You noticed it quietly previewed on the 2024 Kuala Lumpur Worldwide Mobility Present (KLIMS) final month, and right here’s the Toyota GR Yaris facelift once more, this time formally launched in Malaysia on the Toyota Gazoo Racing Season 7 finale, occurring right now on the Petronas Sepang Worldwide Circuit. The automotive on stage at SIC right now is similar purple one at KLIMS.
New to this minor change, which was unveiled a 12 months in the past on the Tokyo Auto Salon, is an eight-speed computerized choice, however the 8AT is not being launched but – for now, it’s simply the six-speed guide going for RM315,600 on the street with out insurance coverage. By the way in which, the pre-facelift 6MT was launched right here in December 2020 for RM300k.
Surfacing 4 years after the rally-bred hatchback first surfaced at TAS, the facelift’s main factors are the aforementioned 8AT, extra energy and torque and a brand new driver-angled cockpit/revised driving place.
Beforehand manual-only, the GR Yaris can now be had with an eight-speed auto referred to as the Gazoo Racing Direct Automated Transmission, which has “transmission pace and reliability that may be loved by a variety of individuals,” TGR says. We perceive that UMW Toyota Motor can be introducing the automated GR Yaris additional down the road as allocations can be found. As you’ll be able to think about, all the world has been ready for an auto GRY so it’s fairly tight now.
Gearbox apart, there’s extra energy and torque from the G16E-GTS – 300 PS and 400 Nm is a rise of 39 PS and 40 Nm from the European-spec engine in our official pre-facelift import by UMWT. The JDM pre-minor change had 272 PS and 370 Nm.
The upper engine output and the supply of the auto gearbox requires improved cooling efficiency, so an ATF cooler comes customary on auto vehicles. As well as, a sub-radiator, cool air consumption and intercooler spray are actually out there as a factory-installed Cooling Package deal choice.
New to the GR Yaris is Drive Mode Choose, the place the digital energy steering, aircon and powertrain modifications in line with Sport, Regular or Eco mode. Sport will get a special gauge cluster design too. The 4WD mode choice perform stays as it’s.
The modifications go as deep because the physique shell. The variety of bolts fastening the physique to the shock absorbers has been elevated from one to a few to suppress alignment modifications throughout driving, thereby growing the responsiveness of the car to steering enter, bettering dealing with stability. The crew additionally elevated the variety of spot welding factors by round 13% and expanded the areas the place structural adhesive is utilized by roughly 24% – this improves physique rigidity, which ends up in higher dealing with and trip consolation.
The GR Yaris will be maxed out on observe with the Circuit Mode, which incorporates anti-lag management (managed turbo lag discount to enhance acceleration response throughout re-acceleration), leisure of the pace limiter, max engine fan output and a shift timing indicator.
On to cosmetics. Maybe not the perfect phrase as modifications to the GR Yaris’ exterior are useful. Up entrance, the decrease grille encompasses a metal mesh that’s skinny and light-weight however nonetheless sturdy (GR-FOUR clearly seen), and the edges of the decrease entrance bumper have a brand new separable construction. The latter makes restoration and alternative work simpler.
You’ll additionally discover bigger openings right here for higher cooling, and to the edges, there are retailers to exhaust warmth from the sub-radiator and ATF cooler. A gap on the decrease fringe of the rear decrease garnish permits air from beneath the ground to flee, which reduces drag and permits warmth from the muffler to flee.
Even the cue that we thought was aesthetic – the brand new tail lamp cluster with full-width LED signatures – isn’t what it appears. TGR says that the higher and decrease rear lamps have been consolidated to keep away from harm and enhance visibility, whereas the third brake gentle has been separated from the rear spoiler, growing the wing’s customisability. Did you discover that there’s no Toyota emblem on the rear now?
The inside modifications are extra vital than on the skin, and whereas it’s not fairly (jogs my memory of a bus, what do you suppose?), the brand new cockpit is claimed to be race automotive impressed, particularly by Tremendous Taikyu Collection and Japanese Rally Championship machines. The centre stack has been tilted 15 levels in the direction of the motive force for enhanced visibility and operability – issues are nearer to the motive force now.
The latter has additionally been improved by the use of elevating the shift lever 75 mm in comparison with the present CVT-equipped GR Yaris RS and inserting it in the identical place because the shift lever on the guide model. Even the automated model will get a hand brake as an alternative of the standard digital parking brake.
Additionally very racing is the brand new 12.3-inch color instrument panel. For the auto variant, along with an computerized transmission oil temperature show, a visible warning has been added to the gear place show to reinforce the traditional sound-only alarm, which is to inform the motive force that downshifting just isn’t attainable as a consequence of overly excessive rpms.
Final however undoubtedly not least, as we felt the unique driving place was comparatively excessive for a sports activities automotive, driving posture has been improved by decreasing the driving place by 25 mm, with corresponding decreasing of the steering wheel place. Additionally, ahead visibility has been expanded by shifting the rearview mirror to the highest of the windshield and decreasing the higher fringe of the centre cluster by 50 mm.
The 2025 GR Yaris is offered in 4 colors, together with the brand new Treasured Steel. The newest (third) model the Toyota Security Sense driver help pack is included by the way in which, so this rally-bred beast is a protected each day too.
As soon as once more, the 2025 Toyota GR Yaris facelift 6MT is yours for RM315,600 OTR earlier than insurance coverage. No scarcity of small however vital modifications – what do you consider this critical efficiency machine that has obtained much more critical? And now that we all know an computerized is offered and coming quickly, will you be ready for that or it’ll be three pedals all the way in which?
GALLERY: Toyota GR Yaris facelift in Malaysia
GALLERY: Toyota GR Yaris facelift at Tokyo Auto Salon 2024
GALLERY: Toyota GR Yaris facelift official photos
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