Triple Threat
The days of the compact, capable hatchback seem nigh. The crossover has killed off yet another innocent victim of our North American need for the illusion of excess. Though the lines have thinned, the bulwark is upheld by a few select holdouts – and what a treat they are. Honda’s Civic, Volkswagen’s Golf GTI and R, the stylish Mazda3 and Toyota’s Corolla all continue to uphold the power of the petite platform. But capability and economy are only the tip of this melting iceberg. Go deeper and you get the hot hatchback – an even rarer offering. The aforementioned Golfs are all that remain of the nameplate in North America, with these spicy variants proving popular enough to avoid the chopping block. Honda offers the prime and potent Civic Type-R and its Acura equivalent, the Integra Type-S. Mazda meanwhile, has turbocharged their capable Mazda3, and now Toyota is returning to the ring, perhaps to reclaim their legendary reputation. It’s not an AE86, but maybe, it’ll be that much more. Enter the GR Corolla.
On paper, by modern standards, the GR Corolla may not wow, but like a dab of wasabi, a little can go a long way. The GRC’s heart is a 1.6L turbocharged 3-cylinder engine good for 300 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque. Built by Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s motorsports division, this triple threat is one of the most powerful 3-cylinder engines ever manufacturer. It’s also used in the GR Yaris, which sadly never made its way to our shores. This engine is so cool, Toyota even modified it to run purely on hydrogen, and then raced the thing. The hummingbird-heart of an engine is a little lazy off the line, and even feels rough at low speeds. But look at it as encouragement to build the revs. Find that mid-range sweet spot and you’ll feel why the CEO of Toyota personally signed off on this habanero hatchback. If crackling exhaust pipes aren’t so passe just yet, we’d have liked to hear a spicier soundtrack to accommodate the surprisingly brutal pulls this little engine can achieve – though the whooshes of its turbocharger are welcome aural pleasure.
The engine wasn’t the only carry-over from the GR Yaris. The GR-Four AWD system, first developed for the former, lets drivers split torque between front and rear biases – either 60:40 or 30:70. Or just leave it in the middle at 50:50. No matter your choice of yaw, you’re in for a good time. Maybe not a comfy time, per se, but you weren’t looking for that in a GR Corolla, were you? Let’s get it out of the way though – the ride is stiff. Not unbearable, just stiff, even in so-called comfort mode. The way the GRC handles though, you’ll be tempted to put more pressure on your seat’s bolsters than its bottom. This rally-bred rocket won’t make you a motorsports star, but you’ll certainly feel like one. You get the sense you can thread a needle with the precision presented to you (you can’t), but it’s not just work and no play. The GRC knows when to stick the back end out and gently prod you towards your limits without actually putting you over the edge. Until you run out of gas, anyway. Fuel economy is not a strong point here. Granted, we were having too much fun to really try to be economical and averaged just over 11 L/100km over a week.
Front and rear LSD’s keep you stable and secure, even in track mode, partly thanks to some exceptionally grippy Michelin rubber, as well as the race-tuned suspension. When it comes time to stop, some beefy 4-piston fronts and 2-piston rears make short work of your motion. We especially appreciate the addition of a mechanical handbrake. The 18-inch alloys pair nicely with black mirrors and a lightweight carbon fibre roof. Our vehicle, finished in White (yes, just White. No special names here) was the ultimate vehicular mullet. Business up top and a party down under. Beautiful boxy fender flares set the GR apart from a standard Corolla and hint at what this car brings to the asphalt. The tri-exhaust is the cherry down below. It is truly immensely satisfying feeling the g-forces as you take a corner cycling through the gears on this manual-only machine. Oh yes. A light, direct clutch and rev-matching should be enough to silence nay-sayers who might complain of leg pain. Our only complaint is the spacing of the pedals make heel-toe tomfoolery a bungled mess for those without size 11’s.
Where the GR (rightfully) underwhelms is the interior. Frippery is at a minimum, with luxuries including heated seats, Apple Carplay/Android Auto compatibility and a standard suite of safety features. The 12.3” display gives you all manner of rally-inspired readouts like turbo pressure, and the so-called GR Meter. We’re not expecting pillar-mounted boost gauges or anything of the like, but there’s not much to separate this interior from a standard Corolla’s. But one could argue your money is going towards the engineering, rather than the appearance. Every shift of the slick 6-speed manual transmission will make you forget about the interior’s shortcomings anyhow. Still, it’s a perfectly functional interior with enough room for four, or maybe five if you’re feeling a lttle cruel. Spring for the Morizo edition however – assuming you can find one - and you lose those back seats entirely.
The GR Corolla comes in two trims, and they’re both selling out fast. Our ‘base’ model, the Core, starts at $45,490 before options and fees. On a circle graph featuring Reliability, Practicality, and Value, the GRC Core slots nicely in the intersectional space. Look, we’re not trying to say $45k+ is cheap. But the engineering you get for the money is remarkable, and if history is anything to go by, these aren’t likely to be depreciating any time soon, or at all.
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