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2023 Toyota GR Corolla Morizo interior and exterior walkaround review | Autoblog Garage

Associate Editor Byron Hurd takes us on a walkaround review of the 2023 Toyota GR Corolla Morizo.

Road Test Editor Zac Palmer wrote:

So you’ve seen the new 2023 Toyota GR Corolla, but decided it wasn’t hardcore enough. Toyota has an answer for you, and it’s the 2023 Toyota GR Corolla Morizo Edition.

This special edition GR Corolla is limited to just 200 units in 2023, and it turns the wick up even higher than the already aggressive Circuit Edition. As for its name, “Morizo” is what Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda used as an alias as a member of the Gazoo Racing team when it was getting off its feet.

The 1.6-liter three-cylinder engine is improved for the Morizo Edition, as it now makes 295 pound-feet of torque versus the regular GR Corolla’s 273 pound-feet. Horsepower remains the same at 300 ponies. The extra twist comes via re-tuned engine software, and peak torque is now made at 3,250-4,600 rpm versus 3,000-5,500 rpm. The six-speed manual is now a “close ratio” manual transmission, so expect shorter gearing versus the regular GR Corolla. Plus, Toyota says it also features shorter differential gearing for better acceleration “across the power band.”

Video transcript

BYRON HURD: This week in the "Autoblog Garage," we've got a really fun one. This is the 2023 Toyota GR Corolla. That's right, all-wheel drive, 300 horsepower, 20 more pound-feet of torque than what you get in the standard and Circuit edition. Still has the fancy carbon fiber roof. This one gets smaller, lighter, 18-inch wheels with Michelin sport cup two tires on them for great track grip. We've got this pretty pearl white paint, absolutely beautiful, and sets this car apart. You can also get it in a nice matte gray finish if you want something a little meaner.

And then maybe one of the quirkiest features on this, especially for a Corolla, a three-exit exhaust. And believe me, this thing sounds absolutely wild. All right, now since this is a Morizo edition, the real story is inside. But before we get there, let's talk about the things that set apart a GR Corolla from your normal standard Corolla.

We'll start here with the hood. You get these two hood heat extractors on the top, those two little vents. We've got this big, wide grille up front tool, and it's pulling all that air in through the intercooler and all the other cooling systems. Make sure this thing stays nice and cool on the track.

Now moving on to one of the features you can actually use to spot a GR Corolla Morizo edition in the wild, that's the wheels. These are 18-inch forged wheels. They're lighter than what you get on the Circuit edition, and they come with these Michelin Pilot Sport Cup two tires. Those are super grippy, not the kind of thing you really want to be caught out in a thunderstorm with, even with all-wheel drive, but they're amazing if all you want to do is set a fast time.

So one thing you definitely don't normally see on a Corolla is a carbon fiber roof. Lowers your weight, especially up top where you really need it. There were a couple more choices made out back for lightweighting too. We've got a missing rear wiper arm. The motor has also been removed. That produces a little bit of weight here in the hatch. And then we've got the exhaust system here. Now, with it's triple exit exhaust, which is not at all subtle. In fact, it sounds absolutely crazy. And the integration with the rear diffuser makes it look nice and mean.

All right, now let's take a look under the hood of the 2023 GR Corolla Morizo edition. Now, this one has an additional 22 pound-feet of torque over the standard and Circuit modells. Same 1.6-liter 3-cylinder cylinder turbo engine, and the same total power output, it's just the extra torque. And that is paired with transmission changes that actually get you more acceleration. The gearing and the gearbox itself has been shortened, and the final drive ratio has been shortened so you get more acceleration everywhere, and it helps you take advantage of all the weight they took out of the car too.

All right, now before we get into the cabin of this thing, why don't we take a look at the back? Because 106 pounds came out of this car compared to the Circuit edition, and it's really easy to see exactly where they found them. As you can tell, there's no rear seat. It's gone. That, in addition to the wiper arm removal and several other interior components, add up to that 106 pounds.

Now, you might be surprised. 106 pounds doesn't sound like a lot for an entire rear seat for all the other components. There's no spare tire, things like that, but that's how hard it is to get weight out of modern automobiles. These things are complicated, and they're built for safety. And so even getting 100 pounds out of something this big takes a lot of work.

Welcome inside the 2023 GR Corolla Morizo edition. Now, as you can expect, it's relatively Spartan in here, but it's still surprisingly feature-rich. But let's start with the fun stuff, right? We've got the GR logos and the red stripe here on the wheel. It's finished in this faux suede that you also get on the seats where the bolsters are trimmed in faux leather. Everything's fake, but it looks pretty real.

The beauty of this car is that it's designed to be as fast as possible and as simple as possible, but it still comes with lots of nice features. So you have, sure, your drive mode selection. You have normal eco sport and custom, so you can set your engine and your air conditioning calibration in case you don't want it to freeze you and sap engine power while you're cruising on the track.

You've also got the option for a rev match for the manual transmission here. It's the only transmission you can get in this car. You press that button, it'll automatically blip power for you when you shift. You also have your quick track mode right here. You push this dial, and it instantly puts the car into track mode, which is addition to the other drive modes. And the outside of this dial is the differential control. It switches it from 60/40 split to 30/70 split, so you get 70% of your power going to the rear wheels through this awesome all-wheel drive system.

So that's the front. You get this nice feature-rich cabin up here. But as you might recall, there are no rear seats in this thing. So what is in the back? Let's take a look. All right, so here's the back seat such as it is in the 2023 GR Corolla Morizo edition. As you can see, there isn't one.

And it's kind of an interesting setup here. You've got this cross brace down here and the strut tower brace in the back. The strut tower brace does have a child seat anchor on it. So if you want to put a seat in the front, you can still latch it to the back. There's also power port back here, USB, and standard 12-volt. So in case your nonexistent passengers want to charge an iPad, they're in good shape.

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All right, folks, that's the 2023 Toyota GR Corolla Morizo edition. Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe, and let us know what you think in the comments below. Take care.

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