[luluna]

This was recently published:

Toyota’s Goal Is to Make “One Too Few” GR Corollas

Though there's no hard cap on production, Toyota wants to make sure its most exciting mass-market performance car remains exclusive.

www.roadandtrack.com

The source is Toyota Vice President of Marketing Mike Tripp, so the information is probably a good representation of the stock levels we should expect. I think it makes you sign in, so here is just a copy paste of the article.

The Toyota GR Corolla is coming later this year and it appears to be all that we were hoping for. The only questions remaining are whether you'll be able to get one and how much it'll cost. And while Toyota isn't confirming anything about pricing, the company tells Road & Track that the special, hands-on Motomachi production facility will be able to meet the demand for the GR Corolla.

"I wouldn't say the limiting factor on these vehicles is our ability to produce them," Toyota Vice President of Marketing Mike Tripp told R&T. "It's being very careful to make sure that we maintain the niche credibility."
The right amount to ensure that while expanding the brand, Tripp says, is "one too few."

It's a similar strategy employed by high-end automakers like Porsche, who carefully calibrate production capacity to ensure there's never an over-supply of their most exciting vehicles. After all, unsold inventory shatters the illusion that a car is highly sought-after.
Toyota's maintaining flexibility for that reason, but Tripp says the company is predicting that a full year of sales will end up around 8000 units. Expect 2023 to fall shy of that number, with the production ramp and limited early availability limiting total sales to around 6000 cars.
The company also intends to keep the Corolla fresh and in-demand by rolling out updates and special editions. The first special edition is the Circuit Edition, for which Toyota hasn't shared production run plans. But Tripp told R&T to expect one each special edition to make it to most dealers, putting minimum production numbers around 1250.

"When it comes to something that's this niche, it's important to us that we give every dealer the opportunity to get one," Tripp said. "So if you do the math—and this is no guarantee—if we have a special edition for every dealer, that's 1250-ish. So when you have a total volume of somewhere between 6000 and 8000, and a special edition that's 1250 of that, we think that's the right balance. But one too few will be our goal, just not because of production limits."

Summary:

They predict they can make as many as they need to satisfy supply.

They are intending to throttle production to keep the car elusive and the hype maxed.

(At least?) One special edition per dealer.

6000 units the first full year, ramping up to 8000 units the following years.

They intend more more limited editions in the future. [Speculation: This would indicate the GRC will be produced for a decent amount of time]

 

[underscore]

It sounds like everyone here should have an okay time getting one then, even if they have to wait a bit. I generally prefer a second model year car myself. The question then becomes do you get one as soon as you can, or do you wait and see what other features and special editions come out, then hoping that they then don't remove something you wanted to have.

 

[killer23d]

It sounds like everyone here should have an okay time getting one then, even if they have to wait a bit. I generally prefer a second model year car myself. The question then becomes do you get one as soon as you can, or do you wait and see what other features and special editions come out, then hoping that they then don't remove something you wanted to have.

They took a hint from first MY Supra and those first MY owners are definitely not happy with the improvements (which is standard) made on the subsequent MY 😆

I am torn because later MY will have more things "standardized". If there is an allocation for me, should I take the car or sell the allocation? I'd assume the Circuit Edition is near 50k, that's not little money to me. Should I get it now knowing I can (which I confirmed I am #2 if not #3) at my dealer, or hope for the best I will get the next edition for even more $?

Especially Canada has announced the death of ICE for passenger cars in 2035, how many revisions can we sustain before everything becomes electric?

 

[underscore]

What kind of improvements did the Supra get?

 

[Taroroot]

So they should let the model stagnate and not make any improvements? Yeah i get people being bummed, but thats the deal with being early adopters, just accept it! There are some cases tho where they tweak later years and the first ones actually end up being the better ones. If i recall the MR2 was one where i think later ones they dialed in more understeer to make it safer, but hp drivers prefer earlier ones.

 

[killer23d]

What kind of improvements did the Supra get?

First GR Supra is 2020, there are a few significant changes for 2021, primarily the engine has more power, different tuning, etc.

 

[killer23d]

So they should let the model stagnate and not make any improvements? Yeah i get people being bummed, but thats the deal with being early adopters, just accept it! There are some cases tho where they tweak later years and the first ones actually end up being the better ones. If i recall the MR2 was one where i think later ones they dialed in more understeer to make it safer, but hp drivers prefer earlier ones.

That's right, many people falls into this endless wait cycle. I am still upset my 19' doesn't have Android Auto and now is standard 🤷‍♂️. On the flip side, the attentions I get on the first couple years from strangers were immeasurable; even now, XSE 6MT in blue is still nearly impossible to get. I even had a couple strangers come to me offering to buy my car, that tells you how desirable some cars are.

Like buying a Porsche, I don't expect the GRC to be something you can simply walk in and walk out with one. The niche factor is there especially many people missed the CTR and STi boat, maybe some RS folks too.

In Canada, Toyota is a very small potato in the family. I would be surprised if we even get 15% of the total production.

Off topic: I think I will wrap the car in Blue Flame, I really like the Smurf color.

 

[luluna]

Especially Canada has announced the death of ICE for passenger cars in 2035, how many revisions can we sustain before everything becomes electric?

Toyota is slated to transition to EV in 2030 (self-imposed). IMO, while the GRC line would like continue to exist for some time, I imagine they'll start shifting focus towards a GR badged Hybrid/EV sooner rather than later. That would be the next big step.

We'll get the automatic variant in a year or two. They'll probably batch it with a power bump and a facelift + special edition, then ride it out till Hybrid/EV time.

 

[killer23d]

It's sad that they are watering down the GR brand with the GR Sport trim in other parts of the world. Didn't they learn enough from TRD (Toyota Racing Decoration)?

Looking at my checklist, does GRC missed anything? Maybe a fully disconnected drive axle and full time RWD? Maybe dedicated button for boost/launch control/drift etc? 😆

Maybe by 2030, we will see one facelift but I doubt there will be huge improvement on the power/handling department since they have to make significant upgrades to the GA-C platform.

 

[SpaceFolding]

We'll get the automatic variant in a year or two.

Is it a risk if I'm holding out for an automatic? It concerns me that the marketing used very careful wording like "exclusively in manual", my first thought was Toyota wants to make sure the first impression messaging is crystal clear for initial hype, press, reviews, and word of mouth, without the automatic boogeyman ruining the party. To me it would be unbelievable if they are making a new automatic but not make it into the GR Corolla. Even the GR86 has some form of an automatic. It has already been proven that Toyota doesn't mind deploying some misdirection to throw people off, so "exclusive in manual" is for you to read between the lines, for now.

 

[Tokyotexan]

Biggest change for the supra in 2021 was the Cylinder head. Went from a 2 exhaust port head to a 6 exhaust port head. 2022 aupra didnt incorporate much change from 2021, but i think that was due to covid.

 

[Tokyotexan]

Why are people throwing around the 50k nunber for circuit pack editions? TOYOTA said both models will be competitively priced. Only model the circuit pack competes with is the Golf R and even that is a stretch. Golf R has more power and is more luxurious. Golf R is 44k, I dont think the circuit pack exceeds that price. The "core" package competes more with the WRX and/or CTR. So i see it being priced competitively with a nicely loaded WRX or a standard CTR which is approx 38k.

 

[Taroroot]

Looking at my checklist, does GRC missed anything? Maybe a fully disconnected drive axle and full time RWD? Maybe dedicated button for boost/launch control/drift etc? 😆

The grc/gry awd is based off a fwd witg a pto for the rear, there isnt a center diff, so i cant think of an easy way to disconnct front drive and make it rwd.

 

[surfwaxsmitty]

Really happy to hear these numbers.

Been buying used since I was a kid, and with this this being the end of an era, and being able to afford it, I’m not over thinking it.. I’ll buy it asap, drive the hell out of it, sell it when I buy a new one if it makes sense, and make sure I end up with a good example I can keep around long into the EV era.

it would be awesome if the GRC sales demonstrate the demand for ICE MT sports cars, and supports a trend for this type of car to be produced along side an EV market.

 

[Wynorrific]

Why are people throwing around the 50k nunber for circuit pack editions? TOYOTA said both models will be competitively priced. Only model the circuit pack competes with is the Golf R and even that is a stretch. Golf R has more power and is more luxurious. Golf R is 44k, I dont think the circuit pack exceeds that price. The "core" package competes more with the WRX and/or CTR. So i see it being priced competitively with a nicely loaded WRX or a standard CTR which is approx 38k.

I don't think Circuit will be 50k before markup. Expect mid 40's to be competitive with the Golf R since we are sacrificing power for exotic materials and a semi-hand build car

 

[Tokyotexan]

I don't think Circuit will be 50k before markup. Expect mid 40's to be competitive with the Golf R since we are sacrificing power for exotic materials and a semi-hand build car

Agreed. Golf R is 44k, I expect the circuit pack to be like 42k or 43K to just slightly undercut the Golf R

 

[Jeonsa]

Basically they don’t want to cheapen the GR brand which I like. I hope it translates well though.

 

[Tokyotexan]

Basically they don’t want to cheapen the GR brand which I like. I hope it translates well though.

But dont they stick the GR badge on cars which just have some minor aero mods? Sounds like cheapening the GR badge a bit.

 

[Jeonsa]

But dont they stick the GR badge on cars which just have some minor aero mods? Sounds like cheapening the GR badge a bit.

Hey no more boring cars. 😂

Stateside the only GR products we have are the big 3, we’ll see. To make the exact amount of cars needed though means order system instead of allocation but who knows.

 

[Tokyotexan]

Hey no more boring cars. 😂

Stateside the only GR products we have are the big 3, we’ll see. To make the exact amount of cars needed though means order system instead of allocation but who knows.

I hope toyota learned from their mistake with the GR86 allocations that they do the order system for the GRC