We Did not Asok the Toyota GR Corolla to Get Less Enjoyable, However Right here We Are

There’s no denying we love the Toyota GR Corolla, no less than when it has a guide transmission. We’ve additionally sung the praises of many well-programmed automatics or dual-clutch gearboxes, so we’re not anti-auto. What we’re towards, although, are any modifications that make a automotive much less enjoyable to drive.

This 12 months, Toyota broadened the GR Corolla vary by including a customized eight-speed computerized transmission to the choices sheet. As a enterprise case, it’s a no brainer. Far extra automatics are bought yearly than manuals, so not solely will Toyota possible promote extra of those, however these elevated gross sales will even shore up the spreadsheet for the area of interest efficiency car and hopefully hold it in manufacturing longer, ideally resulting in future generations.

And that’s not all that’s new. All fashions additionally get a further 22 lb-ft of torque, which was beforehand restricted to the particular one-year Morizo mannequin. The automatics additionally get launch management and a transmission cooler, with the choice for a second radiator for extra engine cooling.

Further, the automated automobiles get their very own springs, anti-roll bars, and rear mounting geometry, plus rebound springs on all 4 corners. A brand new grille makes area for all that further cooling. Finally, Toyota messed with the manually adjustable entrance/rear torque cut up characteristic, renaming the numerical ratios to Normal (60/40), Gravel (50/50), and Track (robotically adjusted by the pc primarily based on real-time knowledge from 60/40 to 30/70 entrance/rear).

Put all of it collectively, and you’ve got a automotive that’s … much less enjoyable to drive. Partly accountable is the brand new transmission, which tends to upshift too early, downshift too late, and unnecessarily shift midcorner. All that may be fastened through the use of the steering wheel paddles, however it’s indicative of unfinished or misguided improvement.

The new torque cut up settings and suspension modifications gum up the works, as effectively. Toyota says they’re purported to make the automotive extra secure and deal with flatter. Maybe, however from behind the wheel, all we really feel is a much less playful automotive. We beforehand discovered Track mode to be probably the most enjoyable, and letting the pc play with the torque cut up as a substitute of preserving it fastened at 30/70 appears to be the perpetrator.

There are different hang-ups, too. Somehow, regardless of a minimal 50-pound weight penalty, the automated will get 2 mpg metropolis/1 mpg freeway worse gas financial system than the guide, which generally doesn’t occur anymore. We’re additionally upset to see the up to date 2025 fashions nonetheless don’t get the improved inside of the usual Corolla regardless of the worth premium. At least in that case, we are able to select to consider the cash went to the go-fast components.

In the tip, Toyota has forged a wider web however made a worse automotive. That’s to not say the automated transmission GR Corolla isn’t enjoyable. It’s simply not as enjoyable as its guide transmission sibling, all whereas utilizing extra fuel, so what’s the purpose? If now we have to ask a query like this, it could’t be a finalist. This evaluate was performed as a part of our 2026 Car of the Year (COTY) testing, the place every car is evaluated on our six key standards: effectivity, design, security, engineering excellence, worth, and efficiency of meant operate. Eligible automobiles should be all-new or considerably revised.