Toyota Corolla hybrid hot hatch coming in July: Bigger hybrid engine, better handling for Australia's best-selling small car - reports

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A faster Corolla is coming.
Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
14 Mar 2020
2 min read

The Toyota Corolla is about to be given a warm-hatch makeover, with reports from Japan suggesting a new GR Sport edition of the top-selling small car will be revealed in July.

And in even more exciting news, the changes will be more than just cosmetic, with Toyota reportedly readying a bigger hybrid engine and extra body stiffening for the warmed-over hatch.

A word of warning, though, this isn't the full-fat hot hatch Toyota is also reportedly working on. That car, the GR Corolla, will make use of the 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder from the GR Yaris,  producing 200kW and 370Nm of punch.

Read More: New Toyota Corolla GR hot hatch is coming! 200kW, all-wheel-drive screamer to arrive in 2023: reports

This is more a eco-friendly hot hatch, then. And as is stands, the most powerful hybrid option in the current Corolla is the electrified 1.8-litre engine in the ZR. It combines a four-cylinder petrol engine (72kW/142Nm) and an electric motor (53kW/163Nm) for a maximum combined output of 90kW.

But reports out of Japan suggest the GR Sport model will up the ante, fitting a hybrid 2.0-litre engine in the performance-flavoured version, which should see those outfits climb skyward.

The Dynamic Force Hybrid engine produces 112kW and 190Nm, combined a transaxle electric motor good for 80kW and 202Nm, meaning a combined output of 132kW. In other markets, that means a sprint to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds - a full three seconds quicker than the current hybrid offering in Australia. Whether this model is quicker again remains to be seen.

The Dynamic Force engine is currently available in Europe, but the launch of the GR Sport could put it right on the table for Australia, with Toyota previously flagging their interest in such a vehicle.

Read More: Toyota's GR performance world domination! Here's what's coming for Corolla, Land Cruiser, HiLux, RAV4

“We haven’t ruled that out in the future. At the timing of launch, because we source our cars out of Japan, that was what was available to us,” Toyota Australia vice president of sales and marketing, Sean Hanley, has told CarsGuide in the past.

“We’re looking into whether we can perhaps bring a sportier hybrid version of the Corolla. Australians love a sports car, we’ve seen that with Supra."

Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
Andrew Chesterton should probably hate cars. From his hail-damaged Camira that looked like it had spent a hard life parked at the end of Tiger Woods' personal driving range, to the Nissan Pulsar Reebok that shook like it was possessed by a particularly mean-spirited demon every time he dared push past 40km/h, his personal car history isn't exactly littered with gold. But that seemingly endless procession of rust-savaged hate machines taught him something even more important; that cars are more than a collection of nuts, bolts and petrol. They're your ticket to freedom, a way to unlock incredible experiences, rolling invitations to incredible adventures. They have soul. And so, somehow, the car bug still bit. And it bit hard. When "Chesto" started his journalism career with News Ltd's Sunday and Daily Telegraph newspapers, he covered just about everything, from business to real estate, courts to crime, before settling into state political reporting at NSW Parliament House. But the automotive world's siren song soon sounded again, and he begged anyone who would listen for the opportunity to write about cars. Eventually they listened, and his career since has seen him filing car news, reviews and features for TopGear, Wheels, Motor and, of course, CarsGuide, as well as many, many others. More than a decade later, and the car bug is yet to relinquish its toothy grip. And if you ask Chesto, he thinks it never will.
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