Toyota Yaris GRMN prototype review

The Yaris GRMN is Toyota’s attempt to make the bewinged beasts of the WRC seem more closely related to the showroom models. Unlike its rallying sibling, however, the Yaris GRMN isn’t four-wheel drive or overly fast.

To you and me, GRMN is as unfamiliar as it is clumsy. It stands for Gazoo Racing Meister of Nurburgring, which probably sounds more poetic to a native Japanese speaker than it does to the rest of us. Sadly, for us, the Yaris GRMN will be limited to just 400 units – sold exclusively in Europe.

There is even a Torsen limited-slip differential. For project leader Stijn Peeters and chief engineer Yoshinori Sasaki, the entire project has been a battle. You get the feeling that had they pitched four-wheel drive and 220kW, the idea of a Yaris GRMN wouldn’t have survived.

The Yaris GRMN is brilliantly simple. The specially developed sports seats offer lots of support, although they’re set a little high and the GT86- sourced steering wheel doesn’t extend quite far enough. The pedals are also spaced a little awkwardly for heel and toe downshifts.

It’s taut, this Yaris; it feels just a set of sticky tyres and some bucket seats away from being a tarmac rally car. The Bridgestone tyres don’t generate huge grip, which means the car’s limits are well within reach on the road. That makes it a real blast to drive but, before too long, those modest grip levels might well become a frustration.

No matter the price, driving doesn’t get a whole lot more amusing than this. The Yaris GRMN isn’t the lightly detuned WRC monster some will have been hoping for, but it’s a very promising hot hatch.

4 stars out of 5 Likes: Sweet engine; dynamic ability Dislikes: Not coming to Oz; needs more grip; ergonomics

Toyota Yaris GRMN prototype specs Engine: 1798cc inline-4, DOHC, 16v, supercharger Power: 155kW Torque: 249Nm Weight: 1135kg 0-100km/h: 6.3sec (estimated) Price: $41,490 (estimated)