Yaris GR Sport announced

[Devon Aygo]

New GR Sport trim to be introduced, even mentions a 1.5 Petrol Manual version:

https://mag.toyota.co.uk/yaris-gr-sport/

[forkingabout]

If Toyota get the UK spec / options list right, I could be placing an order as a small car would suit me perfectly.

Another Toyota press release I've seen only mentions hybrid power for UK.

https://media.toyota.co.uk/yaris-gr-sport-joins-toyotas-award-winning-family/

[TonyHSD]

That’s a good one , a bit of confusion info on their site as saying hybrid but with manual transmission, obviously it will be the same power train as current Yaris but with sportier suspension, wheels and styling. Not bad though 👌

[forkingabout]

Be interested to see final UK equipment specs / optional extras when there finally confirmed / announced.

If you can have all the equipment / options from the Excel but in a GR Sport wrapping that would suit me.

[Cyker]

I wonder how many people are going to get this confused with the GR Yaris  

Now I know why Toyota were so insistent journos called it the GR Yaris and not the Yaris GR!

[GR Weasel]

feel like its going to be a labelled as a poor mans GR yaris lol, im guessing its will be a similar price to the excel model, just more "sporty"

[forkingabout]

12 hours ago, GR Weasel said:

feel like its going to be a labelled as a poor mans GR yaris lol, im guessing its will be a similar price to the excel model, just more "sporty"

 

Its just a similar idea to Peugeot GT Line & Ford ST line trim's - sporty looks but comes with sensible power unit & insurance which is cheap enough for the youth. 

There's already GR Sport trims in the C-HR & Corolla ranges so the Yaris was bound to be given the same treatment. 

[Bomber209]

Hi All,

We just picked up a Yaris GR Hybrid. It doesn't have any extra power. It's basically a upgrade in looks. 18" low profiles make it a bit hard, but the rest is OK. Racing seats , leather/alcantara. It seems a lot quieter than our old Icon Brakes seem better also. The Badge on front/rear and steering wheel nice for resale. It seems to be a facelift rather than anything, Haven't tried the ICE model.

[davidg88]

On 3/3/2022 at 2:03 PM, Bomber209 said:

Hi All,

We just picked up a Yaris GR Hybrid. It doesn't have any extra power. It's basically a upgrade in looks. 18" low profiles make it a bit hard, but the rest is OK. Racing seats , leather/alcantara. It seems a lot quieter than our old Icon Brakes seem better also. The Badge on front/rear and steering wheel nice for resale. It seems to be a facelift rather than anything, Haven't tried the ICE model.

Hi Bomber,

Very much considering one of these as I love the sporty looks, whilst retaining the overall economy via the 1.5.  I have a lot of questions for you if you would be so kind!!!

-  Did you manage to test drive one and did Toyota offer much % discount (if any?).

-  Annoyingly, it's not listed on Carwow to assist with discounting etc!  I also feared the ride may be harsh, is it really *that* hard or is it ok? 

-  Refinement:  You kindly advise it's quieter than your old Icon model, but what's it like at motorway speeds - hopefully not noisy?  Can you set 'Comfort/Sport' suspension modes?  I test drove a basic Yaris Icon about a month ago but didn't have enough test drive time to take it on the motorway.  Around London at 20-30mph it was extremely refined/quiet but motorway/dual c/way speeds is key...

With best wishes (and thanks in advance).

David

[Cyker]

The suspension is fixed so no sport/comfort settings for it.

Don't have a GR, but my Excel came with 17" rims and I found them very noisy on the motorway, esp. on e.g. the concrete slab sections of the M25.

They also transmitted lots of small bumps, e.g. the expansion gaps in the concrete slabs.  The Mk4's suspension is very well set up, and can take speed humps and such without slamming your backside through your spine, but it isn't so good for small high-frequency bumps which go right through.

Since I went to 15" steelies it's made the whole ride quieter and smoother.

I imagine the 18's would improve steering feel as the 15's are a bit woolly even compared to the 17's, but with the electric power steering I wasn't getting a huge amount of feedback to begin with!

Just bear in mind that the tyres for the 18's are really expensive and will be very prone to pinch punctures - There's no way I would go near them with the amount of potholes where I drive for work!

 

[davidg88]

10 hours ago, Cyker said:

The suspension is fixed so no sport/comfort settings for it.

Don't have a GR, but my Excel came with 17" rims and I found them very noisy on the motorway, esp. on e.g. the concrete slab sections of the M25.

They also transmitted lots of small bumps, e.g. the expansion gaps in the concrete slabs.  The Mk4's suspension is very well set up, and can take speed humps and such without slamming your backside through your spine, but it isn't so good for small high-frequency bumps which go right through.

Since I went to 15" steelies it's made the whole ride quieter and smoother.

I imagine the 18's would improve steering feel as the 15's are a bit woolly even compared to the 17's, but with the electric power steering I wasn't getting a huge amount of feedback to begin with!

Just bear in mind that the tyres for the 18's are really expensive and will be very prone to pinch punctures - There's no way I would go near them with the amount of potholes where I drive for work!

 

Cyker,

Many thanks for your feedback on the Excel.  Before I rather impulsively started jumping on the GR Sport 1.5 bandwagon, CarWow was well utilised pricing up the Excel!  Very good points re potholes and replacement tyre price.  I assume there's no hope of requesting smaller - say 16" - wheels at point of sale either!  

That said, I currently drive a 2009 Toyota Aygo 'Black Edition' which is shockingly awful, deafening and entirely unrefined, so I wonder whether in the grand scheme of things, if I did bite the bullet and purchase the Sport GR or Excel, it'll be so vastly improved it'll feel like luxury to me compared! 😂. I don't know... I'd love a mild hybrid but there's not many good alternatives.  I've heard the Jazz's are good but I'm saying this on a Toyota forum ...  Yaris is my 1st choice though as 90% of the time I'll be nipping about in London, with the occasional 50 mile trip outside (and on the M25).

 

 

Thanks again.  

[FROSTYBALLS]

16 minutes ago, davidg88 said:

I've heard the Jazz's are good but I'm saying this on a Toyota forum

At the end of the day, you buy what you like and what suits your needs. So if you prefer the Jazz or whatever, it is your choice.

[Cyker]

The current Jazz Hybrid is a very strong competitor to the Mk4 Yaris hybrid.

I was seriously considering one, as the interior is superior and much more 'Yarisy', in terms of storage and esp. rear seat flexibility (Something I do miss in the Mk4 that the Mk2 and Mk1 had!)

It's capable of similar mpg's to the Yaris, but what swung it for me is I really wanted the HUD and digital dash in the Yaris, and also the handling of the Jazz is nowhere near as good - the Yaris just feels nicer to drive (Very subjective tho'!)

Unless you have a very good dealer, they almost certainly won't let you downgrade to 16" rims, although you can do what I did and just order them separately via the parts department and have them fitted, maybe at a discount if you're an expert haggler! You'll need to get tyres and also get the TPMS sensors swapped over (I was going to get a new set but they are eye-wateringly expensive from Toyota; Cost nearly as much as the rims and tyres together!!).

That's what I did when I went from 17" rims to 15" steelies (Went steel for cost and insurance reasons, and also so I wouldn't get so anxious about kerbing them!). 

[Catlover]

8 hours ago, davidg88 said:

Cyker,

Many thanks for your feedback on the Excel.  Before I rather impulsively started jumping on the GR Sport 1.5 bandwagon, CarWow was well utilised pricing up the Excel!  Very good points re potholes and replacement tyre price.  I assume there's no hope of requesting smaller - say 16" - wheels at point of sale either!  

It is not a option. Best you can do is do a deal with the dealer to change the wheels/tyres to what you want. It will cost you due to the dealer having to pass on a set of wheels.

[FROSTYBALLS]

19 minutes ago, Catlover said:

I assume there's no hope of requesting smaller - say 16" - wheels at point of sale either!  

Also you will have to notify your insurer as it will be a change the standard spec of the vehicle (eg GR Sport), and may be counted as a modification. Doesn't matter if this size is available as an option, as an accessory or on other specs of the Yaris.

[Cyker]

Yeah, that's why i went with steel rims; If you go to smaller alloys, even Toyota ones, a lot of insurers will try and charge you extra.

You can try to argue with them, as a lot of them state that only modifications that increase the value of the car must be declared, and you can argue that going to smaller rims will decrease the value of the car and shouldn't incur extra charges, but still make them make a note of it so it's on their system so they can't cry ignorance later.

With steels, none of them were able to even try to charge me as it turns out none of the insurers have an options for smaller steel rims   (Still had a few try to list them as an alloy change tho', nice try but no cigar for them!) 

So they just made a note of it on the system, but no further charges incurred!

[davidg88]

10 hours ago, Cyker said:

Yeah, that's why i went with steel rims; If you go to smaller alloys, even Toyota ones, a lot of insurers will try and charge you extra.

You can try to argue with them, as a lot of them state that only modifications that increase the value of the car must be declared, and you can argue that going to smaller rims will decrease the value of the car and shouldn't incur extra charges, but still make them make a note of it so it's on their system so they can't cry ignorance later.

With steels, none of them were able to even try to charge me as it turns out none of the insurers have an options for smaller steel rims   (Still had a few try to list them as an alloy change tho', nice try but no cigar for them!) 

So they just made a note of it on the system, but no further charges incurred!

That's brilliant. 

I previously was interested in the Excel but those cream seats/dash! 😩⛔. Not for me.

I contacted my local dealer today who advised they are awaiting delivery of their display Sport GR model (in May!) and are yet to receive the specifications.  Not in a hurry but to be honest, despite the 18" rims giving a bumpier ride, i expect it'll be 100x better than my current 2009 Aygo, so I'm happy to hold on tight.

[Cyker]

Yeah, I wasn't too keen on the light interior but wanted the HUD more! I've gotten used to it, and it does lighten the cabin a bit, but it does mark a lot more visibly than the dark interior; I'm always having to clean scuff marks off the fake leather centre arm rest!

I think it'd definitely be worth getting a few test drives done in cars with different-sized rims just to see what the ride and NVH is like (Or you can try and get a test drive in a normal 16" rim'd Yaris and then see if you can scam you way into a GR4 Yaris to test the 18's   That last one might be tricky tho' - I'm not sure if any dealers still have any GR4s left!)

 

[davidg88]

33 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Yeah, I wasn't too keen on the light interior but wanted the HUD more! I've gotten used to it, and it does lighten the cabin a bit, but it does mark a lot more visibly than the dark interior; I'm always having to clean scuff marks off the fake leather centre arm rest!

I think it'd definitely be worth getting a few test drives done in cars with different-sized rims just to see what the ride and NVH is like (Or you can try and get a test drive in a normal 16" rim'd Yaris and then see if you can scam you way into a GR4 Yaris to test the 18's   That last one might be tricky tho' - I'm not sure if any dealers still have any GR4s left!)

 

Haha the beasty GR Yaris is wasted on me on London 20mph zones but would be seriously cool to test one on the motorway 🤣. Was devastated to sell my MX5 before covid (and coincidentally just as I moved to London) and miss having a reason to smile when I drive!  I find my 2009 Aygo terrifying.  Terrible headlights, refinement and gets blown about by the strong winds like no tomorrow!!!  I've tested a Dynamic model before which I thought was brilliant, albeit not tried at motorway speeds yet.  Motorway 'works' bumps aside, do you find the refinement good on the motorway overall?  

[Cyker]

Aww man that sucks; I'm more in the MR2 camp but I do like the MX5s as well - A really fun car, esp. on twisty country roads! The new one looks gorgeous too - A rare thing as a lot of modern interpretations of cool cars seem to be designed by people who don't understand what made them good in the first place!

The Aygo isn't too bad - It's very light and you can really fling it round corners, but it is definitely more at home in the city and more fun on a country lane than on a motorway!! I just didn't like how hard I had to rev it to make it move, and I can't believe they still haven't fixed the stupidly high biting point of the clutch in the new one!

The Mk4 Yaris is a lot heavier than the Aygo and you really feel it in the corners, but they've done some kind of voodoo to it to keep the handling so it's still quite fun to fling down a country road, but if you just want to go from A to B on the motorway it's great for that to (esp. as it can drive and steer itself!  ), and it hauls like a diesel (At least before the traction Battery drops too low!) which makes it feel a lot more powerful than it actually is  

Motorway-wise, honestly, on stock rubber and 17" rims it was not great; On the tarmac sections it was tolerable but on rough surfaces like the sand-coloured concrete slab sections with the expansion gaps it was pretty horrible. Lot of high frequency road noise and you could really feel the buh-dum-buh-dum of the expansion gaps. The Mk4's suspension is a bit weird - It can take a speed hump at 30mph but small sharp bumps just go right through it and up your arse!

When I went to 15" rims, the noise frequency on the motorway was noticeably lower, so easier to tune out, and the bigger sidewalls helped filter out those small sharp bumps. It does make the steering more vague tho' (I literally can't tell if the car is understeering through the steering wheel   ).

A lot of people reckon 16" is the sweet spot for this car and I'd tend to agree - I suspect it's a good middle ground in terms of NVH and steering feel.

[AlJ]

Yaris GR Sport is now on Toyota's UK website. 

[davidg88]

On 3/15/2022 at 2:47 AM, AlJ said:

Yaris GR Sport is now on Toyota's UK website. 

It is here:

https://www.toyota.co.uk/new-cars/yaris/yaris-hybrid-gr-sport-retail-offer

But it's very limited - i.e. there's no specification/brochure...

18" Black-machined-face alloys wheels (10-spoke)

GR SPORT suspension tuning

Smart Entry & Push-button start

Front sports seats

...but nothing else illustrated!

 

 

 

 

[Ian saunders]

The new Mazda 2 which is a Yaris, is coming with 15" wheels on two of its models - maybe a option . 

[flash22]

On 3/17/2022 at 10:59 PM, davidg88 said:

It is here:

https://www.toyota.co.uk/new-cars/yaris/yaris-hybrid-gr-sport-retail-offer

But it's very limited - i.e. there's no specification/brochure...

18" Black-machined-face Alloys wheels (10-spoke)

GR SPORT suspension tuning

Smart Entry & Push-button start

Front sports seats

...but nothing else illustrated!

 

 

 

 

Options are in the price list https://www.toyota.co.uk/download/cms/gben/010510_VPL_CVPL_MAR_66_PAGES_tcm-3060-602975.pdf

Spec wise it will be "in addition to the Design" spec, seats are the same as the Excel but black cloth

[davidg88]

23 hours ago, flash22 said:

Options are in the price list https://www.toyota.co.uk/download/cms/gben/010510_VPL_CVPL_MAR_66_PAGES_tcm-3060-602975.pdf

Spec wise it will be "in addition to the Design" spec, seats are the same as the Excel but black cloth

Thanks for this - v. helpful!  It's totally bizarre how many of the options (protection + & chrome packs for example) are stated on the price list yet not mentioned under the 'build/configure' section of their website!  Also, v. strange they give the option of 17" wheels yet they come with 18" as default. Very odd!  Seems Toyota aren't checking their specs properly...

 

Also, hoping CarWow add it to their quote list too!