The new 12th generation Toyota Corolla Altis sports a more contemporary styling, with sharper lines, more angular details and a greater overall sleekness. It certainly makes the older generations look dated immediately.

The same goes for the inside, with the new sweeping lines of dashboard making it more interesting. Consumers will be happy to see the car getting better quality plastics and the addition of a 7.0-inch multimedia display in the dashboard. As expected, the Altis is also spacious and has a useful 470-litre boot, plus rear air-con vents.

Built on the new Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform, the new Altis is notably more comfortable thanks to a very rigid body. Handling wise, the car is best described as being safe and competent. The steering also feels weightier than before, giving the car a sense of stability.

Powering the Altis is still a 1.6-litre naturally aspirated powerplant producing a decent 129bhp and 159Nm of torque. While it may not sound like much, the Altis felt more peppy than before. During our time with it, it returned a respectable 13km/L despite not having any form of fuel-saving features like engine start/stop.

The new TNGA platform also means that the Altis is equipped with a range of safety and assistance systems. Dynamic Cruise Control and Lane Departure Warning with Steering Assistant are certainly useful. And, with seven SRS airbags, vehicle stability control and a blind-spot monitoring system, the Altis also ticks all the right boxes as far as occupant safety is concerned.

Yes, the new Altis is more evolutionary than revolutionary. But considering it was already a highly capable product from the start, that means that there wasn't much fixing needed anyway. And much like its predecessors, the latest generation continues to cement itself as the class leader.