Test on the track Toyota Yaris GR, a beautiful261hp 4-wheel drive turbo sports car, street replica of the version from rally that participates and dominates the World Rally WRC. In an automotive world now dominated by SUVs, MPVs and electric / electrified cars, the Toyota that churns out the Yaris GR tastes like the reunion of the Led Zeppelin with a resurrected John Bonham: in the scale of miracles, for those who believe, it comes immediately before the Immaculate Conception.
Now, Toyota did not joke when they laid down the foundations of this project, entrusted to the racing department Gazoo Racing.
Toyota Yaris GR, features, how it is
The platform used to build the 25,000 GR Yaris is a hybrid of the GA-B and GA-C (front of the first, rear of the second to have the smultilink hosting and an even wider track at the rear) made with 3 doors, moreover in aluminum to be lighter, and with the rear roof lowered to improve rear aerodynamics.
👉 TOYOTA YARIS GR, FEATURES 👈
The roof was lowered by a total of 30 mm and made in carbon fiber to lower, not much to tell the truth, the center of gravity: 3.5 kg less than that of steel.
The suspensions, as mentioned, are multilink at the rear (simplified version with two and a half levers) e McPherson at the front.
Toyota Yaris GR turbo engine, characteristics
The engine of the Toyota Yaris GR is a 1.6-liter turbocharged 3-cylinder with 261 hp combined with a 6-speed manual gearbox which, as we shall see, is not quite the best side of this machine.
The all-wheel drive system provides a pair of TorSen differentials, one on the front axle and one on the rear, plus a electronically controlled differential center that varies the distribution of traction between the two axles according to the driving mode selected with the knob in the console: in Normal 60% of the torque is transmitted to the front and the remaining 40% to the rear, in Sport the rear is privileged with a 70-30 split, while in Track the percentages pass to 50/50.
One of the strengths of the Yaris GR is thebraking system, with four-piston front calipers bite discs slotted from 356 mm in diameter and 297 mm the rear ones, with two-piston calipers.
Test Toyota Yaris GR, how are you inside?
The interior of the Toyota Yaris GR is embellished with a pair of sports front seats, finishes worthy of a car of this type and a screen media too large and, perhaps, useless on such a machine.
The first thing you notice about the Yaris GR is the ground clearance. She is as tall as a camel! Toyota engineers figured this out and tried to patch it up by lowering the roof and replacing the sheet metal with carbon fiber.
Better than nothing but when a car is long 3.99 meters, 1.80 wide and 1.46 high… You have little to invent. The seat is also high and the driving position it is not one of those that, from the moment you stretch your arms towards the steering wheel, gives you goosebumps.
The GR has the 6-speed gearbox with the back over the first and the syringe to be able to select it. Only this syringe command is too sensitive: you do not have to pull it up with two fingers and insert the back, but just use the palm of your hand, touch it and instead of the first you will find yourself in reverse! A couple of times I found myself starting back and luckily there was no one attached to my bumper! Then I got used to it and started looking at the corner of my eye rear view camera display to see if I was in first.
Ok, better use your three fingers and tap the top knob not to take risks. Too bad, however, that in the third / second, always done with the palm of the hand, the lever ends up in the reverse gear channel, forcing you to return to neutral and look for the second.
Toyota Yaris GR turbo 261 HP track test
Track test of the Toyota Yaris GR turbo, on the track of theISAM of Anagni (FR). The test on the track was marred by the enormous hassle of shifting: when you drive you can’t even think about “looking for” the second one on the climb! You already have to struggle with a understeer deadly! Here … another item that you will not find cited by any of my colleagues whose reviews I have read and whose videos I have listened to.
The Yaris GR, due to its size and height, suffers from a huge roll which slows down load transfers a lot. Then, when cornering, simply goes straight and fails to discharge the power to the ground up to the middle of the curve.
Coming out of corners, the rear end is glued to the ground and I can’t slide it. This happens to those who, like your very affectionate one, like a precise front end and a sliding rear end, an insertion from kart and oversteer output. I must say that I started the test in mode Sport with breakdown 30/70 believing it was better on the track than the 50/50: I was wrong! If Toyota technicians call track the 50/50, it is because the track goes better, even if the understeer remains.
The Yaris GR is closer to the tastes of the rally driver and it must be driven in a completely different way than I like it: with the handbrake. The handbrake of the GR, in fact, is fantastic. It is made to turn the machine and, when it is activated, it is even momentarily disconnected rear differential to free it better.
If you drive the GR like this, you enter the curve sideways and brush it to the exit. Are you capable of doing it? I admit it, no, but if this is your driving style you have found the right car.
On the other hand, the machine is stable and safe on fast speed. Where the little Toyota stands out is under braking, with sensational stopping distances, worthy of a GT.
The gearbox, in addition to the unforgivable lack of handling, has a spacing that I do not agree with: limited to 230 km / h speed, it has a fifth gear of 33 km / h for 1000 rpm (about 220 km / h with limiter) and a sixth gear of 40 km / h x 1000 rpm (about 280 km / h at 7000 rpm). Question: what do I do with a 40 × 1000 sixth on a limited 230 km / h toy car?
Toyota Yaris GR, test conclusions: what do we think?
The engine is honest, it does its duty but nothing more. Citing another 3-cylinder, that of the Fiesta ST, albeit with alone 200 hp against 261 hp of the GR, it seems much more evil and gritty.
Will it be the weight? Maybe… but was there just no room for one heck of an extra cylinder? With 4 spinning wheels, they needed to make it bad 300 hp!
Toyota Yaris GR price, how much does it cost?
They have all been sold but some are still on sale among unofficial car dealers: the official price was 41,900 euros, practically like one Golf GTI base which, compared to this, is technically much lower. A bargain, for those who took it.
Toyota Yaris GR 261 CV (technical characteristics)
Dimensions and weight
- Length: 399 cm
- Width: 180 cm
- Height: 150 cm
- Step: 256 cm
- Luggage: 141 L
- Tank: 50 L
- Weight: 1280 kg
Motor
- Power supply: petrol
- Traction: 4 × 4
- Manual transmission
- Displacement: 1.6 L / 1618 cm3
- Power: 261 hp / 192 kW
- Maximum torque: 360 Nm at 3000 rpm
Engine and Performance
- Top speed: 230.0 km / h
- Acceleration: 5.2 s (0-100 km / h)
- Environmental class: Euro 6D
- CO2 emissions: 184 g / km
- Range: 700 km
- Urban consumption: 9.3 L / 100 km
- Extra-urban consumption: 6.7 L / 100 km
- Combined consumption: 7.7 L / 100 km
Photo Toyota Yaris GR
Photography Igor Gentili Copyright PROCESS
The complete and complete proof can be found in the magazine PROCESS No. 270 orderable online.
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