I remember the first UK test drives of the Toyota GR Yaris back in 2020, a couple of years before my time here at PH, where after a morning of hooning about, I bumped into our very own Nic C. I needn't have asked him if he'd had as much fun on the route as me - the subsequent PH review was brimmed with superlatives. Granted, the car wasn’t without its flaws - the lofty seating position felt as though you were driving via Gran Turismo’s roof cam, and anyone taller than NC had to duck down to peer out of the tiny slit between the infotainment screen and giant rear-view mirror - but the fact that PHers later voted it the best hot hatch of the last 25 years rather proves that the (extremely) good bits of Toyota's homologated rally car far outweighed any issues.
Now there’s a new one very much in the pipeline and, from a distance, it looks to be a classic case of facelift nip 'n' tuck; the looks have been reworked for a touch more controlled aggression, the cabin rearranged for better ergonomics and there are some structural tweaks to bump up rigidity. It’s all pretty standard faire as mid-life refreshes go - not that Toyota needed to do much seeing as though it was customer demand that strong-armed it into extending production well beyond the planned 25,000 (the number required by the stillborn WRC car).
However, the manufacturer is keen to point out that there’s more to the new GR Yaris than meets the eye. It’s worked even closer with its ultra-successful World Rally Team and called upon its roster of World Champions and rally winners to hunt for areas in need of improvement. And that’s why we’re testing the new GR Yaris on a frozen lake located a stone’s throw away from the rally team’s headquarters in the depths of Finland. Because the GR Yaris was born to revel in any condition you might be compelled to throw at it - and what better way to show that off than by letting it loose in its winter habitat?
Before we get to the sliding, a bit of housekeeping. First of all, the lofty driving position has indeed been fixed (hurrah!). The seats have been lowered by 25mm, not least because Toyota’s own rally drivers lobbied for them to be mounted closer to the floor. The dash has also been lowered by 50mm too, drastically improving visibility over its predecessor’s letterbox-like cabin, while the new digital instruments and larger infotainment screen have been brought together in one massive housing. It isn't what you'd call pretty - and it's hardly made from the finest plastics either - but it does angle everything towards you for a more driver-focused environment. The only real downside here is that I couldn't for the life of me find the 'developed for FIA WRC' gel sticker that featured on the old car. Shame.
Outside, it’s gained a good chunk more purpose thanks to that tweaked front end with larger brake ducts and two small slits on either side of the bumper to improve airflow around the front wheels. The bumper itself is now split into three sections, which Toyota says is inspired by the rally cars that need to be repaired quickly and cheaply. So if you give it the full McRae over a yump and nosedive the landing, you can simply replace the centre section rather than fork out for a whole front end (unless you’ve taken a bite out of the new GR Four-branded intercooler). Changes at the rear aren’t quite as obvious, with the only difference being a new light bar and the relocation of the high-level brake light to below the window - making it easier for tuners to fit bigger, crazier spoilers.
Speaking of crazy, Toyota’s engineers have managed to eke out even more power from its pint-sized 1.6-litre turbocharged three-pot. There’s 20hp more, in fact, and a 22lb ft boost to 288 torques, while reliability has been improved thanks to lighter pistons, a new exhaust valve and a strengthened valvetrain. We’re only getting the Circuit Pack in the UK (because it’s the only one people actually bought) which includes a new sub-radiator, upgraded air intake and an intercooler spray. The six-speed manual remains, but there’s now a ‘close-ratio’ eight-speed automatic that Toyota claims is faster than the manual, albeit 20kg heavier…
It doesn’t stop there. Like before, you get two Torsen limited-slip differentials and a trio of drive modes to control the adaptive central clutch pack. The Normal setting remains the same on the new car, splitting the torque 60:40 between the two axles, while the reworked Track setting varies between 60:40 and 30:70 depending on how hard you’re driving. Sport makes way for Gravel, which has a 53:47 split to keep things stable when you’re on the slippery stuff - and that’s where Toyota was keen for it to stay while we're mucking about in the snow. The chassis, meanwhile, is largely the same as before, save for a 24 per cent increase in structural adhesive, 13 per cent more spot welds and a slightly firmer damping set-up. There are also two extra bolts bolting the dampers in place to stop any geometry changes when barrelling over the craggy terrain of Rally Kenya - or down your average British B road.
Handily, Toyota laid on an original GR Yaris - one kitted out with a radiator guard and studded tyres - for us to learn the layout of the course and get to grips (or lack thereof) with the surface. To no surprise, it felt right at home on ice, flicking through switchbacks with ease, plumes of snow falling in its wake. Getting a four-wheel slide on is a breeze, although it’s just as easy to fall off the torque band if you enter a corner with anything less than full commitment. Even then, the old can can feel a smidgen inconsistent mid-corner. Take your foot off the throttle for even a moment and the front end slowly begins to point in the same direction as the rear, causing the front to wash out wide. Needless to say, I’m no Kalle Rovanpera, but it seems like there's precious little time to get it right if you haven't perfectly set up your entry into a corner beforehand.
This then is where the new GR Yaris really shines. Where the old version requires preparation to keep it pointing in the right direction, its replacement effortlessly dances from corner to corner with the agility of a figure skater. Dab the brake, turn in early and the back now steps genially and predictably out as you squeeze the accelerator. Keeping it sideways is considerably easier, too, and it’ll happily accept minor adjustments mid-corner without spitting you off into the far side snowbank.
There’s a fair bit to unpack concerning its newfound consistency. First of all, the 2024 GR Yaris just feels as though it has a good chunk more poke than its predecessor. Though 20hp isn’t exactly a giant leap, the fact that the torque arrives a touch earlier than before means the dinky three pot up front responds quicker to your inputs. There’s also more urgency in the steering. The previous model felt like it needed to be wrestled mid-corner, arms flailing about just to keep the thing sliding, whereas the new car is far more direct and intuitive, to the point where I could at least attempt a Scandinavian flick and not enter the upcoming corner rear first and completely crossed up.
Speaking to the chief instructor on the day, he reckons that the old cars were disengaging the rear diff off throttle, whereas in the new version it remains active the entire time - which would certainly account for its finer sense of balance mid-slide. Of course, it could also potentially be a quirk of the old, rally school GRs Toyota laid on. But in these conditions at least, the updated Yaris was leaps and bounds ahead of its predecessor.
It's also more rewarding to drive generally than it was before. Hard to believe, because there are few things better than ragging a GR Yaris down a greasy road, but even on ice (never an ideal surface for assessing nuance) the impression that the slightly firmer damping is contributing to a more communicative chassis seemed unmistakable. Unsurprisingly that sensation is aided by the lower driving position, which for someone of my average height is spot on, as it helps connect you to the ground in a way that the original model's prohibitively lofty seats could not.
I also had a go in the auto, although this was less transformative than you might think, as the test course was taken almost exclusively in second gear (which is apparently all rally ace Rovanpera uses when honing his skills at the same location). Left to its own devices, the ‘box intuitively shifts where it seems fit - and even if that’s in the middle of a four-wheel drift it’s not enough to unsettle the car or throw you off the power band. I did notice an occasional hesitation when shifting myself using the flappy paddles (no WRC-style shifter, Toyota?), but best we reserve judgment on that in conditions that allow for the remaining five ratios to be used.
Frankly, that extends to the manual, too. This is very much a first go and while barrelling around a snow circuit laid out on top of a frozen lake is every bit as fun as it sounds, a definitive verdict requires a decent stretch of UK road and far more time with the car than we were treated to in Finland. Still, based on this experience, I'd encourage any owner of a GR Yaris - old or new generation - to take their car off-road at least once, because that’s where the other half of its character truly reveals itself. It really is every bit as ‘born to rally’ as the marketing material says it is.
The good news is that in this respect the latest GR Yaris has already taken things to another level: it comprehensively outshines the old car in the white cauldron of Rally Finland. If that's sufficient to have you running off to your local Toyota dealer, you probably ought to pause for UK pricing (which hasn’t been announced yet) while we await news on whether or not we'll get the limited-edition Ogier and Rovanpera editions. Nevertheless, if prices for the standard model remain in the £33,000 ballpark, then putting your name down for a new one rather than settling for a used example seems like a no-brainer. Certainly, the new GR Yaris offers more of what we loved about the original, with what seems like all the major creases ironed out. Expect the order book to be bursting at the seams again.
SPECIFICATION | 2024 TOYOTA GR YARIS
Engine: 1,618cc three-cylinder, turbocharged
Transmission: six-speed manual, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 280@6,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 288@3,250rpm - 4,000rpm
0-62mph: TBC
Top speed: TBC
Weight: 1,280kg
MPG: TBC
CO2: TBC
Price: TBC
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