The Toyota Corolla iM was a compact five-door hatchback that Toyota sold in the United States for the 2017 and 2018 model years. It was the rebadged version of the Scion iM, carried over after Toyota shut down the Scion brand at the end of 2016. There was no 2019 Corolla iM: the name was retired, and the hatchback role passed to the all-new 2019 Corolla Hatchback.
Was there a 2019 Corolla iM?
No. Toyota offered the Corolla iM as a 2017 and 2018 model only. When the Scion brand was wound down, the Scion iM, which had launched for 2016, became the Corolla iM for 2017, and it was sold for just two model years. For 2019 the hatchback role moved to the new Corolla Hatchback, which went on sale in the United States in the summer of 2018 and used the twelfth-generation Corolla (E210) platform. Searches for a “2019 Corolla iM” are therefore looking for a car that does not exist.
The Scion iM connection
The car began life as the Scion iM, introduced for the 2016 model year. It was essentially the North American version of the Toyota Auris hatchback sold in Europe and other markets. When Toyota discontinued the Scion division, the iM and the FR-S coupe were folded into the Toyota range; the FR-S became the Toyota 86, and the iM became the Corolla iM for the 2017 model year. This is why the Corolla iM and the Scion iM share nearly all of their parts.
Engine and drivetrain
- Engine: 1.8-liter four-cylinder (2ZR-FAE), 137 hp at 6,100 rpm and 126 lb-ft of torque
- Transmission: six-speed manual or continuously variable transmission (CVT)
- Drive: front-wheel drive
- Suspension: MacPherson strut front, double-wishbone rear; fully independent
The iM was known for its fully independent suspension, with MacPherson struts at the front and a double-wishbone layout at the rear, a configuration that was more elaborate than the torsion-beam setups used by several compact rivals of the period.
Dimensions and cargo
- Length: 170.5 in
- Width: 69.3 in
- Wheelbase: 102.4 in
- Curb weight: about 3,031 lb
- Cargo volume behind the second row: 20.8 cu ft
- Seating: five
Interior and features
The Corolla iM came with a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, a six-speaker audio system, automatic climate control, a leather-wrapped tilt-and-telescopic steering wheel, cruise control, a rearview camera and a 60/40 split-folding rear seat. The cabin was a straightforward five-seat layout without the more premium materials found in the sedan, and its cargo area behind the second row measured 20.8 cubic feet, which was competitive for a compact hatchback.
The 2019 Corolla Hatchback replacement
The car that replaced the Corolla iM was a clean-sheet design rather than a rebadge. The 2019 Corolla Hatchback brought:
- Engine: 2.0-liter M20A-FKS four-cylinder, 168 hp and 151 lb-ft
- Platform: Toyota New Global Architecture GA-C
- Transmission: six-speed manual with rev-matching (iMT) or CVT
- Standard Toyota Safety Sense 2.0
- On sale in the United States in summer 2018 as a 2019 model
Toyota described the Corolla Hatchback as the first North American application of standard Toyota Safety Sense 2.0, which added features such as lane tracing assist and road edge detection to the existing pre-collision and adaptive cruise functions. It went on sale in the summer of 2018 as a 2019 model.
Availability and what to buy today
Because the Corolla iM was sold for only two model years, it is a comparatively rare car on the used market. Its successor, the Corolla Hatchback, carried the same five-door format forward on a newer platform and remained in production for several years. Buyers who want the iM name specifically will have to shop the 2017 and 2018 model years; anyone open to the newer car should look at the Corolla Hatchback. Toyota’s other global Corolla sedans of the era are covered in our 2019 Toyota Corolla Altis review and 2019 Toyota Corolla Altis Philippines review. For more models, see Car Review.
Safety and equipment
Toyota equipped the Corolla iM with a standard rearview camera and the company’s Star Safety System, which grouped antilock brakes, electronic brake-force distribution, brake assist, vehicle stability control and traction control. A suite of airbags covering the front, sides and curtains was also fitted. The iM did not offer the more advanced driver-assistance features that became common a couple of years later; those arrived with the Corolla Hatchback and its standard Toyota Safety Sense 2.0.
Auris and global equivalents
Outside North America, the same basic hatchback was sold as the Toyota Auris. Toyota used the Auris name for its European compact hatchback until the Corolla badge returned to that market. The United States never used the Auris name; the car appeared there first as the Scion iM and then as the Corolla iM.
Where the iM fit in Toyota’s range
The Corolla iM sat between the subcompact Yaris and the larger Camry in Toyota’s United States line-up, giving the brand a five-door compact competitor alongside the Corolla sedan. Although it wore the Corolla name, it used a distinct body, a different platform and its own suspension, so it was not simply a hatchback version of the Corolla sedan sold next to it. The iM badge itself carried no meaning officially published by Toyota; it originated in the Scion era and was dropped when the Corolla Hatchback took over.
There were no major mechanical changes between the two model years, so a 2018 Corolla iM is essentially the same car as a 2017 apart from minor equipment adjustments. That two-year run, with a single engine and two transmissions, is the entire United States history of the nameplate.
