Toyota Yaris GRMN (2018 – 2020) Review

The Japanese brand decided to launch its performance GRMN line-up with the humble Toyota Yaris, albeit a version fitted with a Lotus Elise-spec 1.8-litre supercharged engine with 212PS. It makes the Toyota Yaris GRMN a superb, if rare, rival to the likes of the Hyundai i20 N, sweet handling Ford Fiesta ST and Germany’s Volkswagen Polo GTI. Read on for our full Toyota Yaris GRMN review.

There were a number of strong candidate cars to launch with when Toyota decided to unleash GRMN, its Gazoo Racing tuning sub-brand in Europe.

What about the Toyota GT86, a thrilling rear-wheel-drive driver’s car that was desperate for more power? Or surely the Toyota Supra would have been the perfect contender for transforming the firm’s far-from-exciting image?

Instead, Toyota saw Europe’s thriving hot hatch market and decided the perfect car to grab the attention of enthusiasts was a small car more closely associated with reliability and sensibleness, the humble Toyota Yaris.

Badged GRMN (or Gazoo Racing tuned by the Meister of the Nurburgring, to give it its full ridiculous name), the souped-up model features a 1.8-litre supercharged petrol engine that Toyota had been building for a number of years on behalf of Lotus.

Yes, the Toyota Yaris GRMN shares an engine with the Lotus Elise, which produces 212PS and 249Nm of torque, taking the feisty hot hatch to 62mph from standstill in 6.3 seconds.

A bespoke centre exit exhaust mimics that of the WRC Yaris rally car, while Sachs performance suspension means it’s lower and stiffer than a standard Toyota Yaris used car choice.

Beefier brakes ensure it can lose speed as rapidly as it gains it, while forged 17-inch BBS alloys look the part as well as save weight. Further cosmetic upgrades include the (removable) red and black decals , while a hefty rear wing shouts about the Toyota Yaris GRMN’s abilities.

Inside, there are firm seats that hold you in place during the most exuberant of driving, while a small steering wheel from the Toyota GT86 is ready to communicate what’s going on when you are driving enthusiastically. And driving enthusiastically is something the Toyota Yaris GRMN excels at.

This is a car that is more than the sum of its parts. On paper, a hotted up version of Toyota’s rather average hatch is nothing to get excited about – especially when it cost more than any of its rivals when new.

But the Toyota Yaris GRMN feels extraordinarily special. You’ll grin from ear to ear every time you drive it, and that’s not something that can be said about other small hot hatches, such as the Volkswagen Polo GTI.

Fancy a new fast Toyota Yaris? Read our Toyota GR Yaris review here.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN is not a car that we’d recommend for covering many motorway miles or pootling around town.

The steering is too darty, while the sports exhaust is too noisy. And that’s before we get on to the suspension that transfers every minor bump into the cabin.

You need to be in the right mood for the Toyota Yaris GRMN and, when you are, it’s an absolute hoot. There’s nothing else in the hot hatch market that’s quite as raw as the souped-up Toyota Yaris.

It sounds fantastic, while the precise steering demands that you chuck it around, all the time telling you exactly what’s going on between you and the road.

A limited-slip differential divides power between the front wheels and you’ll have to be doing something very silly to bring on understeer.

Even hitting the accelerator mid-bend encourages the car’s line to tighten in a bizarre physics-defying manner.

Modern hot hatches are becoming increasingly versatile. Selectable drive modes are now widespread, with cars like the Ford Fiesta ST happy to smooth out bumps in the road and provide torque from low down when you’re not in the mood for a workout.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN is not one of those cars. While it does pull instantly when you press the accelerator at any RPM, its fizzy supercharged engine has an addictive character (and noise) that’ll see you clinging onto gears until you reach the limiter at around 7000rpm.

It’s just so eager that it’s almost a crime to change up at 3000rpm.

The six-speed manual gearbox is fine, if not quite as precise and satisfying as a Ford Fiesta ST’s. There’s no automatic option, but that’s no surprise in a hot hatch that feels as old-school as this.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN comes with the firm’s Safety Sense system, which provides automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning and automatic headlights.

There’s also the expected array of airbags, ABS anti-lock brakes, tyre pressure monitoring and ESP traction and stability control.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN was not rated for towing.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN was available as a three-door only, and passengers might struggle to climb into the rear.

What’s more, they won’t be particularly happy when they do get there. Legroom is limited and visibility is poor, thanks to the front bucket seats blocking the view.

The standard car’s seats have been ripped out and replaced by some expensive (and actually pretty good) bucket seats, but they only just fit in the car and you may struggle to find a comfortable driving position. A lack of adjustment in the steering wheel doesn’t help matters, either.

The boot, at 286 litres, is nothing to shout about either, with the wheelarches eating into valuable luggage space.

The interior of the standard Toyota Yaris felt dated when it first went on sale in 2011. And little of the Toyota Yaris GRMN’s development budget was spent improving the interior.

You’ll be hard pushed to find any soft-touch plastics, while the technology feels old.

Toyota’s Touch and Go infotainment system with navigation is simple and easy to use, but it’s got a budget computer vibe about it.

No expense has been wasted on slick graphics or luxuries such as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Rarity has helped shore up prices of the Toyota Yaris GRMN in the used sector. Only 100 were brought to the UK out of a total production of 600, so it is a genuinely special little car.

When new, this meant it cost £26,295, or the same as a much larger Volkswagen Golf GTI. Still, it was snapped up and used buyers regularly wait to pounce on any that come up for sale.

The upshot is you can reckon on spending around £20,000 for a Toyota Yaris GRMN with around 10,000 miles on the clock. Even ones that have far greater mileages will command much the same price so long as they are in good condition.

Pricey? Yes, but it will also hold its value when you come to sell.

It was claimed that the Toyota Yaris GRMN was capable of 37.7mpg combined economy, and this is exactly what our Real MPG data shows. Not bad for a feisty little hot hatch.

Emissions of 170g/km are high for a small car, but concerns about this are offset by the Toyota Yaris GRMN paying the same flat rate of £190 for road tax as other non-GRMN Toyota Yaris models.

Insurance will cost more than most Toyota Yaris versions, though, with the Toyota Yaris GRMN sitting in group 36. For context, a base model is in group 3 (out of 50).

The Toyota Yaris GRMN will also need a little more care and attention to keep it in fine fettle, but it shouldn’t be much more costly to maintain than any of its hot hatch rivals.

The Toyota Yaris GRMN features 17-inch BBS forged alloy wheels, Torsen limited slip differential, black radiator honeycomb lower front grille, black decoration on headlight extension, black decoration on the fog light surround, body-coloured front and rear bumper and a GRMN black rear spoiler.

Add to that GRMN decals, black door mirrors, body-coloured door handles, unique rear diffuser, central exhaust pipe and black roof.

There are also projector headlights with LED daytime running lights, auto headlights, front fog lights, LED rear light guide, smart entry and push-button start system, auto wipers, auto-folding door mirrors and acoustic windshield glass.

You’ll also enjoy sport bucket seats, GR steering wheel with centre line, engine start button with GR logo, GRMN aluminium brake pedal, rear privacy glass, air vents with chrome finish, chrome interior door handles, black upper dashboard and centre console, black roof lining and gear shift with aluminium insert.

Plus, there’s a seven-inch Toyota Touch 2 with navigation, 4.2-inch TFT information display, reversing camera, automatic air-con, auto-dimming rear view mirror and tilt and telescopic steering wheel.