Lexus Lexus LFA News & Information

Edmunds’ Inside Line is reporting that the next generation Lotus Esprit may be powered by the same V10 engine used in the Lexus LFA:

The next-generation Lotus Esprit supercar, details of which will be announced at the2010 Paris Auto Show next month, could be powered by the 552-horsepower Lexus LFA V10, says a source close to the company.

That would be for the Esprit in its ultimate form — the more mainstream version would be offered with a V8, also likely to be sourced from Lexus. That engine will probably be a version of the 416-hp 5.0-liter engine fitted to the Lexus IS F sedan. When asked to confirm this possibility, a Lotus spokesman said that he “couldn’t comment.”

This isn’t the first time this rumor has been reported, and given that Toyota has been supplying Lotus with engines for over 25 years, this has a very good chance of being true. Should that be the case, it’s good for everyone involved. Lotus gets a supercar powerplant that can compete with the best in the game, and Toyota gets to recoup some of the development cost of limited-edition, high-cost LFA.

Seems like a win all round to me.

[Source: Inside Line]

Lawrence Ulrich of the New York Times travelled down to Millville, NJ to take the Lexus LFA around the track, and he brought some very choice quotes back with him, including this info on LFA buyers:

So far American buyers are exclusively men, and on average are in their mid-50s. Many have owned a Lexus, and they tend to be entrepreneurial types, along with one sports star whose name Lexus would not divulge.

Nor would Lexus connect me to the Midwest man who, Lexus swears, is leaning toward an LFA painted Passionate Pink, one of 30 available colors. (Mr. Mary Kay, perhaps?)

Mr. Rohovsky did allow that one “fresh green” LFA — a petri-dish shade wild enough for any Lamborghini fan — is headed to — where else? — Miami.

“He told me, ‘I want people to see me coming and going,’” Mr. Rohovsky said.

The whole article’s great — and when it comes to what Mr. Ulrich thought of the LFA?

Judged purely as an adrenaline-inducing performance tool, the Lexus tops a number of supercars I’ve driven — not just the similiarly priced Lamborghini Murciélago, but also the $1.3 million Bugatti Veyron.

That’s some heavy praise, to be sure.

[Source: New York Times] (Thanks Josh & chotabacha!)

When photographer (& Flickr user) Gideon Gillard happened upon the yellow Lexus LFA out on the highway during the Pebble Beach Concours, he chased it down and made sure to get some absolutely fantastic photos of the supercar (click for larger images):

My favorite though, has to be this shot:

Highly recommend going through the rest of Gideon’s photos — he’s spotted some very exotic exotics over the last few months.

Claus Ettensberger, owner of CEC Wheels and past Bullrun winner, has the “honor” of being the first person to get a speeding ticket in the Lexus LFA, or at least the first person to do so and post about it on Youtube:

For the record, Mr. Ettensberger was going 91mph in a 35mph zone — absolutely ludicrous in my opinion — and yet still managed to get his picture with the officer that pulled him over.

(Thanks Roberto!)

Last month, a video showed up on Youtube showing a Lexus LFA, Mercedes SLS, Porsche GT3 RS, Lamborghini LP 570-4 Superleggera, and Ferrari 458 all parked on the side of a UK road — turns out this was the work of Top Gear Magazine, who pulled the “five greatest supercars of the year” together for a showdown.

Alas, the article has yet to appear online, but according to the preview on the Top Gear website, The Stig puts each of the supercars through its paces — which should make the comparison all the more interesting. Hopefully it surfaces somewhere…

[Source: Top Gear Magazine] (Thanks Jhonatan!)

The yellow Lexus LFA made an appearance this weekend at the Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance, and Autoguide was there to snap a few photos:

Even better, the LFA was also filmed arriving at the event, making this the first known video of the sunshine yellow supercar:

That yellow is impossible to miss, sure makes for a great show car.