Toyota Launches Lotteries To Decide Who Gets GR Corolla RZ And Two-Seat Morizo Edition In Japan

Toyota’s GR Corolla is such hot property right now that anyone lucky enough to get themselves on the first wave of orders is going to feel like they’ve won the lottery. And if those owners are in Japan, they really will have won a lottery.

Back in June when Toyota launched its home-market version of the GR Corolla, called the GR Corolla RZ, and the even harder, two-seat GR Corolla Morizo Edition, it claimed the regular car would be available to order through dealers across Japan.

But problems caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and a shortage of chips have forced Toyota to switch to a lottery system for the allocation of a small initial run of just 500 cars in Japan. The online lottery runs until December 19, with the possibility that more cars may be released later, depending on availability. Winners will be notified by January 13, with deliveries beginning that spring.

Related: The 2023 Toyota GR Corolla Finally Gets A Configurator, What Does Yours Look Like?

Allocation of the stripped-down Morizo Edition was always going to be via a lottery, and hot-hatch fans hoping to get one of just 70 cars can sign up in person at GR Garage locations across the country until December 18. Successful candidates will get the good news on January 6, and deliveries should start a few months later, dovetailing with those of the regular car.

To accompany the news of the new ordering system Toyota released a video featuring GR Corolla Chief Engineer Naoyuki Sakamoto, GR Corolla development driver Hiroaki Ishiura and lots of apologetic bowing.

Both the standard ¥5,250,000 ($38.6k) JDM GR Corolla RZ and the ¥7,150,000 ($52.6k) Morizo, which gets its title from company boss Akio Toyoda’s racing nickname, are powered by a 300 hp (304 PS) evolution of the 1.6-liter triple fitted to the GR Yaris and equipped with all-wheel drive.

But the more track-focused Morizo generates 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) instead of 273 lb-ft (370 Nm), comes without rear seats, and is fitted with different gear ratios, dampers, and tires.