Earlier this year, Toyota announced bold plans to produce a GR Sport version of the majority of their current line-up, following in the footsteps of the highly-anticipated 2020 GR Supra.
Unlike the Supra, the rest of the GR Sport line-up won't feature a BMW-sourced engine, but will gain some sort of Toyota-developed performance engine, just like the one that we can hear in this teaser.
Despite all the coverage that the new GR Yaris has received so far, not much is known about the engine, but it has been confirmed that a manual transmission will be paired with an all-wheel drive drivetrain.
From the video, it's safe to assume that there will be a turbocharger strapped to the engine, but whether Toyota has opted for a three or and four-cylinder lump is anyone's guess right now.
No matter the engine, this new hatch from Toyota “incorporates all the technologies, knowledge, and experience learned from WRC” according to Gazoo Racing, take from that what you wish.
Considering that the previous limited edition Yaris GRMN used a four-cylinder engine, we'd imagine that this little beast will follow suit, but pack a whole lot more power than the 155kW that it had.
In terms of the exterior of the little rocket, Toyota has added a large rally-inspired body kit which includes bigger bumpers, fender flares and a roof spoiler. On the inside, the three-door hatch gets a set of GR Sport bucket seats.
Thanks to the WRC inspiration behind this Yaris, it sounds like it is going to be a whole lot more than just a souped-up grocery-getter. It may fall into the same vein as all the homologation specials that we've grown to love.
Toyota is set to unveil the GR Yaris in full at the 2020 Tokyo Auto Salon, which kicks off on January 10.