Toyota GR Yaris Review

How much does it cost?

A brand-new Toyota GR Yaris off the shelf costs £48,795 for the Circuit pack, while the price goes up to £52,295 for the new Aero Performance (with tweaked styling, an adjustable rear wing, a vertical handbrake and a vented bonnet).

But the original was a much cheaper car with a price tag under the £35,000 mark. So, there are used examples available from as low as £25,000. At that price, it offers great value.

Engine and performance

Overview

The Toyota GR Yaris is powered by a bespoke 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine that develops 280hp and 390Nm, a slight upgrade over the original. These figures make it the most powerful three-cylinder engine in the world.

This engine is coupled with a 6-speed manual gearbox that works with a special lightweight GR Four AWD system that comprises of front and rear Torsen limited-slip differentials. Toyota has discontinued the 8-speed automatic gearbox, so if you want an automatic GR Yaris, the used market is where you should be looking.

Out on the road

Fire up the 3-pot and it springs to life like any modern turbo petrol engine, except for the raspy cold starts. But slot it into the first gear and you can feel and hear the gearbox clicking, along with a feeble diff whine at low speeds. All of this adds to the character of the car, making it feel special.

Despite being turbocharged, the engine offers decent throttle response, and the Yaris feels reasonably eager at low speeds (thanks to the 1,280kg kerb weight). Under 3,000rpm, the engine also behaves mostly like a standard turbo engine. However, let it pass 3,000 rpm and the gutsy engine takes on a different character. The whole car reverberates as the GR Yaris surges all the way to its 7,200rpm redline. Shift to the next gear, it repeats with the same alacrity. Third, fourth, and fifth all feel the same, except that the speeds are now inexplicably high. The boost kind of tapers off towards the redline, but it still feels satisfying to go all the way, enhanced by the sound of the hard limiter kicking in, just like in an old rally car.

The engine feels old-school and boosty, delivering hard-hitting performance from any speed. The gearbox has long throws but it is precise and has an indestructible feel to it. You can be hard on the shifts and the gearbox takes it all. It doesn't necessarily feel very mechanical, but that is us nit-picking. Both the engine and the gearbox, work in tandem to deliver an immersive drive that makes it feel faster than the claimed 0-62mph time of 5.2 seconds.

Ride and handling

But the best thing about the GR Yaris is not its explosive performance, engine or gearbox. It is how it drives or, rather, destroys any road. There is no adaptive suspension here; instead, you get a ride quality that is one of the finest we’ve experienced in any car. The damping has a level of sophistication and depth that you only get with much more expensive performance cars. The AWD modes on offer are:

Normal (60:40): In this mode, 60% of the power is sent to the front wheels, while 40% goes to the rear. This is best for everyday driving, and the GR Yaris feels more neutral exiting corners, with more front-end push than rotation on throttle.

Track (variable): Gone is the Sport (30:70) mode from the Gen 1 model, replaced by this new Track mode, which is really clever. Essentially, it functions with a 60:40 split, but on corner exits, the car switches the torque split and sends 70% to the rear (70:30). In real-world driving, this means that, under throttle, the GR Yaris drives almost like a RWD car, rotating precisely to find grip and exit a corner efficiently.

There is also a gravel mode (53:47), in case you need that. Ignore all the numbers, and what matters is that the GR Yaris is beguilingly capable on any road, despite the conditions. It drives, grips, and even takes jumps, settles and recovers like its business as usual. This little Toyota’s is basically a cheat code that just enjoys going berserk, no matter what. As a result, not many cars can keep up with it on tight roads.

Adding to this are the fantastic brakes, that are always up for the job. The pedal feels spot on, with more than enough bite, stopping power and most importantly, the ability to modulate as needed. So, in summary, the GR Yaris is the perfect hot hatch or performance car under £50,000?

Yes and no. The GR Yaris, as utterly amazing as it is, can be a victim of its own capabilities. For some, its clinical approach can make it feel a bit too sane until you drive it really fast. Then there’s the steering; although direct, and precise, it does not provide a crisp, textured feel of the front end. But this is largely compensated by the chassis feel, which the GR Yaris delivers in bundles (again, only at high speeds).

Make no mistake, it is the best hot hatch today and one of the rare all-time greats in the motoring world. Down the line, when cars become more about transportation, the Toyota GR Yaris will be remembered for being truly special.

Interior and features

Interiors

The new GR Yaris sticks to a retro-modern design theme with a new dashboard design that is now bespoke for the car. Toyota has fixed all visibility and seat-height issues from the original. However, the dashboard design can be polarising, as it has a love-it-or-loathe-it appearance. The all-digital instrument cluster feels more premium than the old basic dials, and the cabin’s driver-focused layout gives it a distinctive character.

However, in terms of quality, it doesn’t feel great for a £45,000 car, which is even more obvious when you consider the price of the old car. Everything feels well-built, but you can expect to find many scratchy and noisy plastics throughout the cabin. The steering wheel, gear knob and the seats are the standout elements in the cabin in terms of quality.

Boot space and practicality

The three-door GR Yaris offers 174 litres of boot space, which is not a competitive figure compared with other hot hatches. Fold down the rear seats, and you can essentially use it like a small van. The rear seats can accommodate two adults, but they are far from comfortable and are best reserved for children or occasional use. So, the GR Yaris works as a 2+2 rather than a fully usable four-seater.

The front seats are hugely comfortable, even over long distances, with the right amount of support to keep you in place without making you feel hemmed in. We wish there was a little more under-thigh support, but otherwise it’s perfect. If four usable seats matter to you, a more practical hot hatch would be the ideal option.

Features

There is an 8-inch touchscreen unit on offer, which works as seamlessly as the systems in other Toyota models. The display is vivid, has clear colours and is easy to use on the move. The sound system is also basic, and road noise often drowns out some of the details in the music. The GR Yaris is a noisy car, and although not deafening, you always know the surface of the road you’re travelling on through the noise and vibrations transmitted through the car. Built as a road-legal rally car with aluminium doors and other lightweight measures, sound deadening was understandably not a priority.

It also misses out on a wireless charger. But you do get features such as adaptive cruise, lane trace assist, road sign assist, auto headlamps and wipers, dual-zone air conditioning, a reversing camera, etc.

Trim and colour options

In terms of colour options, you get to choose from Pure White, Precious Black, Platinum White Pearl, Scarlet Flare (Red) and Precious Metal (new grey).

As for trim options, there are just two: Circuit and Aero Performance. Toyota discontinued the Convenience pack with the Gen 1 GR Yaris.

Safety and reliability

The standard Yaris gets a full five-star crash-test rating from Euro NCAP. However, that rating is not directly applicable to the GR Yaris, which hasn’t been tested separately. All the safety systems worked consistently during our test, and you can easily turn everything off, unlike in the previous version.

MPG, emissions and tax

During our 1,000-mile test, we put the car through hours of motorway driving, tight mountain passes and everything you can think of in between. We saw real-world fuel economy figures of 30 - 32mpg for the GR Yaris, which is close to what Toyota claims. As it is priced over £40,000, it attracts higher road tax than the old car. Its CO₂ emissions are 197g/km.