The Toyota GR Yaris has to be one of the most anticipated cars of 2020. This hot hatchback was designed with the intention of homologating its rally car sibling by meeting the minimum road production requirements. The byproduct of this clever circumnavigation of the rules is a batch of very exciting hot hatchbacks the public can buy. However, Japan is getting a variant exclusive to its shores.
labeled as forbidden fruit on European roads, the Toyota GR Yaris RC will only be sold in the Japanese market. The interesting thing about this trim level is that it specifically has motorsport in mind, forgoing any form of luxury. Its cabin has been stripped bare of all modern convenances in a bid to make the car as light as possible. You don’t need a stereo or dual zone air conditioning if you’re hitting the track. Overall the RC is 30kg lighter than Japan’s flagship RZ model.
The car is still powered by a turbocharged three-cylinder engine, but its capacity in Japan is 1.6-litres as opposed to the 1.5-litres for Europe. It also produced marginally more power at 268bhp vs our 257bhp. The lightweight RC car retains all of its performance kit including all wheel drive, the same suspension, and selectable drive modes. Its final contrasting factor is that it sits on 17-inch wheels – 1-inch smaller than the regular car.
There aren’t any images of the basic RC model available (Japanese RS specification pictured) as of yet, but expect it to be as appealing to petrolheads as Toyota’s other ‘bare bones’ models offered in the Japanese domestic market.
For us in Europe, the full-fat Toyota GR Yaris comes with plenty of equipment and is expected to arrive in the UK in October 2020. Entry-level cars are priced from £29,995.
Keyword: Japan to get stripped-out Toyota GR Yaris RC hot hatchback