Is Toyota building a hotter version of GR Yaris?

It looks like Toyota is working a more powerful version of the GR Yaris

We've already seen (and felt) how capable Toyota's newest hot hatch is on the track. When our editor-in-chief Vince Pornelos drove the GR Yaris on Clark International Speedway a couple of weeks ago, he was impressed by its handling and potent turbocharged 1.6 engine. It's clear that Toyota did its homework in making the GR Yaris a fun-to-drive rally machine for the road.

But it seems Toyota is already cooking up an even more capable version of the GR Yaris. Spotted recently at the Nurburgring is what appears to be a prototype of a more track-focused variant of the hot hatch. Unlike the standard GR Yaris, this particular model has additional bits of aero such as canards on the front bumper, vents on the front fenders, and a larger rear wing.

The prototype also wore the camouflaged side sills and features an interesting setup at the rear. We're not entirely sure why Toyota did this, but it is perhaps to test if their design is actually helping the car aerodynamically. There's also the matter of the mismatched wheels, both of which are different from the standard and High Performance variants. This could indicate that Gazoo Racing intends to use a different set of wheels for the track-focused version of the GR Yaris.

Under the hood, we expect it to have the 1.6-liter turbocharged inline-three dubbed the G16E-GTS. On this particular model, the engine could produce more power and torque compared to stock. For reference, the engine already makes 272 PS and 370 Nm of torque. Power is then sent to a six-speed manual gearbox and a rally-inspired all-wheel-drive system.

If this souped-up version of the GR Yaris is the real deal, it could make over 300 PS and more than 400 Nm of torque and pack more aero. Should that be the case, it could give other hot hatchbacks like the Civic Type R a run for their money. But since we have no idea what this GR Yaris is (or when it will be revealed), all we can do for now is wait.

Source: Carscoops