Toyota GR Yaris

The cabin of the Toyota GR Yaris is not too tech-laden or highly captivating as the exterior design of the car. However, it looks modern enough for a car of this class, with integration of many new-gen features and design themes.

The three-spoke multi-functional steering wheel as well as the twin pod analog instrument console look tad too simple for a sporty car. However, a rectangular 4.2-inch colored MID screen in the center of the instrument console livens up the driver’s cockpit. The rectangular free-standing 8.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system in the center, above the sleek trapezoidal AC vents in the center console look modern and large enough. 

The lower part of the center console looks minimalist with a curved panel for the dual-zone automatic climate control, which looks in sync with the rounded rectangular AC vents on the corners of the dashboard. The Toyota GR Yaris is fairly equipped with a few other features like GR Alcantara leather upholstery, sporty pedals, push-button start with keyless entry, head-up display, premium sound system from JBL, height adjustment for the driver’s seat. However, the knee room and legroom for the rear bench feels compromised.

The compact size of the Toyota GR Yaris is well complemented by an athletic design language, which truly depicts what the car actually feels like when it is driven. The sporty looks of the car create a strong first impression about it.

At the front, the Toyota GR Yaris looks very sleek and purposeful with its minimalist front grille design. There is a sleek and wide black finished curve in the middle, which ends up with eye-brow shaped curved LED headlamps, which come integrated with L-shaped curved daytime running LEDs below them. The main grille, shaped in the form of a rectangle with curved edges, is present on the front bumper. With honeycomb mesh and small vertical air vents on its sides, this grille is flanked by vertical T-shaped black fog lamp inserts.

The side look of the Toyota GR Yaris makes it look even more desirable, thanks to its curved roofline, flared rear wheel arches, blacked 18-inch wheels and two-door look. The roof, as well as rear view mirrors, are painted in black, to accentuate its rich and sporty appeal. There is a prominent sharp curved character line flowing above the wheel arch, towards the tail lamp.

At the back, the Toyota GR Yaris has got a steeply raked windscreen, which gets a huge roof spoiler above it and a wide tail lamp cluster below it. The tail lamps present on the lower corners of the windscreen have a sweptback design with curved extensions and a sleek transparent light bar running across the width of the windscreen. The huge rear bumper of the car, with its side bulges, make it look bulky and stubby from the rear.

Riding on large 18-inch wheels, the Toyota GR Yaris has got a suspension combination of Macpherson struts at the front and a double-wishbone at the rear. This GR circuit suspensions setup feels stiff, which aids in offering a great driving dynamics package, though at a small compromise on the front of ride quality. With a four-wheel-drive system underneath, the car also gets front and rear limited-slip differentials. Also on offer are three dedicated drive modes – Sport, Track and Normal.

Powering the Toyota GR Yaris is a 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, which is one of the most powerful small capacity petrol engines from the Japanese carmaker. The engine here is coupled to a 6-speed manual gearbox and makes 261 bhp of power and 360 Nm of torque. The car is capable of hitting the 100 kmph mark from standstill in 5.2 seconds, with a claimed top speed of 230 kmph.

The Toyota GR Yaris is equipped with a host of modern-day safety features such as a pre-collision system, dynamic radar cruise control, lane tracing assist, lane departure alert, automatic high beam, airbags all around, ABS with EBD, traction control and rear park assist with camera.

The Toyota GR Yaris offers a great performance-oriented package, both in terms of design in and out and mechanicals under the skin. While there are a couple of things that might hamper its practicality for daily usage, the Toyota GR Yaris presents itself as a car that appeals more to hearts than brains.