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Toyota GR Yaris Sharpened: Motorsport-Inspired Upgrades Arriving June 2026
Smaller wheel. Sharper steering. Track-grade tyres on the GTS. The GR Yaris just got more focused.
Toyota's smallest hot hatch is about to land in showrooms with the sharpest update it has had since the model returned to the Australian range. From June 2026, the updated Toyota GR Yaris arrives at New Town Toyota with a set of motorsport-derived changes designed to make the car more confident, more communicative, and more rewarding to drive at the limit.
The headline changes are deliberately focused. A redesigned steering wheel. Retuned electric power steering. New high-performance tyres for the range-topping GTS. They are not the kind of update that adds horsepower numbers to the press release, but they are exactly the kind that anyone who actually drives a GR Yaris hard will feel from the first corner.
A new steering wheel, designed for the way the car is actually driven.
The new steering wheel is the most visible change. Toyota Australia has reduced the diameter from 365 mm to 360 mm, and reshaped the grip to sit more naturally in the palms during sustained cornering. It is a small dimensional change on paper that translates to a more direct feel in the driver's hands.
Around the centre, the steering wheel-mounted controls have been redesigned with individually positioned switches and ring illumination, inspired by the rally version of the car. The arrangement makes them easier to find and operate under load, when your eyes are on the road and your peripheral attention is on the corner. The centre boss now carries the GR (Gazoo Racing) emblem.
Behind the wheel, the electric power steering system has been recalibrated with what Toyota describes as an expanded operating range. In practical terms, the assistance is tuned to respond more consistently across a wider band of driving inputs, from low-speed parking through to high-load circuit work.
Bridgestone Potenza Race tyres on the GTS
The GR Yaris GTS gets the most significant single hardware change in the update. It is now fitted from factory with Bridgestone Potenza Race tyres, a high-performance compound suited to circuit and competition use. The choice is consistent with how a lot of GTS owners actually use their cars, which is to say, not the school run.
The Potenza Race tyre is a step up in grip and feel under load, and is the kind of specification that genuinely changes how the car responds when pushed. It is also a tyre that, until now, plenty of GTS owners chose to fit as an upgrade after delivery. Now it comes as standard from the factory.
The GR Yaris GT continues to run its own tyre specification suited to its broader use case.
Why the changes matter
The 2026 update is small in scope by deliberate choice. Toyota's GR program does not pretend that every revision must add power. It treats refinement at the driver-to-car interface as the most efficient way to extract more from a platform that is already a serious driver's car.
Toyota Australia Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations John Pappas described the philosophy by noting that in motorsport, “improvements are measured in tenths of seconds.” That mindset shapes the GR range, and it shapes this update. The 5 mm steering wheel reduction, the EPS retune, and the tyre upgrade are not headline numbers. They are the kind of changes that make a car better to drive every time you turn the key.
Toyota Australia also pointed to Australian Rally Champion Harry Bates running the GR Yaris Rally2 at this year's Rally de Portugal as evidence that the development relationship between Toyota's road-going GR cars and its motorsport program is genuinely two-way.
When the updated GR Yaris arrives at New Town Toyota
The updated 2026 GR Yaris is confirmed for Australian showrooms from June 2026. Pricing for the new model is yet to be announced by Toyota Australia. If you are considering the current GR Yaris or planning to order the updated model when it arrives, the team at New Town Toyota can talk you through the range, including the GR Yaris GT and GR Yaris GTS grades, and the GTS Aero Performance Package.
The current GR Yaris is available to order through New Town Toyota
Frequently Asked Questions
What is new in the 2026 Toyota GR Yaris?
When does the updated 2026 GR Yaris arrive in Australia?
What is the difference between the GR Yaris GT and GTS?.
What tyres does the 2026 GR Yaris GTS use?
What is the Gazoo Racing (GR) badge on Toyota cars?
How much does the 2026 GR Yaris cost?
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