Toyota GR Yaris Concepts Focus On Rally Racing At Tokyo Auto Salon

The 2023 Tokyo Auto Salon is in full swing, and there are several exciting debuts happening for fans of JDM performance. If you’re a follower of the World Rally Championship, Toyota has some cool rally-themed GR Yaris concepts to show off – some of which will see production.

There are actually four specialty GR Yaris vehicles in Toyota’s display this year. The GR Yaris RZ High-Performance Sebastien Ogier Edition Concept has a name longer than the hot hatchback’s small wheelbase, but WRC fans need no further introduction as to what makes this concept special. Ogier won the WRC drivers’ championship in 2021 driving for Toyota Gazoo Racing, and to honor that win, the GR Yaris with his name features numerous upgrades. But wait, there’s more.

Kalle Rovanpera won the WRC title in 2022, also driving for Toyota. Moreover, 2022 saw the WRC return to Japan, so you guessed it – there’s another RZ High-Performance model called the Kalle Rovanpera Edition Concept.

Both vehicles feature exclusive exterior paint finishes. Ogier’s wears a shade of silver with blue brake calipers, and Rovanpera’s is a multi-color design similar to his WRC car with red calipers. Beyond that, the special editions are identical with upgraded rear wings, special graphics and badging, and bespoke interior stitching. The mighty turbocharged three-cylinder engine gets a bump in torque to 288 pound-feet (390 Newton meters), but there is one final difference between them. Ogier and Rovanpera provide bespoke vehicle performance settings for the model that bears their name.

While these are road-based vehicles, the GR Yaris Rally2 Concept is a product of Toyota Gazoo Racing. It’s a race car built to Rally2 regulations. It will take part in the 2023 Japanese Rally Championship in the hands of Toyota, undergoing further development with the hopes of receiving homologation in January 2024.

Lastly, there’s a GR Yaris at the show outfitted with a host of new GR parts that will be available in the near future. Interior upgrades include a new steering wheel, shift knob, parking brake handle, and seats. On the outside, you’ll find a carbon-fiber reinforced hood and an engine cooling cover with NACA ducts. Suspension-wise, a carbon-fiber reinforced rear sway bar is coming soon, along with a set of racing shocks.

While Toyota calls the rally models concepts, the Ogier and Rovanpera special editions will go on sale in Japan at some point in the near future, presumably later this year. The Rally2 Concept remains a concept, albeit a fully functional one that will go racing.