Toyota is testing the Yaris GR with an eight-speed automatic

Toyota tested an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission in GR Yaris.

Japanese shop Car clock reports Yaris GR automatic has entered the Toyota Gazoo Racing Challenge.

Fitted with planetary seats, it is said to have been developed with a focus on running fast, shifting gears quickly and comfortably without wasting fuel.

“I said it was okay to break it. I screwed it up once already,” said Shigeru Hayakawa, Vice President of Toyota Motor Corporation, who has acted as the development engine for the new transmission and will race it in the 2022 season.

“The Yaris GR is a sports car, a sports car is a manual, but even an automatic is pretty competitive. Maybe automatic is better. I think I was able to show that there is a competitive part,” said Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda (translated).

There is paddle shifter, but the goal of the development team is said to make the car go faster when just put in the letter “D”.

Since this is just a car in development at this stage, the gearshift isn’t a very sporty thing borrowed from the Toyota parts bin.

That’s why this transmission has been developed to be more than just a rallying challenge.

Toyota is planning to add one GR corolla to the brand’s fledgling range of Gazoo Racing cars, and it will be the first GR-badged hot hatch sold in the US plus the brand’s first hot hatch there in over 30 years.

While American enthusiasts love manuals as much as anyone – you can still buy manuals Volkswagen Golf GTI there, for example – the broader US market isn’t as manual as Australia, and the automatic could give the GR Corolla a broader appeal.

There are a few precious hot spots in this segment that don’t offer at least an automatic transmission option.

The CHEAP Honda Civic famous is only craft, while things like Ford Focus ST, Hyundai i30 FEMALE and Renault Megane RS Trophy offers a choice of manual or automatic transmission and the Volkswagen Golf GTI is only available in Australia.

The GR Corolla is expected to share a turbocharged 1.6-liter three-cylinder engine and six-speed manual transmission with the GR Yaris, plus a sophisticated all-wheel drive system that can send up to 70 % of torque to the rear axle.

In the Yaris GR, the turbocharged three-cylinder produces 200kW of power and 370Nm of torque, but overseas reports have indicated that the GR Corolla can generate an additional 20kW.

Even with just a 20kW increase over the Yaris GR and the torque figure unchanged, a GR Corolla would still line up well in the small hot hatch segment.

The Golf GTI makes 180kW and 370Nm, while the i30 N makes 206kW and 392Nm, the Megane RS Trophy 300 makes 221kW and 420Nm and the Focus ST 206kW and 420Nm.

The larger hot hatch is expected to launch in the second half of 2022, and Toyota USA has been rolling out teaser after teaser for the car.

We’d be surprised if it didn’t come here with Toyota’s famous push on Gazoo Racing’s Down Under sub-brand, which includes sharp introductory offers for the Yaris GR.

THAN: Everything Toyota Yaris