Toyota has revealed plans to market a hot hatch version of its Yaris supermini alongside its return to the World Rally Championship.
However no details of the new car have been released apart from a sketch, and a timescale for its introduction has not been stated.
The Toyota announcement says merely that the brand “will use experience gained from its full-blooded return to the World Rally Championship to develop and improve its road car technology and expand the Yaris range with a new performance-focused model.”
The sketch suggests that the Yaris hot hatch will be styled to take on rivals such as the Ford Fiesta ST and forthcoming hot hatch superminis from Kia, Nissan and Volkswagen. Enlarged wheels under extended arches, further bodywork add-ones including a rear spoiler, and a low ride height are all indicated in the sketch.
The hot hatch could be powered by a 1.6-litre turbo engine, like the WRC version, though with rather less than the 380hp of the competition car. Likely direct rival the Ford Fiesta ST puts out a maximum of 200hp.
Industry sources also suggest that the car could be dubbed the Toyota Yaris Gazoo, linking it directly to the motorsport programme.
