Toyota declares war on Golf R and Type R by pricing GR Corolla

Having unnoticeably provided South Africa with a hint of its forthcoming plans when it revealed pricing of the updated GR Supra last week, Toyota has finally detailed the fire-breathing GR Corolla spec-for-spec on its website.

The first performance Corolla in almost two decades, but the first for South Africa since the iconic 20-valve RSI/RXI, the GR Corolla, which debuted last year as a United States-only model, arrives after almost five years of speculative reports and even claims of not it not happening at all.

Manual and 4WD

Completing the global line-up of GR models comprising the GR Yaris, GR86 and GR Supra, Toyota’s direct rival for the Volkswagen Golf R, Honda Civic Type R Hyundai i30 N and Renault Megane RS 300 Trophy boasts a unique configuration of a six-speed manual gearbox and the same GR Four four-wheel-drive system as the GR Yaris.

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The latter doing without a centre differential on some models in favour of a front and rear axle coupling that varies torque in three split formats; 60/40, 50/50 and 30/70 depending on the selected drive mode – Eco, Normal and Sport – the row-it-yourself ‘box also comes with the same rev-matching iMT (Intelligent Manual Transmission) system as the other GR models, plus upgraded brakes and suspension.

World’s most powerful three-cylinder

In addition to the transmission and all-paw gripping system, the GR Corolla retains the 1.6-litre G16E-GTS turbocharged three-cylinder engine that hasn’t been detuned for South Africa has it is in the GR Yaris.

This means the same outputs of 221kW/370Nm as in North America and a claimed fuel consumption of 8.4 L/100 km.

Although Toyota didn’t reveal the GR Corolla’s 0-100 km/h sprint time, reported to be around five seconds, it did confirm the top speed of 230 km/h.

Spec

On the specification front, Toyota South Africa has followed the same approach as its Stateside division by offering the GR Corolla in two trim levels; Core and Circuit – the latter being the recipient of external add-ons in the form of a carbon fibre reinforced plastic roof, gloss black grille and red brake calipers.

Across both derivatives though, Toyota has made the following standard:

• gloss black 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres
• bi-LED headlights
• folding electric mirrors
• six-speaker sound system
• 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
• dual-zone climate control with rear vents
• all-around electric windows
• wireless smartphone charger
• seven-inch touchscreen infotainment system
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• reverse camera
• Adaptive Cruise Control
• front and rear parking sensors
• Hill Start Assist
• Lane Keep Assist
• Lane Trace Assist

Reserved for the Circuit though is a limited slip front and rear differential, synthetic leather/suede as opposed to fabric seats and a Head-Up Display.

Omitted, most likely as a result of costs, are the heated and electric front seats, the heated steering wheel, wider eight-inch infotainment system, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control and the eight-speaker JBL sound system.

Colours and price

In total, buyers can deck the GR Corolla out in three colours; the GR usual trio of Glacier White, Raven Black and Fierce Red, plus a matte hue called Midnight Grey reserved solely for the Circuit model.

Priced at R816 500 for the Core and at R876 100 for the Circuit, the GR Corolla is covered by a three-year/100 000 km warranty as well as a nine-service/90 000 km service plan.

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