Practicality
Okay, these are both compact sedans, so there are slim pickings when it comes to finding differences between the two, but let’s see what the tale of the tape tells us.
The Corolla is longer (4,639 to 4,556 mm), wider (1,776 to 1,752) with a longer wheelbase (2,700 to 2,670) and higher roof (1,455 to 1,435). This means more room in both rows and the trunk for Corolla, though here the difference is negligible – a mere 16 L separating the two and nearly identical openings, and both offer 60/40 split-folding rear seats. The Civic has nifty seat-dropping handles in the trunk.
   2014 Honda Civic Touring. Click image to enlarge |
From the human perspective, the Corolla feels more spacious and an almost flat floor and bench seat mean moderate comfort optimized for three people rather than the more deeply sculpted outboard positions in the Civic offering superior comfort for two passengers. Jacob also found that squeezing between two car seats was easier in the Corolla if you have children of the car-seat ages and sometimes carry extra passengers.
 2014 Honda Civic Touring. Click image to enlarge |
Up front, despite the Civic’s leather to the Corolla’s SofTex simulated leather, the Corolla thrones impressed us as much as they did in our Mega Comparison Test of Compact Cars. Just the right amount of contouring and bolstering mean they wrap around you like a warm embrace and promise seemingly endless comfort. The Civic seats are passable, but the headrest seems canted too far forward and pushes your head forward uncomfortably.
Both have decent cupholders in the centre console and convenient access to the USB with a small tray ahead of the shifter for smartphone storage.
And while the Civic has some issues regarding its operating system, there is no question that the two-tier gauges are clear and effective, your speed always in the lower edge of your forward vision and the tach large and clear, plus a secondary information screen to the right of the speedo, while the Corolla features conventional two-bin gauge layout with tach on the left and speed on the right, with information sandwiched between the two in a small screen. The Civic steering wheel has always been lovely for this class, but now the Corolla’s is lovelier and the steering wheel controls simply felt more obvious and intuitive.
While the Civic does some of the little things better, again the Corolla seems like it would be easier to live with over the long haul.
    2014 Honda Civic Touring & 2014 Toyota Corolla S. Click image to enlarge |
Ease of Use
For ease of use, we considered two separate areas, the driving experience and the car’s infotainment and interior controls.
Both of these cars are easy to pilot anywhere from crowded urban thoroughfares or alleys to the open highway. Compact cars have grown enough to feel solid and secure, but they are still small and maneuverable enough to negotiate easily in tight quarters and nimble enough to change directions quickly, with light steering that any would find accommodating. While the Corolla is a tad larger, the Civic also has a tighter turning circle (5.4 m radius to the Corolla’s 5.8), slightly better sightlines (despite the weird blobby shape) and it has a larger screen (7.0 in. to the 6.1) for its back-up camera, with multiple viewing angles and dynamic guidelines. Civic also has the nifty LaneWatch blind-spot camera that displays on the touchscreen when signaling a right turn.
Although we might be getting into subjective preferences here, we feel that the more accurate and feelsome steering of the Civic make it an easier car to pilot in most conditions.
However, opinion was divided on the human-machine interfaces. Jacob found the Civic’s touchscreen system slow and convoluted, while I found it sleek and better organized, the touchscreen responsive to pinching to zoom in and out of maps, and the HVAC controls more logical.
   2014 Toyota Corolla S. Click image to enlarge |
Jacob adored the Corolla for its convenient hard buttons for various menu items and the knobs for volume and tuning, and we both appreciated its split-screen display that would show current artist and track with album cover art side by side with the map or other info. However, I found the display too small, and setting and selecting the presets on the touchscreen required more attention on the screen. The Civic has an entire extra screen on which to display audio or trip information, though it is low-res and poorly utilized.
Overall I felt the Civic was more streamlined and modern, and despite the conventional layout of the Corolla, it was not necessarily more efficient (except perhaps for adjusting volume, but I still think swiping is cooler!). Combined with the easier driving experience, the Civic comes out ahead in ease of use, with Jacob’s dissenting opinion noted.
