1st Generation Lexus RC 300, 350, F and Track Edition Megathread

[Faisal Sheikh]

A great stock 2:33 lap time around Suzuka Motorsports Club

 

[mikeavelli]

Had to take a Vid of this RC F, my favorite during SEBRING

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

Had to take a Vid of this RC F, my favorite during SEBRING

Great video, Mike.

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

2020 RCF review by 'We are motor driven'. Race track + street review. Looks like the only issue they had was brakes starting to get squishy after 5 laps on the race track. Since it is a press car, I think it must be due to already worn out pads.

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

 

[mikeavelli]

I got to find a way to have one. My favorite car to drive at the track. I’m a big guy so it fits me well. The brakes are unreal. The difference between this and a stock RC F is pretty damn apparent to me. This is much more of a knife out the box. I just love it!

Again the brakes are everything!

 

[Motor]

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

RCF TE goes to battle with a BMW M2. It is a stock TE with sticky slick tires.

Despite being 400+ lbs heavier and a passenger weight, the RCF is damped so well for track work with that chassis rigidity that the M2 seems like the one to be struggling to deal with the rapidly changing camber/elevation/banking angles etc. M2 is compressing, flexing and rebounding like crazy (would never hear anyone say a lightweight M car cannot handle a very technical track as well as a heavy F-car on the track, but that is what it proves). Moral: Magic is all in chassis/suspension tuning.

 

[Levi]

To be fair, M2 has a short wheelbase, so it is less stable. To be fair RC F has a shorter wheelbase than M4 and is closer to M2. To be fair RC is more of a sports cars than a 2 door sedan. RC F is a very underrated V8 coupé, and probably the second best choice after a Porsche with regards to handling in the non-supercar segment. It is among the best cars to come from Japan.

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

To be fair, M2 has a short wheelbase, so it is less stable. To be fair RC F has a shorter wheelbase than M4 and is closer to M2. To be fair RC is more of a sports cars than a 2 door sedan. RC F is a very underrated V8 coupé, and probably the second best choice after a Porsche with regards to handling in the non-supercar segment. It is among the best cars to come from Japan.

RCF is 185 inches longer with a wheelbase of 107.5
M2 is 175 inches long with a wheelbase of 106

So the ratio of length to wheelbase is so heavily skewed for the RCF.

Short wheelbase does have its advantages especially in terms of chassis response in relation to wheel lock especially in slow, tight turns, but Nurburgring is all momentum/flow with lots of very technical and fast turns. Nurburgring challenges the chassis and suspension geometry very hard. I am looking at how the M2 is compressing, swaying and rebounding all the time while the RCF TE with all its weight is composed and right on his tail. By the looks of what I can see, the M2 is not damped well for a very technical track at such high speeds.

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

He does a 7:54 completely stock with the ADVAN A052 tires and a passenger and traffic. Easily could have been a 7:40 - 7:45 without traffic and no passenger.

 

[mikeavelli]

That was awesome to watch . I wonder will we get black in 2023?

 

[Levi]

He does a 7:54 completely stock with the ADVAN A052 tires and a passenger and traffic. Easily could have been a 7:40 - 7:45 without traffic and no passenger.

People are all about car specs, but the driver is the main variable. That is why chasing car specs is childish, get the tool you a fine using, not dream boy racer.

PS: Toyota/Lexus mainstream cars are slow, but I see it is changing now, and hybrids are now the best performing version, with improved fuel economy too.

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

People are all about car specs, but the driver is the main variable. That is why chasing car specs is childish, get the tool you a fine using, not dream boy racer.

PS: Toyota/Lexus mainstream cars are slow, but I see it is changing now, and hybrids are now the best performing version, with improved fuel economy too.

I almost think Lexus should have done that because there are so many negative stereotypes because Lexus did not get ahead of the narrative. For example, when BMW launched the M4 CS back in 2017, they immediately released a 7:38 lap time video with a pro race car factory driver on Cup 2 tires with no traffic and no passenger.

This German dude (Julian) is just an RCF TE owner and almost matching the F30 M4 CS with less straight line performance and without that big turbo torque in a heavier car. Even as an RCF owner, I am having trouble processing it.

Definitely, those ADVAN 052 tires seem to have insane grip considering how fast he is going into the turns. There is no tire squeal at all. I would think they have even more grip than Cup 2 tires (at the expense of street drivability and traction in rain where Cup 2 do an OK job).

That was awesome to watch . I wonder will we get black in 2023?

Thanks. I believe, you mean a 2023 RCF TE? Yes, there are indications that RCF TE/FSW will continue into the last year of RCF.

 

[Gor134]

The AO52 are one of the best regarded and fastest tires in the track and autocross community! Expensive but very fast tires

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

The AO52 are one of the best regarded and fastest tires in the track and autocross community! Expensive but very fast tires

That sounds about right. The videos show crazy level of grips that even Cup 2 cannot generate from what I can see

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

 

[Faisal Sheikh]

 

[mikeavelli]

Driving a Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition for a few days.. here for the IMSA race at Road America. This is #10 of 50… i just love it…

 

[Will1991]

@mikeavelli , I don’t want to give you bad idea but…

It seems you’ve your Eleanor