Toyota Offers Sporty Stick Shifts in Two Distinct Ways

The best part of freedom is having the ability to make decisions for ourselves. The internet is chock-full of armchair experts ready to spout off their often misguided opinions, telling us what to do, think, or buy. Having spent the last 15 years professionally reviewing all sorts of motorized things, it’s not my job to tell folks what to buy, but to share experiences that will hopefully help people make educated decisions.

Online automotive forum “experts” often proclaim “nobody would ever cross-shop those vehicles!” in an attempt to invalidate a comparison. I’m here as an automotive reviewer, educated in marketing, as living proof that sometimes it’s totally OK to consider wildly different machines if they meet your specific, individual use case. You do you, and if you’ll indulge me, I’ll illustrate by comparing two completely different vehicles I’m considering for my own garage.

The two machines hovering around the top of my shopping list are a sporty hatchback and a compact pickup truck. Each can be used as year-round daily transport, suitably managing urban and rural exploits in all sorts of weather, and enabling my cycling and paddling hobbies. It just so happens that Toyota offers one of each for roughly the same money, and crucially, equipped with a stick shift to satisfy my driving-enthusiast wants.

Nobody would ever cross-shop the Toyota Tacoma and GR Corolla! Oh yeah? Watch me.

Lifestyle Dictates

As we age, lifestyle needs and wants constantly evolve, but so too does the auto industry. At one point, compact pickup trucks were wheezy, unrefined work vehicles with precious little interior space. Meanwhile, sports car ownership often required significant compromises until sporty sedans and hatchbacks grew in popularity and then faded. Now, if you want a sporty pickup truck with a stick shift, or you want a little turbocharged, all-wheel-drive hatchback with a stick shift, you’ve got to visit the Toyota showroom.

My lifestyle – like many buyers of either of these machines – doesn’t demand a truck to do big-truck things (like hauling massive loads), nor does my penchant for performance require a dedicated track weapon capable of setting consistent lap records. Each of these machines can, however, get loaded up with some camping gear, a paddle board, and a bicycle and head off to the lake. The Tacoma is obviously better-equipped to venture into more remote locations, but gravel logging roads are a playground for the rally-bred GR Corolla.

More often, during urban commuting, the little hatchback can squirt through traffic like a greased eel, while the Tacoma is more cumbersome – even as one of the most maneuverable trucks available today.

Comfort and Practicality

Living in Canada, most seek a do-it-all machine to manage all four seasons and, given the relentless nastiness of the winter that battered eastern Canada this year, four driven wheels are nice to have (while a set of winter tires are a must). The Tacoma defaults to rear-drive, but has selectable 4WD with a transfer case that’ll allow for both high and low-range modes when the going gets tough. The tires on this TRD Sport test truck are best suited for highway driving and virtually useless for any sort of off-road adventures or winter use.

The GR Corolla has a full-time all-wheel-drive system with a trick differential that lets the driver decide if more power is desired at the rear, when, for instance, someone wanted to partake in snowy shenanigans. While it gives up the Tacoma’s obvious ground clearance advantage in really deep snow, the little hatchback with proper winter rubber should be unstoppable for most foul weather occasions.

Stick shift-equipped Tacomas are only offered with the shorter five-foot box length, which limits their usefulness as a pickup truck, but even offering a longer box option is a rarity these days with none of the competitors doing so. Finished with a resilient black plastic liner, the little pickup can still haul around a lot of stuff that you wouldn’t (or couldn’t) put in the back of the Corolla, which, by the way, has a tiny cargo area, even amongst its compact hatchback competitors. Plus, the Tacoma can tow 2,903 kg, whereas the GR Corolla can’t because (among other reasons) it has its third exhaust tip where a hitch would be.

The GR Corolla’s interior seriously lacks in practical storage space, not even offering a centre console to house things like sunglasses or a toll road transponder. Meanwhile, the Tacoma has cup and bottle holders, cubbies, grab handles, bins and storage spaces all over, plus it offers useful space under the flip-up rear seats.

In terms of comfort, neither of these two are standouts. Both create a fair amount of noise from the engine, wind, and road, and the ride quality is not exactly posh in either one, though it’s not abusive either. The Tacoma’s truck platform means it’s untroubled by massive pavement craters that can send cringe-worthy shockwaves through the little Corolla.

Front seat accommodations are generous enough in both machines, while their respective cloth-covered finishes are nothing special, much like the rest of the unstylish but durable plastics throughout the cabins. The rear seat in the Tacoma is about what you’d find in a compact SUV, while the Corolla’s is shockingly bereft of leg room. Both vehicles have seatbelts for five occupants, total, but should really only be used for occasional occupancy.

Performance

With the Tacoma’s redesign a couple years back, its venerable V6 option was discontinued in favour of a pair of turbocharged four-cylinder engines. Top trim Tacos get a hybrid power option that creates significantly more torque (and mass), but it can’t be mated to a manual gearbox. Still, this truck’s 270 horsepower is decent, and the 310 lb-ft of torque comes on at a relatively low 2,800 rpms, helping the Tacoma feel decently spritely. Its gearing is short, though, and the engine runs out of breath quickly when revving up.

The GR Corolla’s engine has fewer pistons in its engine than many motorcycles I’ve owned, with its trio of cylinders displacing only 1.6L. Intercooled and boosted with a turbo, the little engine whips up a frenetic 300 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque. It’s as exciting as blowing up a hornet’s nest with a cherry bomb – generating about as much buzzy noise, too – making it this car’s most defining feature. Its small size helps the engine rev quickly and gives the little Toyota tons of character, making it impossible to drive anywhere without a grin on the driver’s face.

Kudos to Toyota for offering the Tacoma with a stick shift, but despite the TRD Sport stickers, this is not a sporty machine to drive. Beyond the more agricultural engine feel and sound, the shift throws are quite long, and the clutch pedal travels absurdly high before its engagement point. It’s more engaging than a truck with an automatic, but not necessarily more fun. The GR Corolla is obviously designed to be driven with gusto, and its shifter offers short, crisp throws, making it truly fun to drive.

Both machines suffer from rev-hang between shifts when the clutch pedal is depressed but the engine revs linger for a second even as the driver lifts off the throttle. It’s designed to reduce emissions by igniting any unburnt fuel vapour rather than emitting it into the atmosphere, but it’s annoying for a driver, making it more difficult to shift smoothly. Admittedly, it’s relatively minor in the Corolla, but rather pronounced in the Tacoma.

Toyota does include automatic downshift rev-matching in both the Tacoma and GR Corolla that can make inexperienced (or lazy) drivers look like pros. The Tacoma also has a neat feature that instantly restarts the engine if it’s stalled, making it a great choice for those just learning to drive a manual transmission.

Unsurprisingly there’s no contest between these two in terms of handling and braking with the GR Corolla delivering exceptional grip, lean control and quick, lively steering – and all that was with the test car still fitted with squishy winter tires. The Tacoma’s steering takes about 3.5 turns lock-to-lock, versus the GR Corolla’s quick 2.3 turns. This gives the hatchback more responsiveness to steering inputs, but its shorter wheelbase makes the car a bit frenetic at highway speeds. The Tacoma tracks well as a long-distance cruiser, but feels lazy by comparison around town. Still, as far as trucks go, the Tacoma is surprisingly adept, tackling corners with greater nimbleness and composure than most pickups.

Price, Efficiency and Value

The GR Corolla, with its tiny trio of cylinders, is obviously the fuel-consumption hero of the two, but not by as much as one might think. The hatchback is rated at 9.8 L/100 km combined, which is abysmal for a subcompact, but understandable when considering how thirsty its hard-working turbo is and the fact it has AWD. The Tacoma’s combined average, at 11.9, is 2.0 L/100 km worse, but because it’s content with regular fuel versus the GR’s penchant for premium, the government ratings peg the annual fuel costs roughly a hundred bucks apart.

The Tacoma TRD Sport comes with extra niceties like a power sunroof and upgraded sound system, replete with removable dash-mounted Bluetooth speaker, none of which are found in the very plain and basic GR Corolla’s interior. In fairness, they’re also not found in the more affordable (and more rugged) Tacoma TRD Off-road trim that shaves a few grand, and priced nearly the same as the GR Corolla’s $52,299 tab after fees and destination charges.

Living with either of these vehicles, one has to be OK giving up splashy styling and luxury finishes for expected durability and sensible switchgear, exchanging giant screens for highly useful tactile buttons and knobs. In the long run, foregoing trendy design and frivolous technology in favour of usability and durability seems like a better value anyway.

Final Thoughts

For my use case, I could see myself happily living with either one, while occasionally pining for the benefits of the one I didn’t choose. Realistically, while I’d appreciate the added practicality of the truck, driving around by myself with an empty box most of the time is a waste. Meanwhile I’d enjoy the GR Corolla’s exciting drivetrain every time I’m behind the wheel.

Does this mean I’ve made up my mind? Not yet, but I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to consider these two unique and interesting machines in their respective segments. From one consumer to another, I encourage having an open mind to all sorts of possibilities when shopping for your next vehicle. Considering a vehicle that wasn’t even on your radar might lead to the best automotive choice you ever make.