IXO Models adds a WRC2-class entry to its 2024 rally programme with this 1:18 die-cast reproduction of car No. 44. Driven by Hikaru Kogure with Finnish co-driver Topi Luhtinen, the GR Yaris Rally1 ran under the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT umbrella at Rally Finland 2024, held in Jyväskylä on 1–4 August as Round 11 of the season. Among the full Toyota WRT lineup that weekend, this No. 44 represented the team's active young driver pathway — a distinct subject within the 2024 model range.
The Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 HYBRID
Introduced for the 2022 WRC season under new Rally1 hybrid regulations, the GR Yaris Rally1 replaced the Yaris WRC that had served Toyota from 2017 to 2021. The car is built around the GR Yaris road car platform with a bespoke rally superstructure and a 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine paired with the standardised 100 kW hybrid unit supplied by Compact Dynamics — engaged automatically at speeds above 50 km/h. Combined output reaches approximately 500 hp, and the homologated bodywork measures 4,075 mm in length.
Kogure, Luhtinen and Toyota's Home Rally
Rally Finland is Toyota's home event and one of the fastest rounds on the WRC calendar, run from Jyväskylä on stages known for long, flat-out gravel roads and enormous jumps. Hikaru Kogure, one of very few Japanese drivers active in the WRC2 category in 2024, contested Round 11 of the season under the Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT programme alongside Finnish co-driver Topi Luhtinen. Car No. 44 wore the team's characteristic white, red and black livery common to TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRT programme entries throughout the 2024 season.
The IXO Models 1:18 Scale Model Car
IXO Models produces this 1:18 resin and die-cast metal model to capture the event-specific decal variant of car No. 44 as it appeared at Rally Finland 2024. IXO's rally programme is known for reproducing individual round-specific livery details that are rarely revisited, meaning each release effectively documents a single moment in the season. The white, red and black Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT colour scheme is rendered across the GR Yaris Rally1 bodywork, with competition number 44 and co-driver lettering correctly applied.
In the Display Cabinet
The No. 44 sits naturally alongside other IXO Models 1:18 GR Yaris Rally1 releases from the 2024 WRC season — including the factory entries of Sébastien Ogier, Kalle Rovanperä and Elfyn Evans — forming a coherent single-season Toyota tableau. Collectors building a WRC2 or young driver development theme will find it equally at home with Ford Puma Rally1 or Hyundai i20 N Rally1 programme cars from the same year. For those focused on Rally Finland specifically, the model anchors a round-by-round display of one of the WRC calendar's most demanding events.
