CarWOW compares three exotic Corollas in a drag race

For many years now, the CarWOW team has conducted countless acceleration matchups between cars, trucks, EVs and even Formula racers. A drag race between a trio of Toyota Corolla compacts seems mundane in comparison, but only at a first glance.

The first contender is a Corolla Hatchback NGTC built for the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) with a 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder under the hood tuned to 370 PS (365 hp / 272 kW) and 400 Nm (295 lb-ft) of torque. A similarly powered Corolla GR Hybrid benefits from some instant torque thanks to an added electric motor.

Rounding off the roster is an iconic Corolla 1600 GT Coupe, which uses a 1.6-liter naturally aspirated 4A-GE engine rated at 182 PS (179 hp / 134 kW) and 190 Nm (140 lb-ft) of torque. While much less powerful than its rivals, this one is also by far the lightest.

Which one do you think won the races? Spoiler: it’s a Corolla.