FOR four decades the Toyota Corolla justifiably earned a lasting legacy as the world's best-selling model with more than 32 million of these compact hatchbacks taking to the road since its launch in the England football team's World Cup-winning year of 1966.
Now the Japanese car maker has opted for a completely new family hatchback specifically designed and engineered for the European market, charged with transforming Toyota's profile in this most competitive of market sectors where the likes of the Ford Focus, VW Golf, Vauxhall Astra and Peugeot 307 hold sway.
Obviously looking towards further golden days, Toyota adopted the gold standard when seeking to name the newcomer, opting for Auris, a word which has its roots in the Latin word for gold and is likely to be easy to pronounce in all European languages.
It also fits in nicely with Toyota's other car names Yaris and Avensis.
The Auris comes in three and five-door form, the three-door being built in Turkey and the five-door version coming off the lines at Toyota UK's Burnaston plan in Derbyshire.
This newcomer is offered with five engine options, a brace of petrol power sources in 1.4-litre 97bhp VVT-I and an all-new 1.6-litre 124bhp Dual VVVT-I form while third generation common rail diesel units are threefold - a 1.4-litre 90bhp D-4D, two-litre 130bhp D-4D and the flagship 2.2-litre 180bhp D-4D.
Despite justifiably boasting a superbly reliable reputation, being comfortably safe, practical and good value for money, the Corolla was always a little bit off the pace in the presentation department. Neat and tidy, yes, but head-turningly exciting was never a description towards which it could truly aspire.
It gained the respect of its owners through its performance, dependability, build quality, value for money and practicality. But here, says Mr Toyota, is a car which owners could really take to their hearts, the Auris also being a decent looking car.
Although built on the same wheelbase as the Corolla, the Auris is around one-and-a-half inches longer and taller, plus it has a couple of inches in width advantage over its predecessor.
Short front and rear overhangs contribute to the neat look and, while the prominent Toyota badge provides a focal point for the design of the front end, the front bumper wraps around into the flared front wheel arches to give the car a very recognisable character.
Like the Corolla the Auris comes offering generous kit levels, T2, T3, T Spirit and T180.
The entry level T2 includes as standard the likes of four-speaker sound system with CD, manual air con, multi information display, electric front windows and door mirrors, nine airbags, remote central double locking, plus driver safety aids include ABS braking with Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD), and Brake Assist (BA).
The inside story is one of pretty comfortable spaciousness in all parts, for the Auris is said to have been designed around the needs of its occupants, with extra emphasis being placed on providing good head, shoulder and legroom for three adults in the rear of the cabin.
The boot, too, gets more stowage space than the Corolla and with all seats taken, 354 litres are available while with rear seats folded flat capacity extends to 761 litres.
The Auris T Spirit two-litre 130bhp D-4D five-door adds to its standard kit the likes of cruise control, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, dusk-sensing headlights, heated door mirrors, dual zone auto air con and six-speaker sound system with steering wheel-mounted controls, plus, a Smart Entry and Start System which enables automatic unlocking of the driver's door before engine start-up via the start/stop button on the dash.
From a high driving position the driving environment is decidedly user friendly. There are no less than ten storage places including a hidden tray beneath the front passenger seat, while the keynote feature is a bridged centre console which brings the gear lever and handbrake closer to hand for the driver.
Paired with the smooth-shifting six-speed manual gear change, the two-litre 130bhp D-4D helps to provide some very civilised progress with engine noise nicely suppressed while the redesigned suspension set-up delivers some excellent grip and balance.
Overall, there is a composed, easy rider smoothness about the operational side of driving the new Auris. It provides a level of comfort and quiet all the way which the Corolla never quite did while agreeable running costs and reliability are inbuilt into its genes.
FAST FACTS
Toyota Auris T Spirit D-4D 130 5dr
Price: £16,595
Mechanical: 130bhp, 1,998cc, 4cyl diesel engine driving front wheels via 6spd manual gearbox
Max speed: 121mph
0-62mph: 10.3 secs
Combined mpg: 52.3
Insurance group: 7
CO2 emissions: 144g/km
BiK rating: 18%
Warranty: 3yrs/ 60,000 miles, 3yrs paint, 12yrs anti-rust