2025 Toyota Corolla GR
The 2025 GR Corolla is what happens when Toyota’s Gazoo Racing team takes a sensible Corolla and gives it a wild alter ego. Think Dr. Jekyll to Mr Hyde. Sure, it shares DNA with the everyday Corolla, but this hot hatch is seriously juiced: a tougher body, a 300-horsepower turbo three-cylinder engine that snaps and growls its way to redline, all-wheel drive, short wheel base and a suspension that basically dares you to carve corners until they’re a blur in your rearview.
New this year, you can pair all that firepower with an eight-speed automatic if rowing your own gears isn’t your thing—though purists will tell you the six-speed manual is the real way to experience it. A sentiment I completely agree with. Toyota even gave the auto a launch mode, so either way, you’re locked and loaded for fun.
The GR badge is a big deal. Similar to a Type R or Nismo badge. With it comes a higher price tag and a build process handled at a special facility. It’s not exactly easy to find one sitting on a dealer lot, and haggling won’t be fun either. But once you get behind the wheel, you’ll see why it’s worth the chase. With performance that puts it right up against legends like the Civic Type R and Golf R, the GR Corolla isn’t just a Corolla—it’s a riot on four wheels.
Pop the hood on the GR Corolla and you’ll find a little monster borrowed from its overseas cousin, the GR Yaris. Only this time, Toyota cranked it up: 300 horsepower out of a three-cylinder, which works out to a wild 185 horses per liter. That’s 43 more ponies than the Yaris gets, plus torque is bumped to 295 lb-ft. In other words, this hatch is punching way above its weight.
For 2025, you still get the six-speed manual (with rev-match for smooth downshifts), but now there’s also an eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters if you prefer to let the car do some of the work. No matter which you pick, every GR Corolla comes with Toyota’s trick GR-Four all-wheel-drive system. It lets you dial in power delivery from a safe 60/40 everyday split to a tail-happy 30/70 for drifting, or even a 50/50 setup for max grip on track days.
Forget the regular Corolla—no SE or XSE even comes close to this level of fun. With upgraded suspension and that boosted powertrain, the GR Corolla has proper sport-compact chops. It clings to corners like crazy but still manages to be civil on daily drives. Sure, the pedal placement isn’t perfect for heel-toe wizardry, but the manual is still satisfying to row. And the automatic? By all accounts is surprisingly sharp, with quick shifts when you’re pushing it and a laid-back vibe when you’re just cruising.
Far from just a run-of-the-mill Corolla with a few performance mods bolted on and nicer rims. The Corolla GR is a purpose built, rally inspired blast to drive hard. Given its limited production, if you have the patience, persistence and luck to snatch one up, you’ll be constantly amazed by the amount of personality, performance and plain fun the Gazoo Racing team infused into the historically diminutive and unassuming little Toyota compact.
Starting MSRP: $39,160.00
