is genuinely the first of the all-new bits that the Corolla Altis possesses. The chassis has been completely redesigned and constructed from scratch with the intention of increasing the dimensions and also making the overall construction lighter and stronger. So overall length has increased by 10mm to 4540mm, and width has also increased by 60mm to 1760mm. The height however has been reduced by some 20mm to 1480mm though the wheelbase has stayed the same at 2600mm. The front and rear track has also increased by 50mm at the front to 1530mm while the rear has been widened by over 70mm to 1535mm. All these increments result in a much more spacious cabin as well as a larger 475-litre boot as compared to the older generation Corolla. But more importantly, this also gives the new Corolla Altis a much wider and firmer footprint to enhance handling.



With the increase in length, width and track and a reduction in height, the Corolla now has a lower C of G with a mechanical footprint spread more evenly and firmly. However, being inherently conservative, Toyota has ensured that the suspension is still the MacPherson type at the front and a torsion beam at the rear which is mounted onto the chassis. Why mess with a good thing and experiment with more modern components and layouts? So the end result will enable the suspension layout to offer better ride comfort to pamper its occupants.

The Civic too has a torsionally strong and stiffmonocoquewhich is light yet highly tuned to give it superb dynamic ability. At 4545mm, it is 5mm longerthan the Corolla Altis, though the width is 10mm less, height lower by 30mm while the wheelbase is 100mm longer. The track however is shorter by nearly 40mm at the front and lSmm at the rear. But thanks to a more rigid suspension set-up which has an independent MacPherson set-up at the front with double wishbones at the rear, the on paper specs shows that the Civic is capable of better dynamics than the Corolla.

The Corolla has an electronically assisted speed-sensitive steering system while the Civic makes do with a hydraulic steering system. The Corolla also features 380mm disc brakes all around, with ventilated discs at the front and solid at the rear. The Civic on the other hand has much smaller 224mm ventilated discs at the front and 218mm solid discs at the rear.