Compare the2024 Toyota Corolla CrossVS 2024 GMC Terrain

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Corolla Cross have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The GMC Terrain doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Corolla Cross are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The GMC Terrain doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

The Toyota Corolla Cross has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Corolla Cross has a standard Secondary Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Terrain doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Corolla Cross XLE has a standard Parking Support Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Terrain doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

Both the Corolla Cross and Terrain offer rear cross-traffic warning, but the Corolla Cross XLE has Parking Support Brake (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Terrain’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

The Corolla Cross’ driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Terrain doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Corolla Cross and the Terrain have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems and rear parking sensors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Toyota Corolla Cross is safer than the GMC Terrain:

	Corolla Cross	Terrain
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	92	109
Chest Movement	.9 inches	1.1 inches
Abdominal Force	129 lbs.	195 lbs.
Hip Force	330 lbs.	357 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	137	288
Spine Acceleration	43 G’s	55 G’s
Hip Force	367 lbs.	630 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	13 inches
HIC	239	377
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	40 G’s
Hip Force	623 lbs.	730 lbs.

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Toyota Corolla Cross is safer than the Terrain:

	Corolla Cross	Terrain
Overall Evaluation	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Structure	GOOD	GOOD
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Neck Tension	223 lbs.	290 lbs.
Neck Compression	67 lbs.	112 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	MARGINAL
Shoulder Deflection	.94 in	1.73 in
Shoulder Force	245 lbs.	312 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.38 in	1.69 in
Torso Deflection Rate	6 MPH	8 MPH
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Head Injury Criterion	131	733
Head Peak Forces	no contact	101 G’s
Neck Tension	67 lbs.	89 lbs.
Neck Compression	67 lbs.	491 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	.83 in	1.65 in
Shoulder Force	156 lbs.	402 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.06 in	1.57 in
Torso Deflection Rate	4 MPH	7 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Head Protection	GOOD	MARGINAL

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Corolla Cross the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 72 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Terrain last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

The Corolla Cross’ corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Terrain’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

Toyota pays for scheduled maintenance on the Corolla Cross for 2 years and 25000 miles. Toyota will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. GMC only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Terrain.

Reliability

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Corolla Cross’ reliability 50 points higher than the Terrain.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than GMC vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, GMC is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than GMC vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota first in overall reliability. GMC is ranked 21st.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Corolla Cross gets better mileage than the Terrain:

			MPG
Corolla Cross
	FWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	31 city/33 hwy
	AWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	29 city/32 hwy
Terrain
	FWD	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/29 hwy
	AWD	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/28 hwy

The Corolla Cross has a standard locking fuel door. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Terrain. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Transmission

The Corolla Cross has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Terrain doesn’t offer a CVT.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Corolla Cross’ front brake rotors are larger than those on the Terrain:

	Corolla Cross	Terrain
Front Rotors	12 inches	11.8 inches

Suspension and Handling

The Corolla Cross AWD has front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Corolla Cross AWD flat and controlled during cornering. The Terrain’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Corolla Cross XLE AWD handles at .80 G’s, while the Terrain Denali AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Corolla Cross’ turning circle is 2 feet tighter than the Terrain w/17” wheels’ (35.4 feet vs. 37.4 feet). The Corolla Cross’ turning circle is 6.2 feet tighter than the Terrain w/19” wheels’ (35.4 feet vs. 41.6 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Corolla Cross has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Terrain SLE (8.1 vs. 6.9 inches), allowing the Corolla Cross to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Corolla Cross’ minimum ground clearance is .2 inch higher than on the Terrain SLT/AT4/Denali (8.1 vs. 7.9 inches).

Chassis

The Toyota Corolla Cross may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 300 to 350 pounds less than the GMC Terrain.

The Corolla Cross is 6.7 inches shorter than the Terrain, making the Corolla Cross easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Passenger Space

The Corolla Cross has 2 inches more front legroom and .5 inches more rear headroom than the Terrain.

Ergonomics

The Corolla Cross’ front and rear power windows all open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Terrain’s passenger windows don’t close automatically.

If the windows are left open on the Corolla Cross the driver can close them all at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. (This window function must be activated by your Toyota service department.) The driver of the Terrain can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Corolla Cross XLE offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Terrain doesn’t offer cornering lights.

Model Availability

The Toyota Corolla comes in sedan, four door hatchback and four door bodystyles; the GMC Terrain isn’t available as a sedan or four door hatchback.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® chose the Toyota Corolla Cross as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance. The GMC Terrain isn't recommended.

The Toyota Corolla outsold the GMC Terrain by over three to one during 2022.