Three Years In, the GR Corolla Still Wins the Drive. The Price Is Where Testers Push Back

Two reviewers, two cities, two months apart, and the same window sticker: $49,383. The Drive's Audrey Holden and Mark Savage, whose Savage on Wheels column runs on Milwaukee's WUWM, both spent a week this year in a Heavy Metal gray 2026 Toyota GR Corolla Premium Plus. Both came away loving how it drives. Both told readers to skip the car they were driving and buy the base model instead.

That is the state of the GR Corolla in late 2026. The hot hatch that rally fans begged Toyota to sell here is three model years old, it keeps getting better, and it keeps getting more expensive. TORQFOLIO has not driven the 2026 car. This roundup draws on Savage's Aug. 9 review, Holden's Oct. 6 review, and AutoGuide's first drive of the 2026 car at Sonoma Raceway, published in September 2025.

What has changed since 2023

AutoGuide's Kyle Patrick got the nerdiest possible test: Toyota lined up a 2023, a 2024 and a 2026 at Sonoma and had journalists drive them back to back. He says the differences are real. The 2024 tightened up steering response, and the 2026 goes further with nearly double the structural adhesive, 45.6 more feet of it, plus a new cool-air duct under the hood, both developed by lapping the full Nurburgring 24-hour course. The 2025 update had already added the eight-speed automatic, a torque bump to 295 lb-ft, and an adaptive Track mode that varies the front-to-rear split between 60:40 and 30:70.

Patrick found the newest car calmer and more predictable at and beyond the limit, without losing the chuckability. The engine is still the 1.6-liter turbocharged three-cylinder making 300 hp, which he called a lovable weirdo with a distinct step in power once it comes on boost.

Where they agree: it is still a joy

Holden's review is close to a love letter. She found the car well-mannered and planted no matter how hard she pushed, with the front and rear limited-slips finding traction through corners and, in her words, catapulting the car out of them. She singled out the simple controls, a rocker for drive modes and a dial for the AWD setting, and said the changes are noticeable right away. She called the seats phenomenal.

Savage had the same reaction. He called the handling nimble and precise, said the car hugs fast corners and stays flat on exit, and said shifting the manual is more fun than any automatic. Patrick put the manual between rivals: not as slick as the Honda Civic Type R's, but more direct and full of feel than the Hyundai Elantra N's. All three praise how analog the car feels, with physical controls for almost everything.

Where they split: the ride

Here is the real disagreement. Holden found the GR Corolla surprisingly comfortable, a great daily driver with road noise lower than its class. Savage, driving on Wisconsin roads, called the ride harsh and said some would say punishing, adding that the car suits states with smoother pavement. Patrick, mostly on track, called it stiff for a hot hatch but by no means overwhelming. If you live where the potholes are deep, Savage's review is the one to read twice.

The complaints

The cabin gets dinged by everybody. Holden called out hard, cheap plastics and said that is where you notice the GR Corolla is an economy compact underneath. Patrick called it sparse and visually close to a regular Corolla. Holden also found it short on storage and rear legroom, wished for a center armrest, and said the short first gear and wide turning circle keep you busy in town. She noted it does not feel like 300 hp except on full-throttle launches. Savage added road noise, small climate buttons and a premium fuel recommendation, though he saw 26.5 mpg against an EPA rating of 21 city and 28 highway.

Savage did find plenty to like inside for the money. The Premium Plus he drove had a nine-speaker JBL system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a heated wheel and seats, smart cruise control and Toyota Safety Sense 3.0, and he said the cargo area is generous for the class once the rear seats fold. He also liked the fake-leather trimmed cloth seats with red stitching, and suggested Toyota add a flat-bottom steering wheel.

The money

The base car is $41,115 with destination, and the Premium Plus is $47,160 before options. Savage pointed out that a Civic Type R starts around $46,000. Holden argued that the base GR Corolla still costs thousands less than the other roughly 300-hp all-wheel-drive hatches sold in the U.S., while admitting it is pricier than an Elantra N, GTI or Civic Si that do not have its power or drivetrain. Both of them landed in the same place: buy the base car and get the core experience for less.

TORQFOLIO's read

Three years on, the testers agree the GR Corolla is still the most fun way to spend about $41,000 on a new car with a hatch and four doors, and the only one of its rivals that, as Patrick put it, feels at home on a dirt trail. The Premium Plus adds a forged carbon roof, heated seats and wheel and a head-up display, but nothing that changes how it drives.

For the JDM and tuner crowd, the case is simple. Buy the base car with the manual, budget for a set of winter wheels and tires if you live up north, and let the chassis do what three model years of Toyota's engineers have made it very good at. If ride comfort on rough roads matters more than any of that, Savage's week in Wisconsin is your warning.