Filed under “things we never saw coming,” news has emerged that the majority of customers for the humble Toyota Corolla are opting for the manual over the automatic. On one hand, it’s unsurprising that the eternal Corolla is saving the manuals but on the other, this isn’t any regular Corolla either. We are talking about the fire-breathing Toyota GR Corolla.
First launched with a six-speed manual, Toyota added an eight-speed automatic option for the refreshed 2024 GR Corolla. However, the carmaker says they expect orders in an 80:20 split in favour of three pedals, as the world should be.
In a world that has seen even the likes of Porsche limit manual transmission availability within their 911 range, introducing an automatic knowing it will only account for about 20% of sales is a real statement move by the world’s largest carmaker.
Toyota states that the eight-speed Direct Automatic Transmission (DAT) in the GR Corolla is more intelligent than the ones in the GR Supra and GR86. The reason is that it reacts to driver inputs such as acceleration and braking for shift points, as opposed to g-forces as in the latter duo.
The move to introduce a torque-converter automatic also gives the GR Corolla more of a fight against its chief rival, the Volkswagen Golf R. And yes, the Toyota uses more of a traditional torque-converter automatic whereas the German shifts via a dual-clutch automatic. Plus, the automatic introduces a launch control system that the manual misses out on.
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Regardless, if you choose to row your own cogs or let the car do it, the engine is a tweaked version of the same turbocharged 1.6-litre three-pot with 300 hp but more torque at 400 Nm. That torque figure was previously reserved for the Morizo Edition. Other new bits include Torsen differentials as standard.
RELATED: 2023 Toyota GR Corolla review – hard driving on easy mode, but is it for you?
[Source: CarBuzz]
