There’s an update coming for the Toyota GR Corolla, but existing owners could soon benefit from some new software and extra dollop of torque.
Toyota says it has stiffened the body and improved the air intake based on what it learnt from running the car in the Super Taikyu Series.
In order to improve body rigidity without increasing weight too much, Toyota has applied an extra 13.9 metres of structural adhesive throughout the body, bringing the total amount to 32.7 metres.
While the automaker doesn’t quantify how much body rigidity has been increased, it states the GR Corolla can now “achieve stable driving performance” on race tracks outside of Japan, which “typically generate more-intense vertical and lateral g-forces than circuits in Japan”.
A cool air duct, which draws air from the front of the grille, has been added to the secondary intake, and is opened automatically at high engine speeds in order to keep the motor output steady even under sustained hard use.
Output from the 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine is unchanged at 221kW and 400Nm. As before all of that fury is channel to all four wheels via either a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission.
To complement the performance upgrades, there’s also an update for the optional JBL premium sound system. It gains a subwoofer, and Active Sound Control (ASC), which outputs “sporty sounds” through speakers to match the engine and throttle situation.
ASC even includes fake burbling noises, and three different selectable sound profiles. In order to keep purists on side, ASC defaults to being off.
Japanese buyers can just rock up to a dealership to buy the GR Corolla, as they no longer need to apply via an online lottery.
The order book for the updated GR Corolla is now open in Japan, with sales set to formally commence on November 3. We’ll keep you posted when we find out Australian availability and timing.
There’s also some good news for existing GR Corolla owners with the lower output 370Nm engine. These cars are eligible for a software upgrade that will bump torque output up to 400Nm, as well as change the torque split settings, with the Race mode going from a fixed 50:50 front-to-rear setup to a user-adjustable setting that spans 60:40 to 30:70.
The software upgrade will be available from the third quarter of 2026, although pricing has yet to be confirmed.
If the standard GR Corolla tickles your fancy, but doesn’t offer quite enough petrol-fuelled insanity, Toyota is working on a hotter GRMN version, images of which leaked earlier this week.