Toyota TMG Yaris and TMG iQ 2012 Review - International

Though we haven't driven the Lexus-based vehicle, the performance haus did hand over the keys of two of its vehicles during this week's visit to TMG's Cologne headquarters.

They are vehicles that may one day become a production reality for the brand: the TMG Yaris R1A and TMG iQ Sport.

TMG Yaris R1A
Fitted with OMP racing seats, complete with six-point safety harnesses, a roll cage, fire extinguisher, and battery isolator switch, the TMG Yaris R1A looks and feels like a rally car. And it sounds pretty angry too, thanks to a 55mm racing exhaust system.

The car looks rally ready, and this is the idea says TMG's boss, Yoshiaki Kinoshita, who points out that the road-legal Yaris is the first tentative step the company has made towards re-entering the World Rally Championship in 2014.

Buckle in, start the engine and gun the throttle and the result is decent acceleration, but it's by no means a rocketship. Engine output remains unchanged over the regular Yaris at 72kW/120Nm, but the car has been completely stripped out and weight has dropped to "under 1000kg".

The sound the TMG Yaris makes is brilliant; a raucous rise in volume as you floor the throttle, interspersed with pops and crackles between gear changes. Alastair Moffitt, Marketing and Communications Manager at TMG, has driven the Yaris R1A on public roads, and noted the six-speed manual car was "too loud" when cruising on the autobahn.

It's hard to gauge the car's handling during such a short test, but it's clear that the uprated suspension does a good job in reducing body roll and improving turn-in.

With the 1.3-litre four-cylinder unchanged, TMG says the 0-100km/h dash takes about 11.7 seconds. Top speed is rated at 175km/h and the only powertrain change is a short final drive ratio for the six-speed manual and a motorsport specific air filter.

The major changes are chassis based - it gets motorsport shock absorbers with "adapted" springs and an adjustable ride height, and plenty of OMP gear: Fe45 steel bolt-in roll cage, rally seats and safety harnesses. The brakes are standard.

TMG says it plans to take the new Yaris R1A to the Germany WRC round on August 24 to gauge public reaction to the vehicle.

Mr Moffitt explained the TMG Yaris would cost between €20,000 and €25,000 -- about double the price of a regular Yaris, and will be homologated to FIA R1A standards this year. The first cars will be available from October 2012 and TMG hopes to find enough customers to create a one-make rally cup for the 2013 season.

TMG iQ Sport
The Toyota iQ is not yet offered in Australia, an A-segment car about the size of a thimble. It's a tiny vehicle much smaller than a Yaris and doesn't have a lot of boot space, but after thrashing the supercharged TMG version we're wondering if it should be offered locally...

Despite our test drive taking place on a very small patch of bitumen, it suited the ultra-short iQ a lot better than the Yaris, as it was able to turn more easily in the confined space thanks to its short wheelbase.

But it did have more body roll than the Yaris and tended to lean heavily when turning sharply.

Outputting 95kW/175Nm thanks to the integration of a supercharger, the TMG iQ Sport also had a lot more mumbo than the Yaris, and frequently spun the front wheels in second gear. It wasn't as loud as the Yaris, but felt much stronger in a (short) straight line.

Mr Moffitt said wouldn’t say how quickly the TMG iQ Sport accelerated to 100km/h, but contended that it had humbled many Porsches in downtown Cologne. [Ed; well, he is in PR...]

Sitting lower to the ground and fitted with larger wheels than the standard city car, the go-fast Toyota iQ certainly looked the part and has the potential to be a welcome addition to any future TMG range.

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