Is Litchfield-tuned Toyota GR Yaris worth it over the regular one?

The Toyota GR Yaris is the hottest hatch fitted with a production three-pot, and tuner Litchfield has recently endowed it with 45 extra horsepower. The question is, is it really worth fiddling with the engine like this?

CarWOW decided to hold a few drag races to figure it out. The stock GR model commands 265 PS (261 hp / 195 kW), but adding an external ECU and an improved air filter boosts it to 310 PS (305 hp / 227 kW). The upgrade kit comes in at an affordable £640 in Great Britain.

On a rain-soaked runway, the hotter of the two hatches made it to the end of a quarter-mile in 12.9 seconds, while the OEM one wasn’t too far behind with its 13.3 s. The next race saw the driver of the tuned car off to a slow start, but the tune compensated for that and brought him another victory.

In the end, the Litchfield power kit looks a worthwhile investment – at least, to the parties involved in the video. Some commenters beg to differ, pointing out that voiding your warranty for a modest performance increase is not worth it.

What do you think?