BMW M2 vs Toyota GR Yaris

What's the difference?

I think auto journalists are supposed to see vehicles a bit like parents see their children. You know, view them all as equals. No favourites. That kind of thing.

But I'm going to let you in on a tiny little secret, just between us. I liked this potent M2 before I even sat in it. And I like it just a little bit more than I love other bite-sized performance cars.

In fact, I like it more than I like bigger, more powerful, and more expensive models in the BMW M family.

Thank the automotive gods cars like the GR Yaris still exist.

Not only are hot hatches the funnest way to drive, but in a world that’s obsessed with electric vehicles, these combustion-powered beasties remind us what we’ve got before it's gone.

The GR Yaris arrived in 2020 and won praise for its rally-car-for-the-road feel with Toyota’s high-performance division Gazoo Racing heavily modifying the docile Yaris hatch - while adding a bit of Corolla - to create this little monster.

In early 2025 Toyota added more power and torque, along with an automatic transmission for the GR Yaris and now a new variant has been launched - the GTS Aero Performance Package and this is what we are testing.