2020 Toyota GR Yaris hot hatch has shed its disguise in a dust-covered debut that pays tribute to the brand’s world rally heritage.
An epic output of 192kW is believed to make the Toyota GR Yaris the most powerful three-cylinder in the world. Indeed, the 192kW/360Nm output from the 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbo is higher than the 164kW/300Nm from the 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo.
Because the three-door Toyota GR Yaris weighs less than 1300kg – 1280kg without the driver. The secret behind its light weight – aside from its pint-sized proportions – is the use of aluminium panels for the bonnet, doors and rear hatch, and a carbon-fibre roof.
Toyota designed and developed the GR Yaris to form the basis of its next World Rally Championship program, but hopes it will become popular among circuit racers and weekend track day warriors.
The regular Toyota Yaris five-door range is due in Australian showrooms mid-year but the GR Yaris is not due until late 2020.
The three-door does not share a single panel with the five-door and it has a sleeker and wider body./p>
The GR Yaris all-wheel-drive system, adapted from the Toyota RAV4, allows for a “theoretical range” of front-to-rear torque distribution from 100:0 (full front-wheel drive) to 0:100 (full rear-wheel drive).
Toyota says this flexibility provides a performance advantage over on-demand all-wheel-drive systems that use twin-coupling or permanent all-wheel-drive hardware with a centre differential. The GR Yaris all-wheel-drive system is also considerably lighter than other layouts.
In normal mode, front-to-rear torque distribution is 60:40; in Sport mode the balance shifts to 30:70, and Track defaults to 50:50 distribution before automatically adjusting to conditions.
The front brakes comprise of four-piston calipers clamping 356mm discs (the rears are 297mm discs), behind lightweight 18-inch alloy wheels.
Toyota Yaris GR 192kW/350Nm/1280kg/5.5s 150kW/tonne
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