Toyota has priced up its homologation special Yaris GR and it's less than everyone expected. There will be two specifications in the UK, comprising the (for want of a much better word) plain GR Yaris and then the GR Yaris Circuit Pack; the former starts at £29,995, the latter £33,495. Now, in a world where the class-leading B-segment hot hatch, the Ford Fiesta ST, is only £25,500 with every possible option box ticked and the blinding C-segment Honda Civic Type R is in the same cash ballpark as the GR, it might look a lot. It looks like even more if you simply boil it all down and say 'it's a 30-grand Yaris, for crying out loud', but all of these viewpoints would be seriously underselling precisely what Toyota has launched here. The spec of the GR is truly mouth-watering - it has a bespoke chassis and drivetrain, input from the Tommi Mäkinen Racing WRC team and a 261hp turbocharged three-cylinder 1.6-litre engine which'll fling it to 62mph from rest in less than 5.5 seconds - and the mere use of the word 'homologation' gets true petrolheads' eyes involuntarily twitching and breathlessly mumbling the phrase 'future classic in the making'. So, with exact equipment levels and further details on this madcap, muscular little Toyota still to be set in stone, for now you can register your interest in the Yaris GR with a 'keep me informed' service on the toyota.co.uk website, with the order books opening later in the year. First deliveries to customers are expected from November 2020. We simply cannot wait to drive this thing, because if it follows in the tyre-treads of the GT86 and Supra, then the Yaris GR promises to be an incredibly special little car indeed.

Matt Robinson - 5 Mar 2020