Japanese hot-hatch is aimed at the BMW M2 CS and Audi RS 3 Competition Limited.
The new Toyota Corolla GRMN is a two-seater and track-ready weapon for fans of racing. Toyota Gazoo Racing has premiered the new GRMN Corolla .
GRMN stands for Gazoo Racing tuned by the Meister of Nürburgring and represents the ultimate, track-ready models that compete with the likes of the BMW M2 CS and Audi RS 3 Competition Limited. The GR Corolla GRMN was engineered and tested in the Super Taikyu, Japan’s premier endurance racing series that’s held on various circuits, including the Fuji Raceway, and which served as the launch pad for the hot new model.
Toyota and other Japanese manufacturers use the Super Taikyu as a laboratory to test new aerodynamics and engines. Toyota entered a hydrogen engine-powered GR Corolla in the series with learnings from that car used to craft the new Corolla GRMN.
Racing fanatic and Toyota global chair Akio Toyoda who raced under the “Morizo” pseudonym championed the new Gazoo Racing wing, insisting that if a car is going to bear the GRMN name it needs to be a car that can duly handle the Nürburgring. GRMN nameplates are produced in micro-batches, and Toyota hasn’t disclosed the production numbers of the high-performance Corolla.
Using the 2022 Yaris GRMN as a yardstick, expect around 500 units for the new Corolla GRMN that will be allocated to markets in the US, Japan and Australia. For the purposes of full-attack on race tracks, the new Corolla GRMN loses the family functionality of a five-seater hatch. The rear seats are replaced with a strut brace, reducing overall weight by 30kg and increasing body stability.
It’s only the driver and a side passenger that are accommodated on custom bucket seats in a still premium cabin featuring door trim, an Alumite Red shift knob, GRMN-exclusive serial number plate and an instrument panel bearing Morizo’s signature. The bodyshell is covered with new aerodynamic addenda and aggression that builds on the enhanced 2026 GR Corolla with reinforced body structure and a new cool-air duct that reduces the rise in intake air temperature during high-load driving.
The new GRMN has a carbon-fibre engine bonnet, front fenders and front side spoilers and a rear wing with angle adjustment mechanism. It’s available in exclusive Black Gravite body colour while a Gravel body paint will be made available in North America and Australia. Toyota South Africa is unable to confirm the local introduction of the GR Corolla GRMN at this stage. It benefits from dark Toyota emblems front and rear, including a GRMN exclusive emblem.
It rides on 18-inch matte bronze wheels shod with wider, higher-grip Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber hiding retuned shock absorbers, power steering and 4WD control.petrol engine mated to a six-speed manual transmission delivers 224kW and 415Nm, representing a 14kW and 15Nm increases over the base Corolla GR. The Corolla GRMN engine mapping is for greater mid-range acceleration out of corners, with even shorter gear ratios for the transmission and the model retains an intercooler spray system, in addition to the cool-air duct added to the 2026 GR Corolla.
Toyota had more GR Corolla content than the GRMN for visitors at Fuji raceway. Displayed alongside the sporting new debutant was the GR Corolla Morizo RR concept, a model that’s still in development as a higher-performing version of the five-seater GR Corolla. It’s also equipped with an automatic transmission and outputs 224kW/400Nm. The global company has not confirmed launch dates of the GR Corolla Morizo RR, and Toyota South Africa said it is not coming to this market.
Corolla GRMN Morizo Akio Toyoda Hatchback M2 CS Audi RS3 Racing Nürburgring Super Taikyu
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