► Toyota confirms 210bhp+ Yaris
► Hot hatch to join WRC racer
► First official pictures released
Do not adjust your screens. This is the new Toyota Yaris hot hatch, packing a punch of ‘at least 210bhp’.
Yes, Toyota is getting back into pocket rockets, after an absence of many years.
Toyota issued these first pictures a week before the Yaris WRC makes its competition debut at the Monte Carlo Rally. We’ll see the car in full at the 2017 Geneva motor show in March.
Specs, details of the 210bhp+ pocket rocket
Apart from these two pictures, little is known about the go-faster Yaris. It’ll be a three-door only model ‘and is powered by an engine producing more than 210bhp, forging a link between the Yaris WRC and the standard roadgoing model range,’ says Toyota.
It’s expected to be the company’s first road car to wear the Gazoo racing badge, CAR understands.
The strategy is clear: why have a Toyota Gazoo Racing team and 375bhp World Rally Car if your humdrum Yaris supermini range lacks any sporting focus?
That’s about to be rectified in 2017…
Our full A-Z preview guide to the Geneva motor show
When can I buy a Toyota Yaris Gazoo hot hatch?
The exact specs, prices and on-sale dates for the be-muscled, roadgoing Yaris pocket rocket are yet to be released.
Will they use a hybrid powertrain, rather than a more conventional petrol-only engine? Toyota has made more petrol-electric vehicles than any other manufacturer, after all…
This appears unlikely, however, since the additional weight of batteries would blunt performance; expect a mix of 210bhp turbocharged petrol punch and lighter weight.
That’s all folks. Stay tuned for more news on the Yaris GTI later in spring 2017.
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