Toyota’s Burnaston plant chosen to produce high-performance Corolla

Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK is celebrating after being selected to produce a high-performance version of the Corolla at its factory near Derby.

Toyota Motor Europe has announced that the Toyota GR Corolla will be manufactured at Burnaston from 2026.

The plant already produces different versions of the Corolla in Derbyshire, such as the Corolla Hatchback and Touring Sports.

Toyota Motor Europe said that Toyota Manufacturing UK’s Burnaston plant had been chosen on the basis of manufacturing capability and motorsport expertise.

Yoshihiro Nakata, president and chief of Toyota Motor Europe, said: “We are proud that TMUK, our first plant in Europe, has also been selected as the first overseas Toyota plant to produce GR vehicles, securing this expansion project for Toyota Gazoo Racing worldwide.

“We very much appreciate the historical support and recognition of the UK and would like to continue to contribute to UK society as a ‘Best in Town’ company.”

Toyota Gazoo Racing was created in 2009, based on the vision and under the guidance of then Toyota Motor Corporation executive vice president Akio Toyoda.

It has since become the fastest-growing brand in the Toyota Motor Corporation portfolio.

The first TGR product – GR Supra – debuted in 2019. This was followed by GR Yaris in 2020, GR86 in 2021 and GR Corolla in 2022.

Toyota said: “Each launch has been met with high levels of customer enthusiasm and demand for TGR products has consistently outstripped supply, leading to this announcement of an expansion of vehicle production.

“The selection of TMUK as the newest production location for a TGR vehicle reflects Toyota’s efforts to optimise its global production footprint to produce and deliver vehicles to customers as swiftly as possible.”

Last year, TMUK celebrated building its five millionth car.

Toyota said that preparations for the production at Burnaston of the GR Corolla have been underway since 2024, when the team at TMUK and key suppliers were first informed about the project.

It added that details of the markets for sales, production volumes and investment levels would be confirmed at a later date.