2022 Toyota GR Corolla hot hatch coming mid-2022 with 1.6L turbo-3 & AWD

With the Toyota GR Yaris a huge success, Toyota is now turning its attention to the Yaris’ bigger brother, the Toyota GR Corolla.

Set to hit global markets in mid-2022, the GR Corolla will call the Volkswagen Golf GTI and R, Hyundai i30N, Ford Focus ST, Renault Megane RS and Subaru WRX as rivals.

According to reports out of Japan, the GR Corolla will feature the same 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine as the GR Yaris.

However, while the Yaris churns out 200kW and 370Nm (making it the most powerful three-cylinder engine in production), the Corolla hot hatch will pump out up to 221kW, with an unspecified torque figure. If we have to guess, we can expect a mild increase over the Yaris’.

Better yet, the Corolla is also set to inherit the trick all-wheel drive system from its small sibling that is capable of diverting up to 70% of torque to the rear wheels via a standard six-speed manual transmission.

Despite the 21kW power boost, the GR Corolla will be “slightly interior” to the smaller Yaris in Toyota’s in-house performance tests, thanks to the extra weight brought on by its longer and wider five-door body style.

The GR Corolla is said to prioritise on-road performance, as opposed to the GR Yaris’ gravel-road focus due to its WRC roots.

While it might not feature a bespoke body like the GR Yaris, the hot Corolla will get a few significant visual tweaks to differentiate it from the cooking model, including stretched fenders that are 20mm wider. It will also reportedly sit 10mm lower to the ground.

Like the Golf R, Toyota intends to introduce the GR Corolla with a wagon body style as well with the same GR treatment and performance credentials.

Inside, expect body-hugging sports seats, a GR-badged steering wheel and upholstery in a combination of leather and Alcantara.

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