GR Corolla - Is it Worth it??

The GR Corolla rips! It’s an awesome AWD hot-hatch that turns regular roads into pump tracks. The only knock against it is (sigh)… high prices & low inventory. So dear Toyota, please find a way to bring the price down, & the availability up on this modern legend. I understand all the unfortunate market circumstances of the last 4 years. And we’re grateful you found a way to push the GR Corolla through in spite of them. But I’m telling you on behalf of all of us: You have more money than us Toyota lol… & groceries are expensive. Bring the price down. And be the hero we need. You’re the #1 automaker worldwide. You sold over 10 million vehicles last year. You’ll be fine. Because here’s the big picture…

With the GR Corolla’s high price, low inventory, and dealer markup challenges…

It set the stage for nit-picky criticisms… rather than the overwhelming embracement it deserves. And that’s not what we need. It’s like this though: The GR Corolla is an epic hot-hatch. But it’s not an undeniable value. And that’s currently the Achilles’ heel. We need value back in cool new cars. Toyota = value. And of all performance cars in this world, something like a GR Corolla needs to boast indisputable, incomparable bang for the buck.

The GR Corolla is not a big-profit, bread-&-butter car…

It’s a flex. The GR Corolla carries the torch, and shows the young world that cars can be so much more than castrated, automated ‘mobility’ (I hate that damn word). But if there’s a cost barrier… then the young world has no clue what they’re missing. And that’s why I get passionately frustrated that more people don’t get the chance to experience something like the GR Corolla. The price needs to come down, more of them need to be made, and Toyota needs to see this as a longterm investment into their own exciting future & brand image.

GR Corolla all-wheel-drive system…

The GR-Four all-wheel-drive system is what sets the GR Corolla apart. It’s the #1 party trick. GR-Four is Toyota’s a full-time AWD system that also allows you to dial-in the percentage of power it delivers to the front-versus-rear wheels (60/40, 30/70, etc). Being able to put the power down HARD off a stop light, u-turn, or tight corner in a hot-hatch… ignites raw sensations of performance that’ll never go out of style. Especially when it comes with heavy Gs & the full brain/body engagement of a stick shift. Also on the more practical & safety-conscious side, the GR Corolla did great when the weather wasn’t.

The GR Corolla’s turbocharged 3-cylinder engine…

The turbo-3 is a common topic of discussion, and here’s how I felt it from the driver’s seat. Honestly, it didn’t feel like anything super foreign or alien. It pretty much felt like a turbo 4-cylinder. The G16E-GTS engine makes good power & feels light, quick, & snappy – no issues there. However, it doesn’t rev to the moon or sound super-intoxicating like a rotary or vtec or some wound-out street bike… if that’s what you’re thinking. Exhaust systems have become so trick & complicated, that it’s hard to know what’s real anymore. But with the stock GR exhaust, the 3-cylinder G16 Toyota engine sounds good at idle… almost slightly lumpy like a boxer. On the road, you can hear engaging blow-offs & turbo spools. And obviously, a car like this is begging for mods, so it’s only gonna get better. 100hp per cylinder is impressive. I’ll be honest though, it doesn’t feel quite like a 300hp car to me (granted, the summer temps were hot & humid). Again it’s a pricing game. At $30,000 for example, the turbo-3 is cool, scrappy, & exciting… like a jet ski on the streets. But when the price creeps to $45,000+ it’s kinda hmmm.

GR Corolla aesthetics…

The GR Corolla is a rowdy AWD hot-hatch… therefore a little bit of proportional chonkiness is part of the appeal. The optional forged carbon fiber roof on this Circuit Edition is probably the #2 party trick in the real world. I found myself hoping people would notice it in parking lots & wanna talk about it. To my dismay… they didn’t lol. I also really enjoy the Circuit Edition’s bulged/vented hood and juiced-up rear wing. But at the $45,000 best-case scenario for the Circuit Edition, there’s also the case for buying the blanker-canvas, base-model Core GR Corolla (at 36k, if you can find it)… and just doing your own aero-mods in the aftermarket.

Interior of the GR Corolla…

The interior is what you’d expect – ‘Corolla stuff’ but with much better seats, accents, dials, & a wicked manual trans. Toyota’s starting to go a little overboard all the safety warnings & dash notifications though. There’s no fiber of my being that wants my GR Corolla to mom me. For example, don’t even think about going down your own driveway without a seatbelt on, because the car will legit scream at you. Turn the car off with the windows down, and oh, it’ll let you know. And get this: When you start the GR Corolla, there’s frequently a warning on the dash that says AVOID EXCESSIVE ACCELERATION DUE TO TEMPERATURE. Nothing will make you feel like you bought the wrong sports car more than that nanny nonsense. It’s just the wrong approach. Instead, flip the script & make it say something like TEMPERATURES STABILIZED – GO BABY GO!!

The GR Corolla is a thrilling addiction…

But is it worth it? I mean hell yes! As a whole, the GR Corolla is absolutely worth it. Like I mentioned earlier, the car’s a modern legend. Enjoy these moments. Why wait 20 years to get one?! PS: It’ll probably cost this much even then lol. The GR Corolla will always hold an aura of desire & esteem. Generally speaking though, I get it, the price kind of kills the enthusiasm. It hit me sitting at a red-light: The GR Corolla’s issue is that it falls just out of reach of its ideal customer pool. With the price/inventory/markup issues – the people it’s truly best suited for, can’t afford it (and/or have more pressing expenses). And the people who can afford it… don’t want a $45,000 Corolla. Just think of the impact this car could make if it was $26,000. Hell, put crank windows and a single-din radio in it for all I care lol. I don’t ever plan on rolling them up anyway.