After Dark: Toyota Brings Nightshade Trim to Corolla

by Matthew Guy

Published: May 9th, 2023

after dark toyota brings nightshade trim to corolla

Stylists at the Big T have re-upped the Nightshade trim for their Corolla. Set to appear as an option on the sedan, hatchback, and hybrid models, the package will bring some visual interest to the brand’s popular compact car.

Using the SE trim as its base, the Nightshade adds gear such as bronze-finished wheels, blacked-out badging, and a mesh gloss black grille. Three colors are on tap: black, silver, and white (ok – technically Midnight Black Metallic, Classic Silver Metallic, and Ice Cap) on the sedan and hybrid. Hatchbacks may avail of similar hues but paired with a black roof. As with other recent Nightshade options on other models, the package seems designed to lend a pop of visual contrast, explaining why there are no blues or reds in the color palette.

Being an SE, all Nightshades will feature seats upholstered with fabric inserts, a 4.2-inch color display with customizable settings in the gauge cluster, infotainment handled by an eight-inch touchscreen, and Safety Sense 3.0 assists. In case you fell asleep, sedan and hatch models are powered by a 2.0L four banger making 169 horsepower and getting roughly 35 miles per gallon. Hybrids deploy a 1.8L mill and promise to return nearly 50 mpg in combined driving conditions.

It goes without saying that the Corolla is a crushingly important car for Toyota. In the first quarter of 2023, a total of 42,975 of the things found new homes – about half the rate of RAV4 but more than the entire Lexus division. In fact, Corolla made up a full 10.7 percent of all Toyota-brand sales in the first quarter of this year. It’s easy to make fun of the Corolla and its historic penchant for uninspired motoring, but there’s no denying the model is a bread-and-butter part of the lineup. Plus, gearheads like us can now enjoy the excellent GR Corolla, a hot hatch which can mix it up with the best of them.

Corolla Nightshade models are expected to arrive at Toyota dealerships in the autumn of 2023, with pricing announced closer to launch.

[Images: Toyota]

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Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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2 of 12 comments

Kcflyer on May 09, 2023

Shame they dropped the manual for this year.

1 Reply
ToolGuy on May 10, 2023

"Plus, gearheads like us can now enjoy the excellent GR Corolla, a hot hatch which can mix it up with the best of them."
GR Corolla -- the one with 3 cylinders and 24 mpg?

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