The Sleeper Corolla Toyota Built Just 120 Times With A Manual
Even though the Corolla is the platonic ideal of a no-nonsense economy car, Toyota can get surprisingly playful with the platform. The modern GR is an example beloved by a certain breed of enthusiast, but it’s not the first time the company did something fun under the sensible nameplate.
Toyota Has A History Of Building Unlikely Enthusiast Cars
Long before Toyota’s GR Corolla, there were other spirited variants, like the AE86 of the 1980s, a lightweight rear-wheel-drive Corolla with a manual transmission and just enough power to be thrilling if you really worked for it.
The AE86 became a drifting icon, but its appeal wasn’t horsepower. It was just a simple, affordable car that would reward drivers who really knew what they were doing.
Over time, as the Corolla evolved into a front-wheel-drive commuter car, that formula largely faded away. Sporting trims came and went, but nothing quite like the AE86. Toyota did try to inject a little excitement into its practical little best-selling economy car, including one example that seemed to have the makings of another legend, if not for a punishing ride and a manual transmission that was surprisingly hard to actually get.
Toyota Built 6,000 Corolla Apex Editions, But Just 120 Got A Manual
We’re talking about the 2021 Corolla Apex Edition, a limited-production car that promised sharper handling, more aggressive styling, and more excitement than your average Corolla.
Toyota planned to build just 6,000 Apex Editions, split between SE and XSE trims. But only 120 of those got Toyota’s six-speed manual, all SEs. The rest had a CVT, instantly kneecapping the enthusiast appeal for all but two percent of these cars.
The six-speed was Toyota’s Intelligent Manual Transmission with automatic rev-matching. The CVT was a CVT.
Visually, the Apex looked the part. It had contrasting aerodynamic trim, bronze accents, 18-inch wheels, and an available rear spoiler. The price was nothing crazy, with The Drive at the time testing a manual SE with a base price of $25,460 and an as-tested price of $26,830.
The Engine Wasn’t What Made It Special
Despite the limited production and at least a hope to attract enthusiast interest, there was nothing noteworthy under the hood. The Apex Edition got the same 2.0-liter four-cylinder found in the regular Corolla SE, putting out 169 hp and 151 lb-ft of torque. There was a sport-tuned exhaust with a 3.5-inch stainless steel tip, but that wasn’t going to transform the powertrain into something it wasn’t.
The chassis was a different story. The Apex was lowered with stiffer springs, while specially tuned dampers and upgraded stabilizer bars sharpened the suspension. The suspension setup was aggressively stiff, promising sharper handling despite the modest power going straight to the front wheels.
On paper, it was an interesting approach. Toyota was trying to turn the Corolla commuter into a legitimate little canyon carver.
Response was mixed.
The Suspension Was So Aggressive That Reviewers Hated It
Clearly, the Apex was more than an exercise in superficial styling, and without a more powerful engine, most of the car’s ability to differentiate itself from other Corollas fell to the handling and driving experience. And it did have some chops. Car and Driver recorded 0.89 g of lateral grip on the skidpad, a real improvement over the standard XSE. It stopped significantly faster as well, beating the regular Corolla to a stop from 70 mph by more than 10 feet.
Those results came from a CVT-equipped Apex with optional summer tires, rather than one of the rare manuals.
However, performance on the skidpad seems to have come at the expense of livability pretty much everywhere else. The Drive found the Apex’s ride to be exceptionally harsh, while the verdict from Motor Trend was that the punishment outweighed the performance benefits.
Sentiments weren’t universally poor, though. AutoGuide seemed to find the package downright fun, handling everything from tight twisties to sweeping on-ramps with confidence. But they, too, acknowledged that however entertaining it might be, the Apex made you pay dearly during everyday commuting.
So the consensus isn’t great, but for a certain type of driver willing to put up with some amount of punishment, seeking out one of those exceptionally rare 120 manuals just might be the move.
Rarity Doesn’t Guarantee A Future Classic
A car doesn’t have to be particularly good to become collectible. DeLoreans exist. But sometimes an unusual spec, a tiny production run, or a strange chapter in a manufacturer’s history can make something interesting long after its original shortcomings have been forgotten.
The manual Corolla Apex has all three going for it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anybody will be paying a premium for one in 20 years, much less now.
For one thing, Toyota followed up with the GR Corolla, a genuinely serious performance car with 300 horsepower, all-wheel drive, and a six-speed manual. Anybody looking for the ultimate modern enthusiast Corolla has a much more obvious candidate.
Still, the Apex occupies a noteworthy little corner of Toyota history. It was a limited-edition Corolla with no additional horsepower and a suspension that reviewers largely couldn’t stand.
Yes, it had an available manual transmission, but you’ll have to go on a treasure hunt to find one. Whether that makes it a future collectible remains to be seen.
Sources: Toyota, Car and Driver, The Drive, Motor Trend, AutoGuide
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