Toyota GR Yaris - Interior, design and technology

From the outset, the Toyota GR Yaris has been designed to meet specific targets for downforce, aerodynamic performance, and stability. This means only the headlights, rear lights, door mirrors and the shark fin antenna on the roof are shared with the regular Toyota Yaris.

The body had to be specifically designed to meet the requirements of the World Rally Championship and, compared to the regular Toyota Yaris model, the GR is 55mm longer, 60mm wider and between 45-95mm lower in height due to its sloping roofline.

Toyota’s three-door design for the GR brings a coupe-like profile, while the tapered roofline has a functional purpose in helping to move air over the rear spoiler which helps to create useful downforce. The overall impression is of a squat, purposeful machine, with powerful-looking rear haunches just giving a hint of the Renault 5 Turbo.

Although Toyota revised the GR Yaris in 2024 with a number of upgrades, the only visual difference on the outside is some improved mesh grille to protect the radiator.

What is the Toyota GR Yaris like inside?

It’s on the inside where some of the biggest changes have taken place as the facelifted GR Yaris features a completely redesigned dashboard. It’s a slightly unusual (and very square) design, but the idea behind it is to make the driver feel more like they’re sitting in the car, rather than on it. Quirky appearance aside, though, the revised dash layout is reasonably ergonomic.

There aren’t many options to choose from in the GR Yaris configurator, but the good news is that the GR Yaris comes with its fair share of mod cons. Standard kit in the facelifted model includes an eight-inch touchscreen accompanied by a 12.3-inch digital driver’s display, dual-zone air-conditioning, automatic windscreen wipers and sports seats.

The aforementioned seats are as supportive as you’d hope for in a car that’s designed to be hurled around each and every corner you can find, but thankfully they’re also comfortable enough for daily journeys (although longer motorway runs could require the occasional stretching break).

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What is the interior quality like? 

Quality-wise, the GR Yaris is typical Toyota. It’s far from being the brightest or plushest place to be, but everything feels durable and very well put together. The same can be said for pre-facelift cars, too.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

As part of its series of mid-life upgrades, the GR yaris received a revised eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system. This unit runs Toyota’s Connect+ software, and it comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, along with a six-speaker sound system.

Although this new system is an improvement compared to the one it replaced, we found it frustratingly slow on multiple occasions during testing. On the plus side, It is at least easy to navigate.