Japanese enthusiasts interested in a demonstration Toyota GR Corolla will need to enter a purchase lottery prior to delivery in early 2023.
The company had planned to sell its latest hot hatch product through brick-and-mortar dealers, but the “continued COVID-19 infections and semiconductor shortages” affecting their supply chain have caused they have to switch to online purchase lottery.
The first shipment will include 500 units of the GR Corolla with ‘RZ’ JDM specification, and a further 70 of the Wild two-seater Morizo Edition. TMC adds “additional sales” [will] considered when monitoring the production situation”.
The entry-level GR Corolla will cost 5,250,000 yen ($57,000) and the Morizo will be 7,150,000 yen ($78,000). To give this price a little context, the Japanese price of a Yaris GR is 3,960,000 yen ($43,000), making it about $14,000 cheaper than its big brother in Japan.
The GR Yaris has an Australian RRP of $49,500 before on-road costs, so if this gap is reflected locally, the GR Corolla could kick off just under $65,000 – less than a quarter. CHEAP Honda Civic.
Don’t expect local Toyota parts to perform the same stunt as it did with the first 1000 GR Yaris on sale at a huge discount ($39,500) to drive fans crazy and turn them into GR ambassadors.
Set to launch in the first quarter of 2023 – at least at this stage – Toyota Australia will only receive 500 units for the first year allotment to the all-wheel-drive, 220kW Corolla, indications manual action, to divide among its agents.
Just like Japan, the supply of GR Corollas to Australia is therefore very limited. There has been no announcement of a local draw, although the local Toyota branch is acutely aware of the difficulties they will face when distributing goods through traditional channels.
Sean Hanley, vice president of sales, marketing and franchising, Toyota Australia, said: “Automotive competition in the Toyota world is intense,” Sean Hanley, said when we talked to him in September.
“However, this is not a limited edition car, it is just about all we could get for the first year… Now what we have to do is manage those 500 very carefully. kidney.”
Asked if he was concerned that such a limited supply would lead fans in the wrong direction by leaving too many without cars from the first batches, Mr Hanley said: “We’ll just do it. people get upset if we don’t tell them the exact situation in advance. of the order”.
THAN: Toyota wants the extremists to buy the high-demand GR Corolla, not the speculators
“Dealers know right away they’ll be getting a limited number,” he said, hinting that Toyota wants to work with its franchisees to ensure true blue enthusiasts. priority.
“… We want to make sure these cars get to the real enthusiasts who want to keep these cars, who want to drive these cars.
“We are therefore looking at the different ways in which Australian Competition and Consumer law legitimacy could allow us to ensure that these things get into the right hands,” he said.
Asked about whether Toyota could instruct employees at its franchisees to avoid buying a GR Corolla for themselves, Mr. Hanley paused. Furthermore, there won’t be any Toyota HQ employees marking each customer or reviewing their intentions, he added.
“Regarding our dealer network, of course we have a staff of agents who are passionate and of course we don’t want to pass up those opportunities,” said Mr. Hanley.
“But we will qualify people to become enthusiasts… and we want to discourage any form of reselling. [or] short bike rides… We will certainly ask our dealers to rate each customer who wants this bike for the right reasons,” he added.
“We now have to look at that process within the legality of Australian competition and consumer law, but we really want this car to get to the right people.”
None of these answers really make clear what Toyota Australia has up its sleeve, other than a distaste for opportunistic resellers.
Speculators (like auto speculators) thrived in a car market where all time shortage and high demand conspired to extend the waiting time to years – allowing them to hunt down people queuing miles away.
Like recent detailsToyota Australia has become frustrated that buyers are using shortages to cash in at the expense of real buyers, but they are still figuring out what levers they can pull.
“We think it’s extremely important that we take a leadership position on this, especially right now. “We have spent decades building trust in our brand and it is disturbing to think that we have some people short selling our cars for money,” said Mr Hanley. .
“I think we need to protect our customers as best we can from those types of behavior… I want that to change. I want this situation to change where the customer is paying a fair and reasonable price based on the manufacturer’s retail price position.”
Specifications Toyota GR Corolla:
- Engine: 3 cylinders turbocharged 1.6 liters
- Power: 220kW at 6500rpm
- torque: 370Nm at 3000-5550rpm (400Nm at 3250-4600rpm for Morizo)
- gear: 6-speed manual with rotation matching function
- line: Variable AWD with three torque split settings
- required 0-96km/h: 4.99 seconds
- Gas tank: 50L
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