Say hello to the world’s most powerful Toyota GR Yaris, a little hot hatch that now has almost as much power as a Porsche 911 GT3.
It is no secret that the GR Yaris is quite the pocket rocket. After all, it has the world’s most powerful three-cylinder engine, churning out 268 hp from the 1.6-liter unit in Japanese specification. Evidently, the guys from Powertune Australia weren’t satisfied with that figure and have spent months slowly creating a GR Yaris unlike any other.
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Recently, Powertune’s GR Yaris had been modified to the point where it was pumping out 429 hp (320 kW) at the hubs. However, fuel limitations meant that it couldn’t produce any more than that. This prompted the Aussie tuner to fit the car with an upgraded fuel pump and a new surge tank.
Once this was done, it was able to start tweaking the engine timing and cam timing and during the most recent dyno run, recorded a remarkable 472.8 hp (352.6 kW) on a hub dyno, meaning the engine itself has over 500 hp.
Given how insane that peak horsepower figure is, you could be excused for thinking that every component in the 1.6-liter three-cylinder has been replaced. However, the only mechanical modification made to the engine is the fitment of new valve springs. That means it retains the stock block, rods, pistons, head gasket, head studs, and camshafts.
The tuner has yet to take the car to the drag strip in its latest guise, but expects it to dip into the 10-second range down the quarter-mile at over 130 mph (209 km/h).