2019 Ford Focus vs Toyota Corolla

What's the difference?

You've got to feel for the marketing peeps at Ford tasked with cooking up a catchy one-word description for the new Focus Active.

The others models in the range are easier, of course. The Focus ST-Line? "Sportiness", says Ford. The Titanium trim? "Elegance", they shout.

But the Active? "It's like a hatchback, but with more capability..." It isn't quite as catchy, is it?

That capability they speak of arrives in the form of more ride height (30mm at the front and 34mm at the rear), as well as standard roof rails and two new drive modes, Slippery and Trail, which are designed to help the front-wheel-drive Focus better handle light off-road conditions like sand or icy roads.

But the weird thing here is that, for a car so focused on light off-roading, the place the Active really shines is glued firmly to the tarmac.

The new Corolla has been around a for while now. It landed in the frying pan of the small-hatch segment, with plenty of hissing and spitting from strong rivals. It's hard to pick a bad car from any established carmaker in this class, so the competition is very keen indeed.

With the recent release of the Mazda3, we thought it was worth checking in with the Corolla to see how it stacks up against its renewed rival.