2023 Toyota GR Corolla Reviews, Pricing & Specs

We have to imagine that when Toyota’s designers first started on the GR Corolla, they simply took a standard Corolla hatchback model and said, “let’s add more… everything.”

Look up “polarizing” in the dictionary, and you might as well see a paragraph describing the GR Corolla’s design (not unlike the Toyota Supra). Undoubtedly, some shoppers will love the over-the-top audacity of the GR Corolla. Others will find it immature. With a steeply sloping nose and a blunt rear end, the GR Corolla has the bones of a regular Corolla, yet it’s been imbued with rear fender flares huge enough to mark it as something entirely different.

For 2023, Toyota is offering the GR Corolla in three trim levels: Core, Circuit Edition, and Morizo Edition. After this model year, it will essentially be a two-trim vehicle, as the Circuit is offered as a launch-year special and will be discontinued for the 2024 model year.

Looking at the base Core trim, shoppers can pick between Ice Cap, Black, and Supersonic Red paint, and they’ll get upgrades including a body-color roof and rear spoiler regardless of their choice. The GR Corolla Circuit trim drops the Black paint in favor of one titled “Heavy Metal,” and along with the Morizo, it receives a carbon-fiber roof.

At the top of the lineup, the Morizo trim is offered in only two colors: Windchill Pearl (white) and a matte Smoke gray.

The GR Corolla, whether in Core, Circuit, or Morizo trim, is absolutely littered with vents and ducts and, delightfully, nearly all of them are functional. Only the two front air ducts on the Circuit trim are cosmetic. At the rear, triple exhaust pipes make a loud impression and, we’re pleased to announce, are decidedly functional as well.

A car like the GR Corolla needs to back up its aggressive styling with equally aggressive performance chops. Luckily, Toyota is offering a very compelling spec sheet with this new hot hatch, headlined by an angry little engine.

At 1.6 liters with a single-scroll turbocharger and a grand total of three cylinders, the GR Corolla’s powerplant looks and sounds like the mechanical equivalent of a little dog with a Napolean complex. Luckily, the Shih Tzu also knows jiu-jitsu.

In Core and Circuit trims, the 1.6-liter turbo-three powertrain makes an even 300 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque. In the Morizo trim, that torque figure gets a healthy bump up to 295 lb-ft. A six-speed manual is the only available gearbox, and all-wheel drive (AWD) comes standard on every GR Corolla. The manual transmission is equipped with rev-matching technology, making downshifts accurate and easy, and although the clutch travel is long, the bite point is easily identified. A mechanical handbrake sits between the front seats, making automotive hooliganism easy, too.

The GR Corolla Core model operates with open differentials at the front and rear, but both the Circuit and Morizo trim levels swap in front and rear limited-slip differentials. Toyota has also fitted the AWD system with three settings: “front,” which splits power so 60% goes to the front axel and 40% goes to the rear, “track,” which keeps a 50:50 balance, and “rear,” which directs 70% of the engine’s output to—you guessed it—the rear axle.

Be warned: despite the GR Corolla’s spec sheet, it doesn’t fully reveal itself as a performance car until the tachometer rises past 3,500 RPM. In fact, below that threshold, it feels surprisingly like a regular Corolla.

Take it over 3,500 RPM, though, and we’re telling a completely different story. 60 miles per hour arrives in roughly 5 seconds (4.9 for the Morizo trim level). The top speed measures 142.9 mph, which seems ludicrous in a car this size. Better, while the engine is easy to focus on, it’s the GR Corolla’s rigidity and transmission gearing that make it a special performer.

Yes, the GR Corolla is fast, but it screams with the Morizo treatment. The closer gear ratios in the Morizo trim mean it’s pushing the rev-limiter sooner and faster when all other elements are equal. While testing the GR Corolla on a track, we’d approach some corners in the Core and Circuit trim comfortably at the top of third gear. But when we tackled those same lines in the GR Corolla Morizo trim, we found ourselves shifting to fourth well before the brake point.

Once we hit the corner and the laws of physics started making themselves known, the Morizo’s better tires (Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 vs Michelin Pilot Sport 4) and stiffer underpinnings also made themselves known.

The GR Corolla’s short, 103.9-inch wheelbase wants to rotate, and when equipped with the Pilot Sport 4 tires, the Core and Circuit trims feel a bit more playful in spirited driving.

There’s also very little flex in the GR Corolla’s chassis, especially in the Morizo trim, which benefits from significantly more structural adhesives, plus a rear-seat delete and two braces spanning the rear of the cabin. The added rigidity is noticeable.

Yet, considering how rigid the GR Corolla feels on a race track, the suspension proved relatively compliant when driving around the beaten-up ring road circling said race track. We’re not sure the Morizo would be ideal, what with its stiffer architecture and missing rear seat, but the Core and Circuit trims could be daily drivers.

We look at hatchbacks and immediately think of practicality. However, that’s not necessarily the case with the 2023 Toyota GR Corolla.

First, although the bolstered sport seats up front are comfortable, the three-across bench seat in the back feels tight. And the Morizo dumps the rear seat entirely to save weight and add space for structural bracing, making it a particularly awkward-looking two-seater.

Ground clearance in the GR Corolla is low, too. Despite its hatchback profile, this is a genuine sports car. You’ll only have 5.1 inches of clearance in Morizo trims and 5.3 inches in Core and Circuit trims.

Trunk space comes up a bit short, too. Owners get only 17.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat—the EPA has yet to announce cargo volume in the back of the Morizo. The 2022 Volkswagen Golf R beats that figure at 19.9 cubic feet, and the outgoing Honda Civic Type R provides 25.7 cubic feet behind its rear seat. Total cargo space with the rear seat down has not yet been announced. That said, it doesn’t appear massive. And in the Morizo, it’s bisected by a support brace.

Finally, there’s not a ton of storage for your stuff. Hard plastic cupholders sit between the front seats, but they’re pushed back behind the drive mode selector, making them a bit awkward to access. There’s a wireless charging pad for your phone ahead of the gear shifter, but otherwise, you’re out of luck. Make good use of the glove compartment and the center console box, lest you want your belongings to take flight mid-corner.

A new Toyota audio multimedia system arrives in the 2023 GR Corolla, and just in time, too. Measuring 8-inches, the touchscreen looks sharp and the graphics are stylish. Admittedly, we didn’t have an opportunity to thoroughly test the infotainment system. However, it looks like a huge step forward for Toyota, whose tech offerings had been looking particularly tired as of late.

The new technology supports dual-device Bluetooth connectivity, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto. A Wi-Fi hotspot is available via subscription and can support up to five devices.

In addition to the aforementioned wireless charging pad, Toyota also equips the GR Corolla with two USB-C charging ports as standard equipment.

The infotainment interface supports Sirius XM satellite radio, and an eight-speaker JBL stereo is available on the Core and Circuit trim levels. It is not, however, available on the Morizo trim. That level is all about lightweight speed, and Toyota wouldn’t let an upgraded stereo get in the way of its mission.

There’s also a new 12.3-inch driver information display included on every GR Corolla It’s a busy user interface that calls back to the rad 1980s and ‘90s, showing everything from AWD mode, turbo pressure, and all of the stability control systems that you’ve turned off for your sprint around the track. It looks delightfully “Tron.”

When, eventually, one watches clips of a GR Corolla sliding sideways through the dirt, kicking up a mess of earth and rock and generally causing a ruckus, we doubt “safety” will rise to the top of mind. However, this little pocket rocket still carries the Toyota badge, and that means it maintains an admirable commitment to safety.

Somehow, Toyota managed to squeeze ten separate airbags into the tiny GR Corolla. Better yet, it also loaded the little car up with lots of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

Naturally, a rear-view camera comes standard. It includes parking aid lines, which often go overlooked but provide incredibly helpful for drivers that normally struggle with reversing, and we’d like to see them offered on more cars. Similarly, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert are also included as standard equipment. These features are often packaged as available options on other vehicles, so we appreciate the inclusion at no extra cost.

Most notably, Toyota also includes a suite of ADAS as standard equipment on the GR Corolla, despite it being equipped only with a manual transmission. The list includes automatic emergency braking, lane-departure assist with steering assist, lane-tracing assist, adaptive cruise control, and road-sign assistance.

The GR Corolla is a brand-new vehicle, and as such, neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has yet crash-tested it.

Hot hatchbacks like the Volkswagen Golf R, Honda Civic Type R, and now the GR Corolla garner lots of attention because they promise high performance at low prices. Just look at their names: Golf, Civic, Corolla: how could those cost premium prices?

Yet, each year, the price delta between these performance variants and their namesake counterparts seems to grow. Don’t be surprised that the GR Corolla looks awfully expensive for, well, a Corolla.

The Core trim level starts at an MSRP of $35,900, and you can add the Performance, Technology, and Cold Weather packages for $1,180, $770, and $500, respectively. The Circuit trim starts at $42,900, and the Morizo starts at $49,900. Various paint colors cost a bit extra. Add a $1,095 destination fee to all of these prices and, yes, you can now purchase a new Toyota Corolla for more than $50,000.

But the GR Corolla is a completely different vehicle than the non-GR Corolla, and that fact must be accounted for when considering its value. For once, a standard Corolla's drivetrain doesn’t require premium fuel (91+ octane). A GR Corolla does.

For comparison’s sake, the 2022 Volkswagen Golf R starts at $45,185, including destination, and we expect the upcoming Honda Civic Type R to squeak under the $40,000 mark—if only based on its MSRP without destination. The AWD Subaru WRX has an MSRP starting under $30,000, but that car doesn’t quite have the chops to compete with the GR Corolla; the more expensive STI is a more apt comparison.

Admittedly, $50,000 is a lot to spend for a vehicle named “Corolla,” but the Morizo trim does feel special. We’re not sure it’s the one to get unless you’re a motorsports or track-day regular, given its missing back seat, but it still offers plenty of performance for 50 grand.

It’s a shame that the Circuit trim will be offered for only one year, as it feels like the true Goldilocks of value, offering more performance than the Core for less money than the Morizo. Regardless of trim, however, the GR Corolla has arrived on stage with a bang. This is an instant-hit hot hatch worthy of consideration alongside tenured favorites like the Golf R and Civic Type R.