Toyota Celebrates Launch of New GR Yaris in Japan with Virtual Event

Toyota City, Japan, Sep 4, 2020 - (JCN Newswire) - Celebrating the launch of the all-new GR Yaris in Japan, on sale nationwide through Toyota dealers starting from September 4, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing announced today that it will hold an event, called the GR YARIS ONLINE FES, that will display virtual images of the GR Yaris to fans, starting at 7:30 p.m. on September 16 (available only in Japanese). This event will communicate the ideas incorporated in the development of the GR Yaris and its development story, together with information about the GR FACTORY. Additionally, President Akio Toyoda, in his Morizo master driver persona, will drive the GR Yaris and offer the opportunity for a VR(1) drive-along.

The all-new GR Yaris was born as a vehicle that anyone can drive the way they want with peace of mind on any road in the world. The reason for this is that it incorporates lessons learned from the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team (WRT), including how to make cars that are competitive in the WRC, as well as learnings gleaned from evaluations given by non-Toyota professional drivers from the early stages of development.

Based on the desire of master driver Morizo to "restore the Toyota sports cars," the new GR Yaris was created as the first Toyota vehicle developed with the reversed concept of turning a motorsports car into a production car.

The main features of the new GR Yaris are as follows

- Vehicle packaging with attention paid to aerodynamics, lightweight, and high rigidity- The high power of a newly-developed 1.6-liter in-line three-cylinder intercooler turbo engine combined with the "GR-FOUR," a newly-developed sports 4WD system, to convey power to all four wheels- Created from three distinctive models: the base "RZ," the fun to drive "RS" (1.5-liter FF), and the competition based "RC."

In addition, the GR FACTORY, an exclusive production line, has been created at the Motomachi Plant, where each sports model has been produced, to build into cars the performance sought through development by takumi (master craftsmanship) team members.

(1) Virtual Reality. A smartphone and basic VR goggles are needed to enjoy this VR experience (2D images will be streamed to enable viewing even without VR goggles).

For the full release, visit https://bit.ly/2QTnU14

About Toyota Motor Corporation

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is the global mobility company that introduced the Prius hybrid-electric car in 1997 and the first mass-produced fuel cell sedan, Mirai, in 2014. Headquartered in Toyota City, Japan, Toyota has been making cars since 1937. Today, Toyota proudly employs 370,000 employees in communities around the world. Together, they build around 10 million vehicles per year in 29 countries, from mainstream cars and premium vehicles to mini-vehicles and commercial trucks, and sell them in more than 170 countries under the brands Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu and Hino. For more information, please visit www.toyota-global.com.

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