2023 Toyota Corolla Hybrid SE

Buying a Toyota Corolla small sedan is what might seem to be a safe bet. The Corolla's been around since 1966, is now in its 12th generation, and is the world's best-selling car (50 million and counting). To its credit, the Corolla offers a lot of value for money spent— even more for the hybrid version we tested, which is EPA-rated at 44 mpg in combined driving (versus 34 to 35 mpg for nonhybrid versions) and costs just $1,400 more than the gasoline version. The base price on our midlevel SE all-wheel drive test vehicle was only $26,600. Besides a low MSRP and excellent fuel efficiency, the Corolla Hybrid offers attractive, somewhat sporty styling, an easy-to—drive demeanor, and plenty of standard advanced safety features (Toyota's Safety Sense 3.0). Our test vehicle even had Toyota's Proactive Driving Assist feature, which detects objects or curves in the road and provides gentle braking or steering inputs to safely negotiate them. Still, the Corolla Hybrid's not the only game in town, and some of its negatives are turn-offs. For one thing, the powertrain is noisy, and the ride quality over less-than-perfect pavement can be on the rough side. The interior looks cheap, visibility to the rear is impeded by a high rear deck, and the infotainment system is nonintuitive to operate and has a small (8 inch) screen.