The 2023 Toyota Corolla Morizo Edition is a Corolla on ‘roids: AWD, 300 horsepower, sticky Michelin Cup 2 tires.
PONTIAC, Michigan — You want a diverse, full-line model lineup?
This June at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France, the 986-horsepower, all-wheel-drive Toyota GR (for Gazoo Racing) Hypercar battled the Ferrari 499F Hypercar tooth and nail for first place in the world’s most prestigious endurance race. The same week, I lapped the 300-horsepower, all-wheel-drive Toyota GR Corolla around M1 Concourse, Metro Detroit’s premier race track.
Yes, Toyota has gone bonkers.
Led by racing fanatic and Chairman Akio Toyoda, Toyota has emerged in recent years as one of the most dynamic brands in the industry as its lineup is now augmented by two sports cars — the Supra and 86 — and a raft of Gazoo Racing (GR) models inspired by the hypercar that won five Le Mans in a row and just missed out on No. 6 last month against competitors like Ferrari, Porsche and Cadillac.
Maybe the craziest experiment in the lab is the GR Corolla, which has transformed Toyota’s entry-level sedan appliance into a fire-breathing, steroid-fed hot hatch boasting 187 horsepower per liter from a turbocharged, 1.6-liter 3-cylinder engine blown out of its mind.
The GR-eatest of the batch is the limited-edition, track-focused Morizo model that I began my Monday with.
“I think that’s the fastest a Corolla has ever gone around this track,” smiled general manager Keith Bonn, after I cranked off laps quicker than the GR 86 sports cars that M1 has in its track fleet.
“It may be the only Corolla that’s ever gone around this track,” I replied.
The Morizo manages such track feats thanks to a boost in torque to 295 (from the standard GR Corolla’s healthy 275), light-weighted body, Brembo brakes and sticky Michelin Pilot Cup 2 tires. Mostly it’s the Cup 2 tires. These marvelous meatballs are the summit of production performance tires and are normally found on supercars like the Chevy Corvette Z06 or Porsche GT3.
They are on the Morizo because, according to Toyota, that’s how Akio Toyoda would outfit this pitbull if he were to take it on track. I’m not making this up. In addition to the tires and torque, the Morizo gets extra chassis stiffening like a fat steel bar that bisects the cargo area. And there’s no back seat. What?
That’s right, to save weight (and open up room for Akio to throw in four spare tires for the track) the GR Corolla Morizo has four doors — but only two front seats. More weight savings comes from a carbon fiber roof and forged wheels. For all this muscle (and inconvenience in the case of no rear seats), you can have this one-of-200-imported-to-the-U.S. Morizo special editions for a stiff $50,000.
And that’s not the only special-edition model. The Circuit Edition — also exclusive to the 2023 launch year — boasts similar power numbers and body tattoos like GR-Four stamped side rockers, flat underfloor and rear lip spoiler.
That’s how determined Toyota is to change its image as a maker of vanilla cars — and to make its mark in a hot hatch market segment stuffed with outstanding athletes: Honda Civic Type R, Mazda3 Turbo, Subaru WRX, Golf GTI, Golf R.
Collectibles aside, you’ll be fine with the standard GR Corolla like the $38,600 blood-red demon I terrorized Washtenaw County, Michigan, with last year. It features the same 12.3-inch digital instrument display as the Morizo and Circuit Editions. Same tablet infotainment display. Same wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 system surrounding you with useful safety tools like blind-spot assist. Just add the Performance Package so you get limited-slip differentials for maximum Rottweiler grip.
Don’t expect much legroom even with the rear seats intact — the GR’s biggest demerit when compared with roomier competitors like the Type R or WRX.
Unlike Subaru’s hellion, GR Corolla does not come by its all-wheel-drive character naturally. The Corolla was born a front-wheel driver. But like its hatch brethren, the GR Corolla is totally transformed from the base car into an exhilarating grocery cart that can also double as a track car on weekends.
I recently raced at Canadian Motorsports Park in Ontario in my Lola race car. Our weekend shared track time with production models like Mustangs, Camaros, Porsche Caymans — and hot hatches like the Fiat 500 Abarth and Honda Type R. The GR Corolla would have fit right in.
The 1.6-liter three is a remarkable piece of technology, and it has a stick shift (also not available in a base Corolla) to match. Notchy and easy to shift, it’s the perfect companion on track (or on country roads) with engine peak torque kicking in above 4,000 RPM. Pedal placement is excellent, too, for heel-and-toe downshifts — especially since the GR Corolla doesn’t offer rev-matching like some of its peers.
It’s nice to see Toyota in the pocket rocket game with GR. It’s the answer to the question no one was expecting: what would happen if the Le Mans GR Hypercar and a Corolla had a baby?
2023 Toyota GR Corolla
Vehicle type: Front-engine, all-wheel-drive four-passenger hot hatch
Price: $36,995 base, including $1,095 destination ($51,420 Morizo edition as tested)
Power plant: 1.6-liter, turbocharged 3-cylinder
Power: 300 horsepower, 295 pound-feet of torque (as tested)
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mph, 4.9 seconds (Car and Driver)
Weight: 3,186 pounds (as tested)
Fuel economy: EPA 21 mpg city/28 mpg highway/24 mpg combined
Report card
Highs: All-wheel-drive grip; notchy stick shift
Lows: Cramped back seat; no rev-match
Overall: 3 stars
