Toyota will undertake unprecedented checks on customers looking to buy its new GR Corolla hot hatch in order to ensure each of the 700 examples due in Australia this year end up in the hands of an enthusiast and not someone looking to make a quick buck.
Flipping rare cars has long been a practice in the car industry but has become more prominent in recent years due to the ongoing supply constraints and increased demand from buyers, especially for performance cars like the GR Yaris.
So to try and ensure that the limited amount of supply Toyota Australia has for its latest hot hatch is sold to people who want to drive the car rather than sell it for a profit after taking delivery, Toyota has asked its dealers to vet potential customers.
Toyota is looking to sell the GR Corolla to those with a history of similar cars, a car club affiliation or an interest in using the car in grassroots motorsport events. However, Toyota also admitted that your relationship with your local Toyota dealer would also play a part in the decision-making process. And, ultimately, the decision will be up to the dealers, not Toyota Australia.
Sean Hanley, vice president of sales and marketing, explained the rationale behind the idea and admitted that it won’t completely stamp out the practice of ‘flipping’ the car.
“It’s a really difficult proposition for us, because we truly want these cars to get into the right hands, so we’re trying to get there,” Hanley said. “It’s not a perfect system, it won’t eliminate all the re-sellers, but we are trying our best within the laws of this country to get it into the right hands.”
Hanley revealed that Toyota has managed to secure 700 examples of the GR Corolla for 2023, up on its original projections of just 500 cars. However, with more than 4000 expressions of interest, it’s highly likely that demand will far outstrip supply.
At least in the first year, with Hanley vowing to do his best to increase supply for 2024 and beyond, stressing that both the new GR Corolla GTS and the Morizo Edition (of which just 25 cars are coming in ‘23) are not limited editions and will be manufactured for several years to come.
He also stressed that, as per Australian law, Toyota would not deny selling a car to anyone who wanted to buy the new hot hatch, simply that priority would be given to those who want to own it and use it as the company intended.
Hanley’s message to wanna-be GR Corolla owners who miss out on one of the initial 700 is simple: “Don’t overpay for a Toyota.”
It isn’t that simple, however, with multiple examples of the GR Yaris advertised on CarsGuide’s sister-site – Autotrader.com.au – for more than manufacturer’s list price, more than two years after it first went on sale here.
The sales boss also explained that Toyota is planning to advertise a national drive-away price for the GR Corolla, which would stop dealers from charging a premium for new stock, but had yet to lock in that price at the time of publication.
Toyota isn’t alone in trying to combat the so-called ‘flippers’. General Motors reportedly told dealers in the US that it will not honour “certain warranties” if particular models are bought and sold in the first 12 months of ownership. This applied to the carmaker’s Chevrolet Corvette Z06, GMC Hummer and Cadillac Escalade-V, all low-volume, in-demand vehicles that were prime candidates for making a quick profit.
Keyword: Are you good enough to buy a Toyota GR Corolla? Why Toyota is vetting its hot hatch buyers to make sure its Honda Civic Type R rival gets into the right hands