Toyota GR Corolla upgraded in Japan

The Toyota GR Corolla has been upgraded in Japan with a couple of subtle chassis and aero tweaks designed to make the all-wheel drive hot hatch more dynamic and sure-footed at the limit.

The upgrades extend to stiffer bolts in the lower rear suspension control arm and where the steering and gearbox mounts to the front cross-member, increasing chassis rigidity, and redesigned front air ducts intended to reduce wheel-house turbulence and improve downforce.

An exclusive new Cyan metallic hue will also be added to the exterior paint colour palette, paired with a black interior and blue interior stitching.

Toyota’s GR department says the minor chassis and aero enhancements are the direct result of the Corolla’s motorsport endeavours, but stipulates the high-performance hatchback will still not be covered under warranty if the vehicle is driven on track or raced in any way.

The updated model will be limited to an initial batch of just 550 units in Japan, build slots for which will be raffled off in a lottery fashion.

No changes have been made to any of the GR Corolla’s mechanical components, which means the rampant VW Golf R rival still outputs 221kW/370Nm from its 1.6-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and drives all four wheels exclusively via a six-speed manual transmission.

We’re yet to hear if or when the upgraded model will be coming to Australia, but given the engineering and production simplicity of four new bolts and some tweaked air-vents, we expect the new model to arrive Down Under for the 2024 model year – more than likely with a matching price increase.

The current Toyota GR Corolla retails for $64,190 plus on-road costs in mainstream GTS guise, while the hard-core Morizo Edition goes for $76,427 plus ORCs.