Someone Wrecked a New Toyota GR Corolla Already. Who Wants the Parts?
One man’s trashed Toyota is another man’s treasured parts car.
Images of what might be the first wrecked 2023 Toyota GR Corolla have recently surfaced on social media. They give us reason to keep our eyes on Copart, because what's left of this car is probably about to sell for a pretty penny.
The origin of the photographs isn't apparent, but they have been disseminated via users of the GR Corolla Forum. They show the Toyota having taken an almighty whack on its roof and A-pillar, the airbags deployed, and its driver-side mirror mangled and dangling off like that scene in End of Evangelion. It appears the driver was hooning their GR Corolla on a dry lakebed, only for one side of the car to dig in—the snaking tire tracks in the background of some shots indicate this.
A closer inspection of the car reveals dirt trapped under the corners of some sort of film applied to the paint. Some speculate this to be paint protection film that is used to protect new cars en route to dealers, and that this car was therefore taken for an ill-fated joyride. Others however have pointed out that this Corolla's coating is applied in strips, indicating that it's not PPF but instead aftermarket paint-protection tape of the kind sometimes used for track days.
Regardless of what it's coated in or why, this GR Corolla is pretty much toast, and its only value at this point is as a parts car. Specifically, as an engine donor, as its highly tunable 1.6-liter G16E-GTS turbo three-cylinder is the perfect swap for any number of classic Toyotas. Sure, you can technically get one as a crate engine, but the rest of the drivetrain? This is probably your only chance to get that, and lord knows there's an old Tercel or Celica that could use 300 horsepower and drift mode.
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