Toyota Motor PH officially launches GR Yaris

MANILA: The much-anticipated hot hatch from Toyota has finally been officially launched by Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP).

"Born from the World Rally Championships and Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda’s passion to develop The Toyota Sports Car, the GR Yaris is built from the ground up to surpass standards in building ever-better cars," said the company in a release.

Its GR prefix stands for Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s performance development arm specializing in motorsports. The GR Yaris is said to combine "motorsports technology and design" toward a "a pure performance vehicle and a heart-racing daily driver."

While it shares a nameplate with an existing, longtime model in the Yaris, the GR Yaris underwent separate development as it was first envisioned as a motorsports vehicle, then later made into a  road vehicle.

Under the hood is a G16E-GTS three-cylinder inline DOHC 4-valve roller rocker engine said to be the “world’s best” inline three. This is mated to a six-speed manual transmission. The car harnesses the performance through a unique GR-Four four-wheel drive system that "makes the GR Yaris competitive and rally-ready in any condition." TMP said that the Philippine-spec GR Yaris comes standard with a High Performance/Circuit Package.

The vehicle gets a light but sturdy carbon fiber roof, 18” BBS forged alloy wheel, three-tier LED headlamps with daytime running lights, and LED rear combination lamps.

It has smart entry and a push start system, and receives suede and synthetic leather seats. Normal, Sport, and Track drive modes are available, while its infotainment system boasts Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.

Other features include the Toyota Safety Sense suite (Pre-Collision System, Automatic High Beam, Lane Trace Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control), six SRS airbags, anti-lock brakes, vehicle stability control, and hill-start assist control. Its front and rear Torsen Limited Slip Differential provides increased traction and improved stability for the vehicle.

The Toyota GR Yaris is priced at P2.65 million for the 1.6L Turbo MT variant, and comes in three colors: Super White II, Emotional Red, and Precious Black.  It will be available in Toyota’s 16 GR Performance dealers nationwide starting August 14, 2021.

For more information, visit Toyota Gazoo Racing PH on Facebook and Instagram, the official TMP website, and Twitter.

Photos from Toyota Motor Philippines

Also read: TMP kicks off 2021 season of Toyota Gazoo Racing Vios Cup