The Corolla has more capabilities than you might think.
The Will It RallyYouTube series’ latest installment sees Team O’Neil rally school take a Toyota Corolla off-road to test its capabilities. You might immediately notice the shortcomings of this Japanese sedan: an automatic transmission, front wheel drive and an open differential. The Corolla is still capable of bouncing in the snow, despite these flaws.
Wyatt Knox, the video host, said that “it will do whatever you tell it to,” The Corolla is able to perform all the classic rally maneuvers with relative ease over the course of the video. Only modification to the car is a set steel wheels with proper snow tires.
The Corolla’s front wheel-drive powertrain may not be ideal for pavement but its predictability off-road makes it a great choice for rallying. The Corolla’s open differential made it difficult to move in snow.
The shakedown was followed by a lap around the grounds. Knox was quick to throw everything at the Corolla right out of the gate. It did very well, to our delight. The Toyota kept its cool, despite being able to hold some serious angles and even manage to make a large jump.
The Corolla had a limited open differential. It also had a weak powerband and struggled on the steeper sections. Knox attempted to make up for the poor uphill performance of the Corolla by driving as smoothly as possible in the corners. The Corolla was able to clock a respectable lap time in the corners of the . The Corolla actually ran faster than the all-wheel-drive 2014 Cooper S!
Although it may not be Carlos Sainz Sr.’s WRC Toyota Celica, the Corolla is capable of rallying. The Corolla is the most popular car in the world and is a great rally car for novice rally drivers.