Toyota Corolla 7-speed AT launch soon

The internet was bustling with spy-photos of the face-lifted Toyota Corolla Altis; the car is now expected to be launched in May according to Autocar India. It will feature a 7-speed automatic gearbox and will be sold alongside the current model the company offers with a 4-speed automatic transmission.

Not a lot has changed on the upcoming Corolla Altis aprt from minor tweaks like refreshed headlamps, redesigned front grille and modified bumpers. The new Corolla Altis will be priced slightly higher than the current model. The face-lifted sedan will be powered by the same 1.8 litre VVT-I petrol and 1.4 litre turbo diesel engines. This clearly shows that there will be no variant with a 1.6 litre petrol engine as was being speculated earlier.

The petrol variant boats a 1,794 cc, 4-cylinder, inline, 16-valve, DOHC motor that produces 132 PS of maximum power at 6,000 rpm and 170 Nm of maximum torque at 4,200 rpm. The diesel variant sports a 1,364 cc, 4-cylinder, D-4D motor coupled with Variable Nozzle turbo and intercooler. The engine produces 89 bhp of maximum power at 3,800 rpm and 205 Nm of maximum torque at 1,800 – 2,800 rpm. Also read: Most fuel-efficient automatic cars in India under Rs 10 lakh

Toyota launched the Corolla Altis in India in 2008. The Altis petrol is offered in four trim levels: 1.8J, 1.8G, 1.8GL and 1.8VL.The prices of the petrol Altis models start from Rs. 10.38 lakh for the base version(1.8 J) and go up to Rs. 14.53 lakh for the top-end variant (1.8 VL). The company launched the diesel version of Corolla Altis in July 2010 and offers it in 3 trim levels: D-4DJ, D-4DG and D-4DGL. The diesel Altis models starts at a price point of Rs. 11.31 lakh (D-4D J) for the base variant and climbs up to Rs. 14.21 lakh for the top-end variant (D-4D GL).

A few of days ago, Toyota had announced a hike in the prices of its key models including the Corolla Altis effective this month onwards. The Corolla Altis petrol’s price has been hiked by Rs. 10,400 to Rs. 14,500 while the diesel spec is dearer by Rs. 14,100 to Rs. 17,700 applicable as per the variants. The new model will likely be launched with the same trim levels as the current model. Related: New Toyota Corolla Altis spied in Bangalore, refreshed version coming soon

The new Corolla Altis, will compete with tried and tested cars like the Honda Civic, Chevrolet Cruze and Skoda Laura. It has to be noted that the current Altis model already tops the sales charts every month. In March 2011, Toyota sold 953 Corolla Altis and Chevrolet sold 834 Cruze cars while the Skoda Laura’s sales stood at 591 in the same month and Honda could sell only 379 units of Civic.