US showroom debut for first Corolla hot hatch confirmed as Toyota Oz watches and waits
New intel strongly suggests the highly-anticipated Toyota GR Corolla hot hatch will make its global debut mid-year ahead of an October arrival in the US.
The new Toyota GR Corolla is a huge deal, not only because it finally provides the world’s all-time best-selling car with a scorching turbocharged all-wheel drive hero model, but also because US markets missed out on the giant-killing Toyota GR Yaris.
Worse still, the even-hotter Toyota GRMN Yaris will be a Japan-only model and won’t be sold in the US or Australia.
If they are legitimate, leaked dealer documents from a now-blocked YouTube video posted by TheDrive.com indicate the GR Corolla will be on sale in the US during the final quarter of this year, which would put its global reveal several months prior – around mid-2022.
No other details were provided by the Toyota document, except that sales of around 90 units are predicted in the last three months of 2022 in the dealership’s local tri-state region (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut).
The Toyota GR Corolla will be powered by the same 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine as the GR Yaris, but is tipped to belt out more power than its little brother’s 200kW and 370Nm, dialling up the wick to around 221kW thanks to a new exhaust system and ECU modifications.
The hot-shot ’Rolla will also get bigger brakes, a reinforced body, stiffer suspension, body-hugging seats and a raft of other performance features that are fast becoming GR (Gazoo Racing) signatures.
The GR Corolla has been teased by Toyota’s North American arm several times on social media, with the latest preview showing a bonnet vent and black alloy wheels.
The first bona-fide hot hatch based on Toyota’s top-selling Corolla small car, which is expected to receive a tech update later this year, could be a genuine threat to the current Japanese hot hatch kingpin, Honda’s Civic Type R.
The next-generation Civic Type R will also make its world debut later this year and has already been confirmed for Australia, although it may not arrive here until early 2023.
But unlike the new Type R, the inaugural GR Corolla will come with AWD and reports suggest it will also be offered with an automatic transmission for the first time.
Like Australia’s GR Yaris Rallye, the hot Corolla will be fitted with Torsen limited-slip differentials front and rear, which will give its adjustable AWD system plenty of scope for optimal mid-corner, full-throttle traction.
The burning question will be the price, which is almost certain to be above $60,000 in Australia when – rather than if – it arrives here.
All the correspondence we’ve had from Toyota Australia points towards a local arrival if the GR Corolla is a global vehicle, which is almost certain. Toyota Australia’s head of sales and marketing Sean Hanley previously told carsales he was very excited about the prospect of a Corolla hot hatch.
“Anything that Toyota puts the GR brand on will be a genuine performance car. We’re very excited about what GR has in the market… and we’re even more excited about what GR will bring to our brand in Australia in the future,” he stated.
It’s not known when the GR Corolla will come to Australia but if the leaked US dealer documents hold water, a 2023 arrival Down Under is now looking likely.
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Keyword: Toyota GR Corolla due in October