Compare the2024 Nissan KicksVS 2024 Toyota Corolla Hatchback

Safety
Reliability
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Kicks SV/SR are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Nissan Kicks has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Kicks has standard Rear Automatic Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Kicks SR has a standard Around View® Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Corolla Hatchback only offers a rear monitor.

The Kicks has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Corolla Hatchback’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kicks has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Toyota charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Alert on the Corolla Hatchback.

Both the Kicks and the Corolla Hatchback have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available daytime running lights and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Nissan Kicks is safer than the Toyota Corolla Hatchback:

	Kicks	Corolla Hatchback
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	218	239
Spine Acceleration	30 G’s	32 G’s
Hip Force	535 lbs.	623 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan above average in initial quality. With 14 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

Brakes and Stopping

The Kicks SV/SR’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Corolla Hatchback are solid, not vented.

The Kicks stops much shorter than the Corolla Hatchback:

	Kicks	Corolla Hatchback
60 to 0 MPH	119 feet	135 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The Kicks has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The Kicks SR handles at .82 G’s, while the Corolla Hatchback SE pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Kicks’ turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the Corolla Hatchback’s (34.1 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

Chassis

The Nissan Kicks may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 300 to 400 pounds less than the Toyota Corolla Hatchback.

Passenger Space

The Kicks has 8 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Corolla Hatchback (92.6 vs. 84.6).

The Kicks has 2 inches more front headroom, 1.7 inches more front legroom, .9 inches more rear headroom, 3.6 inches more rear legroom and 3.6 inches more rear hip room than the Corolla Hatchback.

Ergonomics

The Kicks SV/SR has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

Consumer Reports rated the Kicks’ headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Corolla Hatchback’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The Kicks’ dealer option rear view mirror has an automatic dimming feature. This mirror can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on it, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer the luxury of an automatic dimming rear view mirror.

On extremely cold winter days, the Kicks SR’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the vehicle heater warms up. The Corolla Hatchback doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Nissan Kicks and the Toyota Corolla Hatchback, based on reliability, safety and performance.