2014 Toyota Furia

The Furia's wheelbase is 4 inches longer than that of the current Corolla and the Furia is 2 inches longer overall. Pushing the wheels to the corners typically has advantages in dynamic handling and interior room but tends to reduce trunk space. Also, the Furia is wider but the outgoing Corolla is taller. In a press release, Toyota calls the Furia's styling language "iconic dynamism which uses pure and simple surface elements to create a confident, decisive and recognizable appearance appealing to more youthful consumers."

How close is the Furia to the production Corolla? Toyota insiders said there will be few changes. In the press release, photographs show paper license plates that say "Corolla" in large letters, with "Furia Concept" in much smaller type beneath it. But not everything will reach production. For instance, the Furia comes with 19-inch wheels, which clearly won't make the cut when the production model arrives. The standard Corolla comes with a choice of 15- or 16-inch wheels.

Critics have noted that the Corolla is emblematic of Toyota's need to move away from dowdy styling, saying that compared with vibrant compact sedans from Ford, Mazda, Hyundai and Kia, the Corolla is downright dreary. Toyota has previously pitched the Corolla as the Lexus of affordable transportation, but that has left its styling well short of the cutting edge. Now it seems Toyota has determined that younger buyers require more intriguing design.

"The Corolla Furia Concept is an early indicator of where our compact car design may lead in the future," said Bill Fay, group vice president and general manager of the Toyota Division. "It blends a heightened emphasis on dramatic design and modern elements of high technology to generate curb appeal that will surprise a lot of people." The Furia is designed around a theme of "Iconic Dynamism," which uses pure and simple surface elements to create a confident, decisive and recognizable appearance appealing to more youthful consumers.

It features a more provocative, dynamic interpretation of a compact sedan that displays a more stable, athletic stance with 19-inch allow wheels pushed to the vehicle's corners with short overhangs to help emphasize its long wheelbase. The Corolla Furia design includes a swept windshield, with a sloped roofline and pronounced fender flares, to help communicate a sense of motion even when the car is stationary. The aggressively styled front fascia, with a blacked-out grille treatment, helps highlight a pair of sculpted front LED headlamps that combine with the rear composite LED taillight assemblies to add a sense of advanced technology to the Furia's impactful exterior.