Ten Second Review
Ever wondered what a Toyota Yaris might be like with over 200 braked horses beneath the bonnet? No, we hadn't either. But Toyota has made one anyway, this wild Yaris GRMN. It's a rather unique confection....
The Yaris GRMN hot hatch shows Toyota's extreme side. Jonathan Crouch takes a look....
Ever wondered what a Toyota Yaris might be like with over 200 braked horses beneath the bonnet? No, we hadn't either. But Toyota has made one anyway, this wild Yaris GRMN. It's a rather unique confection....
Forget everything you know about a Toyota Yaris: it isn't relevant here. This one packs 209bhp (yes really) and directs it to the tarmac via a Torsen differential (a feature rare among B-segment hot hatches) and a set of passive dampers supplied by Sachs. The engine is a supercharged 1.8-litre 2ZR-FE unit, built in Deeside by Toyota, then modified by Lotus and sent to the Yaris factory in Valenciennes in France for installation into this car. The car comes with a wide set of 205-section tyres that hugely broaden the turning circle. Large, ventilated front disc brakes with four-piston callipers supplied by ADVICS provide powerful, controllable stopping performance. The steering rack has been sharpened up, but not much has been done to the suspension, which uses much the same torsion beam set-up as a regular Yaris. The exhaust though, has been fully reworked, a task that had to be achieved within very tight space limitations, and with careful attention to underbody heat management. The goals were to reduce exhaust back pressure and control emissions and noise levels, while also introducing a centre tailpipe design at the rear of the car - a feature shared with the Yaris WRC competition car. Performance is very much of the 'in your face' variety in the raucous way it's delivered. For reference, the figures see the 62mph benchmark flash by in 6.4s on the way to 143mph; in a Yaris. Whoever would have thought it....
Would you pay well over £26,000 for a Toyota Yaris? Apparently, quite a lot of people would because Toyota says that most of the UK allocation of 80 Yaris GRMN models are already accounted for. If you still want one, you'll probably have to do quite a lot of ringing around Toyota's UK dealer network to try and get yourself a build slot. Obviously, there are lots of supermini hot hatch rivals that cost substantially less - the Ford Fiesta ST and the MINI Cooper S come to mind. But none of them will feel as special or as race-ready has this wild Yaris. The wheels are 17-inch BBS lightweight multi-spoke forged alloys which not only save weight but also provide sufficient space for larger brakes to be used. Fitted with Bridgestone Potenza RE050A 205/45R17 tyres, they also contribute to the Yaris GRMN's very precise steering feel.
There's nothing remotely sensible about this car - and that's probably why its small band of loyal buyers like it. There are lots of supermini hot hatches that on paper seem a no-brainer choice over a pricey Yaris GRMN. But on the road, none of them will feel as raw or perhaps as exciting. This is as close as Toyota Gazoo Racing can get to bringing you a Yaris World Championship Rally car fettled for road use. More power to them.