For better or for worse, there’s a new entry level Toyota model in the GR-family – Indonesia’s Toyota Avanza Veloz GR Limited, priced from just IDR 221,400,000 (about RM 65,000). But hey, it’s rear-wheel drive, and in Indonesia, Avanza is the preferred car at gymkhana circuits.

Toyota’s GR family of cars are split into two tiers – sitting right the top are pure GR cars – the Toyota GR Supra, Toyota GR Yaris, and Toyota GR86 – models that exist only as a GR model, as opposed to BMW’s M or Mercedes-Benz’s AMG range, which are upgraded versions of their regular models.

At the lower tier is GR Sport, cars like the Toyota Vios GR Sport. GR Sport cars feature only chassis and transmission mapping upgrades (not always followed by Indonesia and Thailand though). Power output remains unchanged, analogous to BMW M Sport or Mercedes’s AMG Line range of cars.

And then we have this GR Limited, which is not mentioned anywhere in Toyota Gazoo Racing’s official materials, which makes us wonder how did this project even got approved in the first place?!

There’s no need to peer under the hood or its undercarriage, as this Avanza Veloz GR Limited is merely a badge-slapping, styling exercise.

The Veloz GR Limited variant replaces the previous Veloz variant, which was a regular Avanza with a sportier styling package.

As before, the Veloz (GR Limited) is differentiated from regular Avanza variants by its sportier front and rear bumper – now with GR badges. The model now comes with black alloy wheels (previously silver-finished), still 15-inch in size. Inside, no changes are made, Veloz variants' interior are still black.

As before, there are two engine options – a 1.3-litre (97 PS/127 Nm) and a 1.5-litre (104 PS/136 Nm), both Dual VVT-i, paired to either a 5-speed manual or a 4-speed automatic, driving the rear wheels.

It should be noted that the Toyota Avanza is a Daihatsu product, with the Daihatsu Xenia being its twin. In Indonesia, the Avanza is manufactured at Astra Daihatsu Motor’s plant in Karawang.

Seeing how the Veloz variant has been trimmed to just one, and the fact that the current generation Avanza was first launched in November 2011, and had already received 2 facelift exercises, the most recent one in 2019, this Avanza Veloz GR Limited is most likely a final-hurrah before its retirement.

Also read: DNGA-based, next-gen 2022 Perodua Alza could launch at the end of this year

The next generation Toyota Avanza/Daihatsu Xenia will most likely be merged with Malaysia's Perodua Alza, switching to a front-wheel drive DNGA platform. There are also rumours that Xenia will continue to soldier on in its current form as there are still demand for a rear-wheel drive people mover in the rural parts of Indonesia.