Richard Munally has moved from a Mazda3 Petrol to a Toyota Corolla Hybrid.
Via our survey, ‘Past, Present & Future’, we want to understand peoples’ respective car ownership stories. With the current climate crisis, there’s never been a greater need for emission-free driving yet at the same time, people are facing rising (and record) energy & general living costs.
This could ultimately change what car & fuel type a lot of people choose next. Also, we are very mindful that not everyone is on the road to electric so we wanted to highlight some of the more diverse & interesting feedback we’ve received.
Tell us about your Mazda3
It was very comfortable, quiet and pleasant to drive. Very nice looking car IMHO, I owned it nearly 6 years and nothing at all went wrong with it, so reliability, it was excellent. The (immaculate) cream leather heated seats were wonderful. Almost imperceptible auto gearbox with manual mode and paddles useful for more immediate acceleration or just having fun. The only downside was mediocre performance due to the underpowered engine, 120bhp was nowhere near enough.
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Tell us about your Toyota Corolla Hybrid
The Corolla Hybrid was first registered in September 2020 but I’ve had it only a couple of weeks. A bit of a hasty purchase to replace our Mazda 3 that was written off but absolutely no regrets so far. We also have a Yaris hybrid so we knew how well the hybrid power train suits our needs and had no hesitation getting the Corolla Hybrid. Like the Mazda, it is very comfortable and even quieter.
Seems very well finished and includes every item of tech we could wish for. Adverse comments about the Corolla sat nav are just copy/paste histrionics from people who’ve never really tried to use it. The sat nav is fine and easy to use. The handbrake ‘Hold’ function is brilliant and I use it every time.
The radar cruise works well but can be scary so I’m covering the brake pedal a lot when using it particularly on bendy roads. Auto park is too darn scary and I haven’t had the courage to try it yet, nor the lane keeping function. The boot is OK for an old couple like us but too small for a family on holiday.
What will be the fuel type of your next car?
Hybrid
If you had to choose your next car today, what would it realistically be and why?
We are wedded to the hybrid concept because it suits the way we use our cars. I am anti-EVs because I believe they are no more than a temporary distraction on the path to something much better. My view is that hydrogen is the best power source at the moment, though there are many problems to be solved before they become a saleable alternative to current technologies. I digress, hybrid suits us so any next car will likely be hybrid too.
Let us know your car ownership story by completing our ‘Past, Present & Future’ survey HERE
