Compare the2023 Toyota GR CorollaVS 2022 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Toyota GR Corolla are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the GR Corolla are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The GR Corolla has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The GR Corolla has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The GR Corolla’s blind spot warning system uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer a system to reveal objects in the driver’s blind spots.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the GR Corolla’s standard rear cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.

Both the GR Corolla and the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and driver alert monitors.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the GR Corolla 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 12 times as many Toyota dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the GR Corolla’s warranty.

The battery on the GR Corolla is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the GR Corolla’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, MINI is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in overall reliability. MINI is ranked 23rd.

The GR Corolla has more powerful engines than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door:

As tested in Car and Driver the Toyota GR Corolla (base engine) is faster than the MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (manual transmissions tested):

The GR Corolla has 1.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (13.2 vs. 11.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

For better stopping power the GR Corolla’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door:

The GR Corolla’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door are solid, not vented.

The GR Corolla stops much shorter than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door:

For better traction, the GR Corolla has larger standard tires than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (235/40R18 vs. 175/65R15). The GR Corolla Morizo Edition’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (245/40R18 vs. 205/40R18).

The GR Corolla’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door’s standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the GR Corolla has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 15-inch wheels are standard on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the GR Corolla’s wheelbase is 5.7 inches longer than on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (103.9 inches vs. 98.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the GR Corolla is 3.8 inches wider in the front and 4.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door.

The GR Corolla’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (58.4% to 41.6%) than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door’s (62.3% to 35.1%). This gives the GR Corolla more stable handling and braking.

The GR Corolla Circuit Edition handles at .96 G’s, while the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door pulls only .85 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the GR Corolla a Compact car, while the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door is rated a Subcompact.

The GR Corolla has standard seating for 5 passengers; the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door can only carry 4.

The GR Corolla has 4.3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door (84.6 vs. 80.3).

The GR Corolla has .6 inches more front legroom, .5 inches more front hip room, 3.3 inches more front shoulder room, .7 inches more rear headroom and 6.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door.

The GR Corolla’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door John Cooper Works does not have a temperature gauge.

The GR Corolla’s standard power windows have a locking feature to keep children from operating them, but the driver can still raise and lower all of them with the lock engaged. MINI does not offer a locking feature on the Cooper Hardtop 2 Door’s standard power windows.

The GR Corolla has two rear doors to provide better access for cargo and rear passengers. The Cooper doesn’t offer rear doors.

The GR Corolla has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

For greater rear passenger comfort, the GR Corolla has standard rear heat vents to keep rear occupants more comfortable. The Cooper Hardtop 2 Door doesn’t offer rear vents.