Report Claims Toyota Plans To Sell a Sporty GRMN Prius

Photo: Toyota

We certainly didn’t expect to love the new Prius. After all, it’s a Prius. But then Toyota went and revealed a shockingly good-looking design. Late last year, we got our first chance to drive it, and we were impressed. Just because the new Prius drives better than the old one doesn’t mean it’s actually fun to drive, though. But what if the folks behind the GR Corolla developed a version that’s legitimately sporty? It may sound farfetched, but it might just happen.

The Drive recently found a report by Japan’s Best Car that claims a GRMN-tuned Prius will show up sometime in the next year and a half. Although if it is revealed in 2023, it’ll be close to the end of the year. Allegedly, the GRMN Prius will come with a stiffer chassis, better brakes, an upgraded suspension, and some unique interior changes.

There’s no information on how much more power it will make, but Best Car believes it will be based on the plug-in hybrid Prius Prime. We’re not sure how feasible this is, but we agree with The Drive that Toyota should just go ahead and throw the GR Corolla’s engine in there. In the event that some sort of GR Prius is actually being developed, that is.

And that really is the big question here. Is this report actually based on solid information? There’s no way to tell. On the one hand, Best Car previously told us the next-generation GR86 will be a turbocharged hybrid, which is one heck of a wild rumor. But on the other hand, as The Drive pointed out, it also accurately predicted the GR Corolla.

At this point, we’ll believe it when we see it. But at the same time, we really want it to be true, even if the hotrod Prius doesn’t get the GR Corolla’s engine. The 2023 Prius Prime already makes 220 horsepower, so a little extra power and better handling would probably make the Prius a fuel-efficient hoot to drive.