GR Sport treatment ‘possible’ for other SUVs

TOYOTA has released full details of its HiLux GR Sport this week, the Dakar Rally-inspired flagship arriving from $73,990 plus on-road costs and in showrooms courtesy of a development program led extensively by the Toyota Conversion team based in Avalon, Victoria.

The off-road edition of one of Australia’s best-selling vehicles includes modified chassis and suspension components, visual and aerodynamic upgrades, a bump up in power and torque, styling and protection elements and interior enhancements that aim to elevate the model’s capabilities beyond those of the second-from-top HiLux Rogue, with which the GR Sport shares much of its architecture.

And according to Toyota Australia vice president of sales, marketing and franchise operations, Sean Hanley, the HiLux GR Sport is not the end of the road for similar, locally developed models.

Speaking to GoAuto at the recent launch of the HiLux GR Sport, Mr Hanley said the capability of the Toyota Conversion facility allows breadth beyond HiLux alone.

He said Toyota Australia will offer not only a HiLux variant to sit atop the GR Sport from next year, but also has the scope to enhance other models in the range, including the same-platform-based Fortuner SUV.

“We are very lucky in so far as we have a (local) Toyota conversion centre – and we only set that up four or five years ago – which helps us to develop a broader range of vehicles, as we’ve demonstrated with the Rugged-X and Rogue, and now the GR Sport, which is lifting our capability all the time,” he said.

“We do intend to expand upon that capability, and it is an area where there is the capacity to do these types of things going forward … we certainly have the capability to do more vehicles of this type – more conversions and more customisations – in the future.”

When asked about the possibility of a Fortuner GR Sport, Mr Hanley said that “nothing is off the table”, and that within reason any vehicle in the range could be a contender for localised enhancement – provided the business case stacks up.

“We would never rule it (a Fortuner GR Sport) out because it is an area where people want more customisation, more capability, and more options,” Mr Hanley told GoAuto.

“If you look take the HiLux as an example, we can move on many fronts to enhance the offering for Australian customers, and we simply couldn’t do that without the advanced facility and team that is Toyota Conversions.

“As we go forward, I expect that capacity will only increase.”

In general terms, Toyota is widening its GR Sport range to encompass almost every model in its portfolio.

Locally, the fire-breathing GR Sport Yaris and Corolla hatch are already attracting a cult-like following, filling the void left by the demise of the likes of the Subaru WRX STi and Mitsubishi Evolution.

The GR Sport flag is also flown at full mast on the BMW Z4-based GR Supra and Subaru BRZ-based GR86, and adorns the fully-equipped and go-anywhere LandCruiser 300 Series.

As for what might come next, we can only say ‘watch this space’.