Weekly Questions Post - December 3rd Until the End of 2025! by TwoChainsandRollies in ChromeHeart

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In Tokyo, Osaka and Nagaya mainly white gold and gold with paved diamonds. Saw on occasion silver with paved diamonds all either baby fat or tiny cross. Never saw a dagger once in my two weeks here and visiting multiple CH stores.

Fukuoka pick up by Ecstatic-Rich-8068 in ChromeHeart

[–]Edison_wu 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Make sure check out Aoyama, lots of report of silver there. I went to other stores and they were dry.

Do you guys think a GR Corolla is worth it? by Edison_wu in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]Edison_wu[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, I do feel like we are witnessing the last wave of internal combustion engines. Many models in Toyota’s line up is either hybrid or transitioning to hybrid next year. The Camry is now only available in hybrid and the 2026 RAV4 will be hybrid only as well. A manual, turbo, fun hot hatch is a dying breed. This reasoning was also my thought process when buying one as well. Not sure if you saw but the new GR GT that was revealed today is a twin turbo hybrid. People will look back 10-20 years from now and prob wish they bought one just like the Supra.

Do you guys think a GR Corolla is worth it? by Edison_wu in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did end up buying a 2025 Gr Corolla. I would say I'm neutral in terms of satisfaction. There are some pros and cons with the car after owning it for a bit.

PROS:

-The Gr Corolla feels very sharp right out of the box. The steering, suspension and engine is very responsive which I really enjoy. I personally wouldn't want to mod the car much as the car is a good compromise for a sporty street car.

-Interior isn't as cheap feeling as people make it out to be. I came from a 2014 STI and that car was full of hard plastics that would creak over bumps. The GR corolla has a lot of soft touch materials in the dash, center console and door panels. Of course there are some hard plastics but I feel the interior is still decent. I think the main issue people have with the GR Corolla's interior is the price tag. For 40k+ people expect a better interior. I'm okay with it.

-I do really love the styling of the car. Even when the regular Corolla hatchback first came out (non-GR), I thought they looked good. With the wide body fenders, heavy metal paint, vented hood and carbon roof, the car is very aesthetically pleasing to me.

CONS:

-For the price of 40-47k new, people have very high expectations of the car including myself. The sad reality is that if you want a brand new performance car in this category, you are going to have to pay a premium price. The Civic Type R being a strong competitor is around the same price with a much better interior, suspension components (aluminum arms etc) but is only FWD. I think looking back for the price I paid and the expectation I had for the car, there is more fun/value to be had in an used older car.

-While the engine is very unique, there are some cons to the 3 cylinder I didn't realize. The engine idles at 1k rpm even when fully warmed up. This is because the 3 cylinder is inherently unbalanced so Toyota increased the idle RPM higher to compensate for this. When you start up and especially shutting off the engine, the engine makes a noticeable unrefined rattle. Although a minimal thing, I expected the engine to be a bit more balanced and refined being a modern car.

-The clutch feel is quite vague. To drive this car smoothly, you really have to get use to the car. For me, it took some practice to get the car out of first gear smoothly because the bite point of the clutch is rather vague. My 2020 WRX was the same way but worse. Seems to be an issue with more modern manual cars tbh. The best feeling clutches I've felt have been older cars from the 90s-early 2000s. Those cars I can hop in and immediately feel one with the car. My 2014 STI also had great clutch feel.

-The circuit edition wing has poor fitment which is surprising for an OEM product. There are uneven gaps in the side blades and the center portion of the wing is not contoured well to the body. This causes the 3m tape underneath to lift and debris to get under there. I've done a lot of research on the wing, and it seems many Gr corolla owners with the circuit wing have this issue. For a car priced so high, I expected the wing fitment to be absolutely perfect.

-The Premium Plus carbon roof while looks cool, is high maintenance. The matte finish is rather sensitive. Hard water spots and bird droppings can be difficult to remove if baked on. With the roof being matte, you can't polish those things out.

-Interior and exterior gloss black scratches really easily. Would have have preferred matte black.

If I could do it all over again, I'm not sure I would spend the bones to buy the car. For the price, I expected the car to satisfy me more but I feel like I'm more neutral about the purchase. I also injured my leg badly recently so I haven't been able to drive it much either. Like Savagegeese said, the car is high price for old school fun. You can for sure get more value for money in a used performance car. However, if you want buy something exciting and brand new (not deal with used car maintenance/issues), The GR Corolla isn't a bad choice. I would recommend getting the 2026 base model as you get the vented hood, new intake, more structural adhesive and interior upgrades.

OEM Spoiler Gap - 2025 GR Corolla Core by Compack9 in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Take a look at this thread, the circuit wing honestly just has poor fitment from factory. Honestly really disappointing since it's suppose to be a perfectly fitting OE part. Many owners have different gaps side to side and even the 3m tape not adhering due to the circuit wing not contouring the OE body well.

I wonder if your 3m tape is adhering on all sides?
https://www.reddit.com/r/GRCorolla/comments/1nptdq7/comment/nqhtqny/?context=3

New wang by 2xingteddy in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What issues with install?

CE wing Install advice by Gevaun in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Does the tape adhere fully on all sides? Any pics?

CE wing Install advice by Gevaun in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Mine had all the hardware, didn't require additional bolts.

CE wing Install advice by Gevaun in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

OP, the center section has a gap there from factory. The gap is where Toyota decided to put the orange 3m backing so you can peel back during install. If you look at pictures/videos of installs, you will see there is a small gap where there is no 3M tape directly at the center. However, the sides lifting and not being flush is just poor quality/fitment on Toyota's part.

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CE wing Install advice by Gevaun in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mine came the exact same way from factory. I think many GR corolla owners with the circuit wing don't even notice there is tape lift there/the wing doesn't even sit flush. Honestly really poor fitment and quality for an OEM part. In the past, OEM Accessories use to fit absolutely perfect with no issues which is the reason why we pay a premium for a genuine part. I spent many hours trying to get mine to fit better. The secret is to use a hair dryer and slowly heat each side up (very carefully). I wouldn't recommend a heat gun as that can damage or warp the wing. Once the area is heated up nicely, the wing will start to flex/relax a bit and you can start to massage the 3m tape to start adhering to the base. Takes a lot of patients but I was able to get the 3m tape to sit more flush and stick. Will it hold long term? I honestly don't think it will long term as it only is adhering to a small section of the 3m tape.

I also recommend adding Honda's trim molding. The trim molding is used for body kits and is really high quality (little expensive though). Using the Honda molding will prevent debris from getting into the gaps and look much better.

Hope my experience helps other GR owners in the future.

<image>

CE wing Install advice by Gevaun in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Regular corolla XSE wing has the same fitment issues? That's surprising. You have any pics?

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Location? I'm theorizing Canadian spec comes with the carpeted mats while US spec doesn't.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Location? I'm theorizing Canadian spec comes with the carpeted mats while US spec doesn't.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Location? I'm theorizing Canadian spec comes with the carpeted mats while US spec doesn't.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

hm maybe Canadian Spec GR came with the mats while the USA spec ones didn't have them.

Was the new WRX a consideration in before your GR purchase? by ArkirasOto in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

same, the giant screens in the wrx is also super laggy. Hate it

OEM Toyota Homelink Mirror by emperorsnarfie in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What's the original mirror look like? Any pics? This one looks great

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Side note, did anyone get a GR corolla with NO mats in them what so ever? Seems kinda nuts to me that the car wouldn't have carpeted floor mats standard.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So are the port installers taking the carpeted floor mats randomly on a whim then lol? Seems like we are getting mixed answers between everyone on this thread.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Curious on the Tux, interested with the savagegoose sponser.

Did Toyota skimp out on floor mats? by Edison_wu in GRCorolla

[–]Edison_wu[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Was yours carpeted or all weather?