Toyota GR Yaris GT: Our verdict on the hot hatch's fifth-year facelift

Can you believe that it’s been five years since the Toyota GR Yaris burst onto the scene?

Toyota’s rally-derived hot hatch was a big moment as it had not made a turbocharged four-wheel drive performance car for more than 20 years.

It also arrived with a bang: $39,950 drive away for the first 1000 units, a bespoke body and a new engine that was one of the most powerful three-cylinder units ever. Thanks to its talent, more than 40,000 have been sold globally.

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Now it’s time for an update, with the GR Yaris undergoing a thorough facelift to make it even sharper and more appealing. Has Toyota done enough to keep it relevant?

For starters, it costs more now: beginning at $55,490 plus on-road costs for the GT, with the upper-spec GTS with the new eight-speed automatic transmission hitting almost $70,000 drive away – or not far off double the cost of the first 1000 units in Australia.

Standard equipment on the GT includes 18-inch Enkei wheels, Dunlop tyres, a 12.3-inch digital driver’s display, an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, heated sports front seats, an eight-speaker JBL sound system and active safety features like AEB, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assistance and a reversing camera.

The $5000-more expensive GTS further adds 18-inch BBS wheels with Michelin tyres, front and rear Torsen limited-slip differentials, different suspension tuning, additional cooling, and an intercooler water spray function.

Changes to the pre-updated GR Yaris include higher outputs – 200kW/370Nm to 221kW/400Nm – a new clutch, a stiffer body, uprated suspension mounts and changes to the all-wheel drive system such as revised torque splitting so that it’s even sharper than before.

Toyota has fitted a new dashboard with a 50mm-lower dashboard panel, a 25mm-lower driver’s seat and a raised rear mirror for increased visibility. In this sense, the brand should be commended for not resting on its laurels and attempting to make one of the best hot hatches ever even better.

The new dashboard is made of mostly hard plastic but it is quite functional and even angled towards the driver. The new touchscreen is a big improvement on the previous 7.0-inch unit thanks to a brighter screen and new software. Plus the new 12.3-inch digital driver’s display is also much better versus the previous analogue set up. And while it’s a bit finicky to switch through the menus, the graphics are configurable and crisp.

As before, the GR Yaris’ cabin is not that practical – there’s no centre armrest or closed storage, while the bottle holders in the doors and cup holders in the centre console are small. There is a tray with a USB-C port on the left-hand side of the dashboard, though it’s not rubberised. The back seat and the boot are also small, the latter with just 174L of space, though the seats fold flat if needed. The 12V battery is located underneath the boot floor, so there’s no spare wheel.

But it’s a rally car for the road, so who cares about the modest practicality when you’re testing its limits on a good piece of road, right? Even without the GTS’ trick LSDs, the GR Yaris is genuinely exciting to drive.

The improved clutch has made it easier to handle in traffic as well, though it still feels like a motorsports clutch with a largely on or off feeling. The gearbox is not Mazda sharp, but it’s effective, and the extra grunt may have only improved the 0-100km/h sprint by 0.1 seconds but you can feel it particularly in the mid-range.

There’s plenty of induction noise and a lot of mechanical feel through the controls to remind you of its mission, while both steering and brake feel is sharp. The ride can also be sharp, but it’s still relatively comfortable for day-to-day use. The handling? Sublime – it just grips and grips, and if you want more tail out action, switch the mode to Track and the rear now handles 70 per cent of the torque. It’s a very impressive car to drive.

Trust Toyota to save the day for the performance car… again. As before, the GR Yaris remains one of the most fun and engaging cars on the market but has been further improved. The revised cabin has made it easier to see out of, the handling is even better and thanks to more grunt, it’s even faster as well.

It’s still not that practical and it’s expensive to run, but when you’re on a twisty bit of road, all is forgiven. That’s only the GT as well, with the more focused GTS likely even better. If you’re looking for a go-fast way to spend $70,000, the GR Yaris should be your first stop.

Specifications

This article originally appeared in the June 2025 issue of Wheels magazine. Subscribe here.