Toyota has announced that the brand’s Gazoo Racing division will be taking an active role in the development of Lexus F vehicles, including the next-generation GS F — from Car & Driver:
[Gazoo president Shigeki] Tomayama said that GR is already involved with developing a new Lexus GS F. What’s unclear is whether he’s referring to an F variant of a next-generation GS or merely an updated version of the current GS F. Considering recent rumors that the GS will not live on to see another generation, we tend to lean toward the latter.
As with the Supra, Tomayama explained, rear-end grip is an important aspect of the new GS F’s dynamics. He said that the new car needs to be lighter to achieve the playful feel GR is aiming for.
Motor Trend was apparently in the same discussion with Tomayama:
Gazoo is now involved in tuning the Lexus “F” models, specifically the next-generation GS-F.
“We are looking at what kind of target audience the car has, what tone and manner, how much understeer and oversteer balance,”Tomoyama said. “The cars have to run faster, and that tuning is already (in place). Even within Lexus, we may have different models which have different tuning.”
This story is significant in a number of ways, but the most important angle is that the GS F will be getting a next-generation at all — rumors of the mid-size sedan being cancelled have been rampant in the past few months, and the idea of a new GS F is a welcome shift in the narrative.
(The above image is a rendering from Japanese magazine Best Car. Hat tip to LXE member Supra93 for finding these stories.)
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