Our manual transmission-equipped Toyota Corolla is, to put it bluntly, an odd car. One of several stick shifts we purchased to see how manuals compared to automatics for fuel mileage, the Corolla is your basic stripper model. No frills here.

Manual door locks and windows are part of the package, suggesting Toyota believes the few drivers who still know how to work a clutch and shift gears like to keep busy. In spite of this, you can’t get one in the Northeast without power, heated mirrors. Nice to have, but odd to include on this least expensive of Corollas. And they drive the price up.

Where things get weirder is that Toyota, an automaker known for building cars more popular with drivers who prefer to think of automobiles as appliances rather than something that might be enjoyable to drive, has truly outdone itself with this thing. Our Corolla has got to be the least engaging stick to drive since Chevy discontinued the Biscayne with a “three on the tree” in the ‘60s.

The clutch and shifter have no feel whatsoever, and that makes the Corolla not only unrewarding to drive, it makes it difficult to do so smoothly. Methinks anyone who buys one might question their decision, and probably go back to automatics forever. Maybe that’s part of the plan.

That said, I grew to like the Corolla after spending a few days in it. The clutch actually makes a good match for the shifter, steering, and brakes; they don’t have any feeling either in traditional Toyota fashion. The engine willingly revs to the 6500 rpm redline, and sounds kind of good doing so. The manual locks and windows don’t faze me much, either, but I can understand why colleagues with kids have objections.

My colleague Jeff Bartlett said, “Dealing with manual locks drove my family nuts, turning basic errand running into a Three Stooges-type affair. However, the manual windows were a real treat to my young boy. Once we explained how they crank down, he asked where the button was to put them up... He found it endlessly entertaining, and we missed the electric lockout button.”

Really, this is a car built for nobody. If you want a manual transmission, you want to enjoy shifting. Chances are, if you want a Corolla you don’t want to shift for yourself. And if you want to shift for yourself, chances are you don’t want a Corolla. And either way, you probably want power windows. For another couple of grand, you can get a Corolla so equipped, and with an automatic. The fuel mileage is about the same.  Trust me, the upgrade is worth it.

See our latest small cars test group. And research the Toyota Corolla with complete Ratings in the model (available to online subscribers).
 
—Jim Travers