The second-generation Toyota Auris (E180) debuted at the Paris Motor Show in 2012. The car's appearance became much more expressive: the body was lower and longer, featuring sharp creases and an aggressive front end in line with Toyota's new corporate design language. This styling reduced the drag coefficient to an impressive 0.28. A station wagon variant returned to the lineup, dubbed the Auris Touring Sports (the first C-segment wagon from Toyota in Europe since 2007). The engine range was modernized, and the hybrid version (1.8L, 136 hp) became the best-selling Auris variant in Europe, accounting for over half of the model's sales.

In 2015, the Auris received a major facelift. Alongside cosmetic exterior tweaks and a completely redesigned center console, the car saw significant mechanical updates. A brand-new 1.2-liter turbocharged petrol engine (116 hp) joined the lineup, and the older 2.0-liter diesel was replaced by a 1.6-liter unit sourced from BMW. The Toyota Safety Sense suite of active safety features was also introduced. Production ended in 2018, as Toyota decided to reinstate the global Corolla nameplate across all markets and body styles for the subsequent generation (E210).