This GR Yaris Jr has the heart of a Kawasaki superbike

University students built this mini GR Yaris from a Toyota iQ

The Nihon Automobile College or NATS wasn’t the only school that had a crazy display at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon. The students over at the Saitama Institute of Automotive Technology also created something as wild as the 5-door Jimny.

Meet the Yaris Jr. It may look like a scaled-down GR Yaris, but look closely and see how small it is in comparison to the standard hot hatchback. By now, you can tell it’s not your typical GR Yaris. Instead, it’s a Toyota iQ (same as the Aston Martin Cygnet) but with the front and rear end of Toyota’s homologation model grafted on. In addition, the team at Saijidai even gave the Yaris Jr proper wide fenders similar to the GR Yaris. A set of Work wheels and a carbon fiber hood complete the iQ’s exterior transformation.

They didn’t stop with just redesigning the exterior, though. The iQ’s original 1.3-liter mill was ditched in favor of a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R’s 1,440cc engine that produces 200 PS and 163 Nm torque. But rather than fitting it in the engine bay, they decided to mount it in the rear, where second-row occupants would normally sit. Though it wasn’t mentioned, photos show what looks like a sequential gearbox powering the rear wheels. Interestingly, the exhausts exit where the rear quarter glass used to be.

The Yaris Jr may not have the GR Yaris’ all-wheel-drive system or the 1.6-liter turbo inline-three, but we suspect it still be fun to drive. Considering its short wheelbase, its lightweight frame, and the Kawasaki superbike engine, we can only imagine how it will handle on the road and on the track.