The Toyota GR Yaris will come in 3 versions, ranging from 120 to 272 CV

The superb Toyota GR Yaris has been the shake-up in a segment of city cars increasingly being left to fade into obscurity. A breath of fresh air was breathed into the community of enthusiasts of small-dimension cars with plenty of power, thanks to the vehicle derived from the Toyota Yaris WRC with which Ott Tänak claimed the championship title in 2019.

With this inspiration, the Toyota GR Yaris was presented as a hybrid, not in terms of its mechanics but its architecture, since it shares that of the Yaris itself and that of its cousin the Lexus UX; from this fusion was born a 3-door body with a wider track than the model that gives it its name, and a 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbo engine capable of producing 272 Nm of power and 370 Nm of torque.

As a result, the car is able to replicate, on open roads shared with other traffic, the virtues of a car conceived for competition. However, in Japan, the domestic market or JDM, decides to limit parts or versions so they can be enjoyed in an insular way, and so it will be with the 3 variants that Toyota has announced the Toyota GR Yaris will have.

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The JDM versions of the Toyota GR Yaris

Thanks to the acceptance of the initial model, Toyota states that, between local and European reservations, it has amassed more than 6,000 requests for the Toyota GR Yaris 1st Edition. Furthermore, considering the different uses this car could have, the manufacturer has decided to differentiate up to 3 variants of the Toyota GR Yaris that will be sold exclusively in Japan.

In this way, the car will be sold as the Toyota GR Yaris RZ, RS or RC. Regarding the first, the Toyota GR Yaris RZ, it will be the standard variant, the one already presented, and will feature the aforementioned 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbo engine, producing 272 CV and 370 Nm, paired with GR-Four all-wheel drive, a 6-speed iMT manual gearbox, and equipped with a Torsen limited-slip differential. The package is complemented by high-performance BBS wheels fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres.

As for the Toyota GR Yaris RS, it will install the same 1,618 cc engine with the same power and torque figures, as well as the same transmission, but will dispense with any element that could weigh down the car, such as the infotainment system, reducing its weight by up to 30 kg (from 1,280 kg in the RZ to 1,250 kg in the RS), which focuses it on track or rally use, or as a base for a competition vehicle.

Finally, the most modest will be the Toyota GR Yaris RC. Its engine will be a naturally aspirated 3-cylinder, 1,490 cc unit, whose power is limited to 120 CV and 145 Nm of torque, driving the front axle exclusively. The gearbox will be a sequential CVT with up to 10 ratios. It is a car more focused on daily use and balance than on sportiness, though thanks to its smaller engine and its lack of features such as the differential or all-wheel drive, it will be the lightest of the three, with its weight lowered to 1,130 kg.

Technical specifications of this car

HatchbackToyota Yaris9 versions · from 24,550 €