Toyota C-HR GR Sport for Oz

Toyota Australia has confirmed the first member of its new GR Sport sub-brand will be based on the Toyota C-HR small SUV, as we forecast in August.

Pricing won’t be announced until later this month, but the 2021 Toyota C-HR GR Sport will be based on the entry-level GXL grade, which currently opens the C-HR range at $30,915 plus on-road costs following recent price hikes and safety upgrades.

Only one version of Toyota Australia’s first GR Sport model will be available though – from late November – and it will share its powertrain with the top-shelf C-HR Hybrid 2WD Koba ($37,665 plus ORCs).

Unique additions include 19-inch alloy wheels and a sports body kit comprising a more aggressive front-end with specific bumper, grille and headlights.

Inside, there will be bespoke trim highlights and sports seats.

The Toyota C-HR GR Sport will also be available in eight exterior paint colours including three two-tone schemes matching either Crystal Pearl, Hornet Yellow or Feverish Red with a black roof.

In Europe, where it is pitched as a rival for the new Ford Puma ST-Line, the Toyota C-HR GR Sport features a new Cool Silver cabin finish, GR-inspired red and grey trim stitching, perforated leather steering wheel trim, model-specific scuff plates, GR Sport logos and a GR stop/start button and start-up animation in the instrument cluster.

Options in Europe include Alcantara-trimmed leather seat upholstery, a premium JBL sound system and power-adjustable heated front seats.

Mechanically, Toyota Australia says a ‘retuned’ chassis delivers a “more dynamic driving experience”, but it’s not yet clear whether that includes the European market’s 10 per cent stiffer front suspension spring rate, 15 per cent stiffer rear springs, more reactive dampers, thicker anti-roll bars and revised electric power steering.

Toyota Europe says the C-HR GR Sport’s 225/45 R19 Continental Premium Contact 6 tyres increase front axle grip levels and cornering stiffness, “resulting in improved yaw resistance and less understeer when subjected to the same G-force”.

“The new tyre is lighter than the current 18” fitting yet offers the same rolling resistance and similar vehicle CO2 emissions,” the company said.

Unlike N Line model variants from Hyundai, however, there are no powertrain upgrades, in this case meaning the same 90kW 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol-electric set-up as seen in the CVT auto-equipped 2WD Koba Hybrid.

An 85kW 1.2-litre turbo-petrol engine and CVT combo powers all other Toyota C-HR variants, including GXL and Koba grades with 2WD and AWD layouts.

Released in Europe earlier this month, the new Toyota C-HR GR Sport will also carry over standard GXL features including an 8.0-inch colour touch-screen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

It’s not yet clear what Toyota Australia’s next GR ‘lite’ model will be, but Europe already has a Corolla GR Sport – or it could be based on the pricier new Yaris to provide a bridge between the standard hatch range ($22,130-$32,100) and the full-house Yaris GR hot hatch ($49,500).

“When we launched our GR performance brand last year with the GR Supra, Toyota hadn’t had a serious high-performance sports car in its line-up for 17 years, but together with the new GR Yaris that arrives next month we are well and truly back on the performance track,” said Toyota Australia vice-president of sales and marketing, Sean Hanley.

“Now with the imminent arrival of the first GR Sport model, we are extending the GR feeling to customers who may not want a high-performance race-bred sports car, but still desire a car with sporty styling and a degree of performance modifications to set it apart from the standard Toyota line-up.”

The 2021 Toyota C-HR GR Sport is the latest entry in a growing Toyota SUV family that now includes the new light-size Yaris Cross ($26,990-$37,990) and is led by Australia’s top-selling SUV, the RAV4 ($32,695-$48,915).