After 60 years, 12 generations, and more than 57 million cars sold, the Toyota Corolla is finally getting a fully electric model.
Car and Driver reported Tuesday that Toyota is planning a major overhaul for the next-generation Corolla. The new models are expected to arrive sometime in 2027 for the 2028 model year, with the usual gas and hybrid versions alongside plug-in hybrid and fully electric models for the first time.
The Corolla first went on sale in 1966 and has since become one of the best-selling vehicles ever made. Toyota said earlier this year that global sales had exceeded 57 million units.
Six decades later, the car is still a major part of Toyota’s business. In 2025, Toyota sold 248,088 Corollas in the U.S., making it the company’s fourth-best-selling model and the 11th-best-selling vehicle in the country.
Still, Toyota has been teasing a major change for the classic car since last year.
At the 2025 Japan Mobility Show, the automaker unveiled a Corolla concept design with a sleeker exterior and a more futuristic interior than previous models.
More recently, in July, Japanese broadcaster NHK aired a behind-the-scenes look at the secret development site where the next Corolla is being worked on, according to Electrek.
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda told NHK that growing competition and technological change “are inevitable,” but warned that complacency is the biggest risk for the company.
While Toyota hasn’t officially revealed a final production version of the new model, Car and Driver expects it to retain much of the concept’s dramatic redesign.
Toyota is also reportedly working on a revised version of the platform used by the current Corolla that can support several different powertrains. That includes a new hybrid with a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine and an electric motor. Toyota engineers told Car and Driver that setup is expected to produce around 134 horsepower and be roughly 10% to 20% more efficient than the current hybrid system.
The bigger change, though, would be the Corolla’s first plug-in hybrid and fully electric versions.
Toyota has not yet confirmed whether an electric Corolla will be sold in the U.S. But if it does make it stateside, Car and Driver expects the company to offer single- and dual-motor powertrains with at least 250 miles of driving range.
As for pricing, Car and Driver expects the traditional gas Corolla to start at around $25,000, with the hybrid at about $27,000 and the plug-in hybrid and EV somewhere in the $30,000 range.
Toyota did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment.
