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Sedans Toyota Corolla 2009 Toyota Corolla
3074 messages, Last post on Aug 04, 2009 at 6:36 PM
You are in the Toyota Corolla Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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Replying to: kdhspyder (Apr 08, 2009 7:21 am) |
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Replying to: thegraduate (Apr 08, 2009 9:02 am) Issues seem to get addressed incrementally in order of importance. Regarding the Corolla the issues were implementing the new 1ZR 1.8L engine, addressing the seating / steeringwheel issue, making a quieter environment, adding new safety equipment, increasing interior room, all while maintaining fuel economy at the top of the class and keeping prices low enough to appeal to the targetted buying segment.......and to make a profit doing so. The 4 speed AT is a non-issue with the targetted demographic. But the direction is clearly toward 5 AT's in the near future along with a Valvematic enhancement which already being used in the JDM versions of the Corolla. New features begin there and migrate to the other markets ( iron out the bugs too ). My personal guess is that at the 3 yr refresh in MY 2012 we might see the 5 AT + Valvematic. At the latest I'd guess 2014 in the 'all new' Corolla. |
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Replying to: kdhspyder (Apr 08, 2009 7:21 am) As a case in point, I know of at least one other compact econocar with EPS on which the steering feel is tuned differently for different markets, e.g. a softer feel for the U.S., and a firmer feel for the European market and at least some AP markets including Australia. It was a pretty easy change to make, e.g. a couple of engineers went down to Australia when there were published road tests that trashed the steering feel of the car, and the engineers made an in-the-field update to the EPS that improved the steering feel greatly. So it IS possible, and pretty easily/cheaply. That leads me to believe that you are correct in saying the disconnected steering feel on the Corolla is intentional, that is, that Toyota thinks Americans LIKE our small cars to feel that way. But I suggest that the Corolla's strong sales are not BECAUSE of its steering feel, but IN SPITE OF its steering feel, i.e. there are enough people who either don't mind the way the steering feels or overlook it because they like other things about the Corolla. Anyway, since it appears the steering feel is intentional, that is where posts like those from thegraduate and others who don't care for the Corolla's steering feel are useful and should be encouraged rather than shoved aside by Toyota fans. If no one complains about the steering feel, Toyota has no reason to make a change. And I suspect Toyota and other manufacturers do monitor these forums. At least we know for sure that many Toyota employees monitor these forums, and they are in a position to send the feedback to the company.
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Replying to: backy (Apr 08, 2009 11:25 am) I think that Toyota has made a production decision based on marketing input for the targetted demographic. It's intentional. For that demographic the EPS is a non-issue as is the 5 AT. Other features need addressing first. No one is shoving anyone's opinion aside. As noted previously everyone's view is correct. That's why there are so many choices in the market. But the view that the EPS is somehow 'wrong' or 'bad' is only a personal view of certain people that want something else. The current design is 'correct' and 'good' for the drivers for whom the vehicle's intended. The volume of sales validates those production/marketing decisions. As I said in the beginning everybody's view is correct. It only depends on one's personal preferences. I'm certain that all these discussion are monitored on a regular basis by all the vehicle makers. These are the new 'focus groups' if you will. But in the case of enthusiast sites such as herein the population is not indicative of the general population so that bias has to be taken into account. |
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Replying to: backy (Apr 08, 2009 11:25 am) Okay here I go again! With the exception of the sentence where you write that "it appears that the steering feel is intentional" I have to disagree with your posting. You insinuate that most Americans don't like our small cars to drive and steer easy and that Toyota is wrong in their thinking that we do. I couldn't disagree with you more. We are the age of "easy". If it drives easy, affords easy, repairs easy and STEERS easy, people will buy it and love it. Why is it so hard for some of you people to get it through your heads that most 2009 Corolla owners ACTUALLY LIKE this new EPS technology and like the feel of the car and will buy it because of this steering amongst other factors, and not IN SPITE of it as you write? Thank God the Toyota Engineers know what drivers want are willing to come up with new technology like EPS steering to bring us out of the dark ages where some of you feel secure in your thinking as well as your driving. Come on, where's your sense of adventure? Perhaps we should go all the way back to manual steering and rear wheel drive like I had in my 1979 Corolla. Loved that car, but what a truck to turn!
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Replying to: terceltom (Apr 08, 2009 12:56 pm) No. I suggest that a large number of Americans, if not a majority, like to have a higher degree of steering feel than what the 2009 Corolla provides. Driving "easy" is different from driving "numb". I don't think we need to go back to manual steering to get a steering feel that is "easy" enough for folks like you and has enough precision and control for people who like that quality in a car. Other manufacturers have found combination to be possible. Toyota is fully capable of doing it too, if not on the entire Corolla lineup then maybe on just the sport-oriented XRS as I suggested. My sense of adventure doesn't include a car that wanders around the road and requires a great deal of attention to keep pointed straight on a straight road, as some have expressed here. That isn't "easy" driving for me. I guess your definition of "easy" and my definition are different.
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Replying to: backy (Apr 08, 2009 1:12 pm)
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Replying to: backy (Apr 08, 2009 1:12 pm) "My sense of adventure doesn't include a car that wanders around the road and requires a great deal of attention to keep pointed straight on a straight road, as some have expressed here". I'm going to assume that both of the above two statements were based on other peoples oppinions because a 2009 Corolla is not in your current inventory of cars, correct?
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Replying to: terceltom (Apr 08, 2009 2:58 pm) Actually, when I drove the car I didn't notice anything I would call a "problem" with the steering. It wasn't precise like some other small cars, and I would prefer more steering feel, but it didn't wander all over the road either. But I don't want to summarily dismiss the opinions of those Corolla owners who think there's a problem with the steering. It could just be a reaction to how the car handles vs. what they are used to, or it could be a defect in some number of cars. I think the 2009 Corolla is a nice little car in many ways, but not a car I care to own. With a few tweaks, I'd consider it though. |
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Replying to: backy (Apr 08, 2009 1:12 pm) VERY true. Nissan, for awhile, has always had steering that was too light for my personal tastes, but it is at least communicative. You can have overboosted steering that is communicative (like in the last older Nissan I drove) and you can have heavily weighted steering that offers little in the way of feel (Pontiac comes to mind here). By "easy" I assume we're all referring to the physical effort it takes to move the wheel? I am. Just making sure we're on the same page. |
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