Sliced bread, the sequel
Believe the hype. The homologation-special Yaris is a true modern classic.
‘What I’d really like to do,’ said Ford engineering/driving genius David Put as he oversteered my old Fiesta ST long-term test car around the Lommel proving ground (CAR, September 2019), ‘is a four-wheeldrive, WRC-style Fiesta road car. But it would cost more than £30k, and they tell me that’s too much for a small car. So what I want you to do is write about how great it would be if such a car existed!’
Toyota’s done the job for him. The world’s gone mad for the GR Yaris. In Australia, cars have changed hands for $10k more than the asking price. Over here, there’s a year-long waiting list.
Half a year’s exposure to the GR Yaris hasn’t dulled its appeal. Most of its nits can be picked in one paragraph: the front seats feel about a foot too high, and if you’re tall the GR’s roofline means you need to tilt your head in the back; no wiper for the tiny rear screen means you can’t see anything behind you in the winter (and ineffectual climate control means you’re permanently chilly); road noise is rowdy; and it has the same ergonomically atrocious dashboard as the regular Yaris. Service intervals every 6000 miles are one extra thing to worry about, and our car needed an oil and filter change at Farmer and Carlisle in Loughborough at a cost of £138.
None of this dulls the appeal of the most special hot hatch on sale today. You’ve heard us wax lyrical about the Yaris while it’s aced group tests – but what about readers who’ve considered parting with their own hard-earned cash? Adam Broer ordered his GR early doors: ‘When it was announced I thought: “Oh my, that’s exactly the kind of car I want.” It put me in mind of a modern-day Delta Integrale. I had a Mk3 Focus RS previously and the Yaris is comfier, even with the Circuit Pack suspension. At a Silverstone trackday it was the cheapest car there but I’ve never known so many people come up to ask about it.’
Fellow reader Barry Gartner ordered his in Convenience Pack spec, which adds sat-nav and does without the Circuit Pack’s pricier tyres, stiffer suspension and locking diffs. ‘The Circuit Pack is, for me, overkill. I no longer go to trackdays and there are few roads in my area where I could exploit its full potential.’ He’s still waiting for his car to arrive at the time of writing, however, demand having pushed delivery back two months.
Matt Brooke, on the other hand, back-to-back test-drove a GR Yaris with its GR Supra stablemate and opted for the sports car rather than the hot hatch: ‘They’re both very different, and although the Yaris handled brilliantly – especially in the wet, cold, nasty December weather I drove it in – I felt the interior let it down. The Supra felt more special, and I found its handling more exciting.’
I know what he means; so composed is the GR, you feel you’re using a fraction of its potential on the road. But what potential, and what a brand-builder for Toyota. Perhaps Put was right all along: maybe every mainstream company could benefit from a baby rally hatch on its books. @JamesTaylorCAR
Count the cost
Cost new £34,375 Part exchange value £30,220 Cost per mile 18.7p Cost per mile including depreciation 74.3p