Autocar is reporting that a high-performance Lexus GS F is still very much a possibility:
Product planning chief Karl Schlicht revealed to Autocar that he would “love to see” a GS-F make production, although he conceded that he “didn’t yet have it approved” by senior Toyota management.
The GS-F would be the final piece in a five-part product strategy to boost Lexus’s image and its sporting credentials. “With a GS-F, we would have a solid pyramid structure of performance models,” said Schlicht.
He said it was important that any Lexus kept its refinement. So, if approved, it’s likely that the GS-F would be as much a potent grand tourer as an out-and-out focused driving tool.
This may be an obvious point, but any chance of a GS F rests on the success of the standard GS range. If the new model can maintain a decent sales pace, a high-performance variant makes a lot of sense — in fact, a senior Lexus official talking openly about a GS F would suggest that discussions are in advanced stages.
Autocar also includes some speculation on the GS F’s potential powertrain:
No details have been given of the GS-F’s powertrain, but insiders have hinted that it could be a detuned version of the LFA’s 4.8-litre engine. It would be reduced to 4.6 litres and around 450bhp, with an emphasis on boosting low-end torque.
This isn’t the first time the LFA’s V10 has been mentioned as a possible GS F engine — here’s a quote from GS Chief Engineer Kanamori-san last year from a Motor Trend article:
Mr. Kanamori said Lexus never planned to carry on with the V-10 project, but that it was “technically feasible to fit the engine into the new GS.” Further proving the idea has been seriously pondered, he said the engine would have to be detuned to deliver more torque instead of power.
Releasing a GS F with less than 500hp seems like a risky move given that this class of super-sedans is dominated by stats — and yet, even though the new BMW M5 is packing 560hp and the Mercedes E63 AMG has 518hp, if I had to choose between one of these models and their twin-turbo V8s versus a GS F with a LFA-sourced V10, I know what I’d pick every time.
[Source: Autocar]
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