Toyota is reportedly working on a 7-seater Corolla Cross to compete with other 3-row crossovers such as the Hyundai Grand Creta…

A fresh report out of India claims Toyota is hard at work developing a 7-seater Corolla Cross, though it’s not yet clear whether such a model would be offered outside of the subcontinent.

According to Autocar India, the rumoured 3-row version of the Corolla Cross would gain around an extra 150 mm between its axles, which would take its wheelbase to 2790 mm (and see it compete with the likes of the Hyundai Grand Creta). That, says the publication, would be enough to allow the Japanese firm to squeeze in a 3rd row of (2) seats, which would fold neatly into the floor when not in use.

It’s worth noting the standard Corolla Cross – which Toyota South Africa Motors builds at its Prospecton facility in KwaZulu-Natal – is currently not offered in India. In fact, the report suggests the proposed 7-seater version would be produced alongside the (likewise 3-row) Innova Hycross at the Bidadi factory in Bengaluru.

By lengthening the wheelbase by around 150 mm, there would be space for an extra pair of seats.

Employing a version of the TNGA-C platform, it would furthermore share that model’s powertrain options for India, which take the form of a naturally aspirated 2.0-litre petrol engine and a hybrid arrangement based on the same 4-cylinder unit.

The Autocar India report suggests the 7-seater Corolla Cross would require longer rear doors (in order to ease ingress to the 3rd row), changes to the C- and D-pillars, and even some styling tweaks. The publication puts forward the idea Toyota would differentiate this larger version by revising the front bumper, grille and headlights, while also redesigning the rear.

So, if a bigger Corolla Cross were to make it to production, would we see it here in South Africa? Well, it’s perhaps too early to say. There’s the question of production (would Toyota SA Motors be prepared to import the 7-seater body style from India or would it have to build it at Prospecton?) as well as the potential for cannibalisation of RAV4 and even Fortuner sales. The upcoming introduction of the new, larger Urban Cruiser (known as the Hyryder in India) will further muddy the waters.

As a reminder, the Corolla Cross line-up – which offers the option of hybrid power and has current pricing bookends of R371 200 and R495200 – managed a whopping 15855 registrations in South Africa in 2022, putting it 4th on the list of the country’s best-selling passenger vehicles for the year.

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