Doc’s Drive: GR Yaris

In my 20+ years of doing car reviews, there are only a handful of cars which I’ve wanted to keep on driving, never mind the destination. Some are very good touring cars while others are great for stitching up corners after corners.

This real deal Toyota from the carmaker’s GR brand is one of them, excelling in the latter while not any less at home for highway cruising.

Malaysian Yaris and European Yaris
First, some clarification. The Yaris name can be a confusing one as many will think of the Yaris 1.5 G hatchback which I tested earlier. Very recently, UMW Toyota Motor also launched the Yaris Cross (which is related to the Perodua Traz).

However, in Europe, there is a totally different bodied and slightly smaller Yaris Cross SUV and that hatchback model is a B-segment vehicle in two bodystyles: 4-door regular hatchback and a rally homologation model for the FIA World Rally Championship, developed by TOYOTA GAZOO Racing to become the GR Yaris.

It was launched in Malaysia in January 2025 with a base price of RM315,600 for the 6-speed manual while the 8-speed automatic goes for RM325,600.

If one were to judge this little GR Yaris from its exterior, you would be hard pressed to justify the asking prices. The GR Yaris has a small frontal face with slanty headlamps, a small nose and a huge butt, both ends being flanked by massive, bulging sculpted wheel arches.

Staring at the lower section of its front bumper, you will see a rather large intercooler peering through the lower air dam. A water jet spray helps keep it cool should you decide to keep on piling on the turbo boost on the hot afternoons like what we are having now.

On the inside, two contrasting items caught my attention when opening the door. First, the dark-grey and black hard plastics on the dashboard, centre console and door trims are reminiscent of the 2010s era JDMs. Heck! Even the smell gives a nascent nostalgia of a Toyota Wish or JDM Caldina of yesteryear. I was also reminded of the Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart which I had sometime at the turn of the new millennium (in grey-import WALD trim).

In absolutely lovely contrast are the superb GR sport bucket seats and the chunky rim real leather-stitched GR steering wheel.

How does it drive?
In two words: enthralling and exhilarating. In this age of ever-advancing EVs with instantaneous torque, this ICE hot hatch can also deliver instantaneous power (more so in SPORT mode). With the sweet spot of 3,000 to 5,000 rpm being kept on the boil by the Engine Control Unit and Transmission Control Unit, you can get immediate torque of 400 Nm right away.

There’s a sporty exhaust note to match – something not usually associated with a 1.6-litre 3-cylinder unit with a big turbocharger which usually impedes sweet sounding exhaust symphony.

Initially, I didn’t think much of this automatic version of the GR Yaris. Since in the last gen GT86, the auto version was not much of a joy to push hard. However, with this GR Yaris, it’s no lame 8-speed auto tranny. It isn’t as quick as a DCT but, in isolation, you wouldn’t find it hunting for gears or being wishy-washy matching correct ratios to the engine rpm.

I would rate it as being on par with the famed ZF 8-speed automatic in another legacy continental make. As such, it makes overtaking a breeze afforded by those addictive blasts of rolling acceleration with superb steering agility to match.

Ride quality is largely comfortable despite its short wheelbase of 2560 mm and compact dimensions. Maximum power output is 304 ps, enabling the GR Yaris to go as fast as 230 km/h, it is claimed. From standstill, it completes the 0 – 100 km/h sprint in 5.2 seconds.

Flicking this AWD hot hatch into corners, the rather skinny 225/40 R18 tyres and relatively narrow tracks give a rather fun character. I found it to have a tendency to lean and slide to the outer edge of a cornering line, but with the sticky UHP Bridgestone Potenzas, it tracked obediently.

At the front axle, the GR Yaris delivers excellent and firm body control over uneven and undulating roads. However, it gets a little bumpier for the rear occupants at higher speeds.

The minus points
Stopping at traffic lights, some engine vibrations were felt through the pressed brake pedal. I think this is unavoidable for a 3-cylinder engine, no matter how hard engineers try to eliminate the character. Thankfully, taking off from standstill is rather vibration-free.

There is also that nagging feedback of very slight tramlining upon hard braking from high speed, which I am not sure could be due to this particular loan unit having done some 16,000 kms.

The absence of a 360-degree camera is baffling for its asking price while the infotainment screen is really puny in size, with a thick frame to the display. Storage cubby holes are rather limited at the handbrake and centre console section. Also, this diminutive car needs a stronger and louder horn to match its hot hatch performance credentials.

Two-door inconvenience can influence its appeal, along with the near A-segment size interior space, especially at the rear bench. I reckon the GR Corolla may be Toyota’s answer for family use practicality plus the same GR hot hatch performance.

‘Fun to Drive, again’
To sum it up, the GR Yaris is really something to behold. Living up to Akio Toyoda’s promise to make cars ‘Fun to Drive, again’, this rally-bred compact hot hatch will definitely make you love driving again. It’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing but pumped up on steroids. Stealth and incognito it is not. You get quite a lot of validation or recognition in the form of unwarranted challenges to race on the road!

It’s a pocket rocket in sushi flavour, with a solid chassis and suspension tuning to match. One that makes a case for ICE cars to stay relevant well into decades to come.

GR models are only available at Toyota dealerships with a GR Garage. Click here to find a showroom in Malaysia

GR – from racing team to performance brand