There’s no shortage of sports cars in Toyota’s global range: the GR86, the GR Supra, and the GR Corolla are all pegged on the performance side of the scale. And yet, the company chose the humble, family-friendly Corolla Cross to represent it and compete in Brazil’s Stock Car Pro racing series.
You’re not wide of the mark if you’re thinking “That doesn’t look like a Corolla Cross!” Like NASCAR, Stock Car Pro involves silhouette-bodied racers concealing tubular chassis, so Toyota made numerous visual modifications to the crossover’s design, reworking its proportions for race duty. The low and long hood, widened wheel arches, and slashed roofline end up forming the shape of a station wagon. It’s like a modern-day Volvo 850 British Touring Car. Gazoo Racing also added a huge rear wing, a rear diffuser, and center-locking wheels.
While interior photos haven’t been released, we’re betting there’s not much that’s sourced from the Corolla Cross parts bin.
Power for the Stock Car Pro-bound Corolla Cross comes from a turbocharged, 2.1-liter four-cylinder engine that sends about 500 horsepower to the rear wheels via a six-speed sequential transmission, per Top Gear Philippines. For context, the model you’ll find parked on your nearest Toyota dealer’s lot uses a 2.0-liter four-cylinder rated at 169 hp and linked to a continuously variable transmission (CVT). There’s a hybrid system available, too.
Toyota’s wagon-ized Corolla Cross will line up on the starting grid for the first time in 2025. It will need to fend off competition from at least two other crossovers turned into race cars: the Chevrolet Tracker (a model only sold in select global markets) and the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross. The company hasn’t announced who will drive the Corolla Cross yet, but Stock Car Pro lures big-name talent, including former Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa.
“What wins on Sunday sells on Monday” remains true, even when we’re talking about an SUV, so it’s not too far-fetched to speculate the race-ready Corolla Cross could spawn some kind of limited-edition model in Brazil. Better yet, how about a full-blown GR Corolla Cross?
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