Soon the Toyota GR Corolla will be the only Gazoo Racing model without the option of an automatic transmission, but that could change if current sales trends continue.
Since launching in 2022, the go-fast version of the humble Corolla hatchback has only been available with a manual transmission.
Toyota announced in January that the updated GR Yaris, likely arriving by the end of the year, will get the option of a new eight-speed automatic transmission, leaving the GR Corolla as the last manual-only Gazoo Racing product.
Self-shifting versions of the GR performance cars have been a hit among Australian buyers, accounting for over 50 percent of GR Supra and GR86 sales.
GR Corolla
Of the 1171 Supras sold, 963 were automatic, while 828 of the 1609 GR86 variants sold were optioned with an auto.
Those numbers bode well for the likelihood of a future auto GR Corolla, according to Toyota executives.
“If there is customer demand,” Toyota Gazoo Racing president Tomoya Takahashi replied when asked if an auto GR Corolla was on the cards.
“Based on the sales of the auto Supra and GR86, which represents over half of sales now, the data would indicate that people would gravitate towards that if it was available,” added Sean Hanley, the local vice president of sales, marketing and franchise operations.
GR Yaris
The GR Yaris and Corolla share the same turbocharged 1.6-litre three-cylinder engine, which produces 200kW and 370Nm in the smaller Yaris and 221kW and 370Nm in the Corolla.
Both cars also share an identical four-wheel drive system.
Developed for the revised GR Yaris, Toyota claims its new Toyota Gazoo Racing Direct Automatic transmission “offers broader appeal for driving enthusiasts… [and] has been developed through hardcore use in professional motorsport”.
A total of 813 GR Corollas have been sold in Australia since its arrival (to the end of April 2024), while 2591 manual versions of the GR Yaris – which launched here in 2020 – have found a home Down Under.
