Rumours say Toyota might add a sedan version to its GR Corolla for the North American market
This is more difficult than it appears since the Corolla hatchback and sedans don’t share the same dimensions
This could be a direct competitor to the Subaru WRX
Toyota made many people happy when it announced the GR Corolla over a year ago and it has been so popular in the months following its introduction that the order books had to be closed. Now, Toyota might be looking at making a GR Corolla sedan too.
A rumour to this effect has been circulating in Japan, where engineers are reportedly developing a sports version of the sedan, especially for the North American market, where it is more popular than the hatchback.
This is a more involved process than it might appear since the Corolla hatchback is smaller than the sedan version sold on our shores. In its native country, the sedan is the same size as the hatch, but it was stretched and widened to appeal to more people in the US and Canada.
This means that the specific body parts all have to be made from scratch for the sedan and the suspension system will have to be reworked to accommodate the increased weight.
Under the hood, the sedan is expected to keep the same new 1.6L turbocharged three-cylinder engine that delivers 300 horsepower, as well as the 6-speed manual transmission and the performance-oriented all-wheel-drive system.
This power in a compact sedan bodyshell would make it a direct competitor to the Subaru WRX, and since Subaru decided to forgo the STI version for the new generation of WRX, the GR Corolla would have a close to 30 horsepower advantage.
The rumour goes so far as to say that this new model could be introduced as soon as next year, despite the automaker not having confirmed even the possibility that it is indeed working on a GR Corolla sedan.
