Fans of the hoping the world’s most popular car will get the ultimate hot hatch treatment finally have their prayers answered with the 2022 Toyota GR Corolla which made its official world premiere in Long Beach, California.
Toyota's American GR line-up, GR Yaris is never offered in the States
While the world already knew what it looked like and what’s powering it thanks to a leaked staging page, the first-ever GR Corolla marks a landmark moment for Toyota. It is the fourth model to be given the coveted GR badge after the , , and the and it’s more than just some dressed-up Corolla unlike a GR-S variant.
The development of the GR Corolla was forged from Toyota Gazoo Racing’s motorsport philosophy and experience including the hydrogen-powered Corolla that competed in the Super Taikyu Series.
The GR Yaris had input from various rally drivers including Tommi Makinen and the same goes for the GR Corolla. Besides the usual comments from some of motorsport’s finest drivers, the Corolla hot hatch also received some guidance from Toyota President Akio Toyoda.
The real inspiration behind the GR Corolla
The GR Corolla is a passion project for Toyoda-san who also goes by his enthusiast alter ego, Morizo and desires a “Corolla that captivates customers”. It is largely inspired by the TE25 Corolla which earned Toyota’s first WRC victory in 1973.
Though the Corolla might be familiar with Malaysians as a sedan, it’s the hatchback that is the lucky one to be given the full GR treatment. Toyota has given the Corolla Sport hatchback wider front and rear fenders that produce a broader stance as well as triple exhaust exits in the rear.
Stepping inside, the GR Corolla feels as livable as a standard Corolla. As this is more for the gearhead enthusiasts, it comes with a 6-speed manual transmission to assure them that the art of rowing gears is not dead.
Another old-school feature is the parking handbrake which replaces the electronic parking brake on the standard Corolla. In its press release, Toyota says that this allows better vehicle control even when pushing the car to its limits including drifting, so challenge accepted, drifters?
Though it is the literal big brother to the GR Yaris, the GR Corolla is powered by the same turbocharged 3-cylinder 1.6-litre engine. However, only the displacement is unchanged as the 3-pot unit on the GR Corolla produces 304 PS and 370 Nm, which is 43 PS and 10 Nm more than the GR Yaris.
Just like the GR Yaris, the GR Corolla comes with the GR-Four 4WD system that uses an electronic multi-plate clutch to provide variable front and rear driving force. One difference though is that the system’s 4WD and Drive modes are separated to give the driver more freedom to select their preferred driving settings.
As exciting the specs are for the GR Corolla, this hot hatch is only available in 3 colours, white, black, and Supersonic Red. North America will receive 2 variants of the GR Corolla – Core and Circuit Edition with the latter adding a fourth colour option, Heavy Metal.
What STi?
The GR Corolla will begin on sale in North America around September 2022 while it is scheduled for launch in Japan in the second half of 2022. The hot hatch will be built at the GR Factory at Toyota’s Motomachi Plant but unlike the GR Yaris, the GR Corolla won’t have a limited production with Toyota aiming to produce 6,000 to 6,500 units a year.
Keyword: Subaru says no more STI, Toyota shows 304 PS 6MT-only AWD GR Corolla - Over 100 PS per cylinder