Overview

The Lexus LFA is a two-seat exotic sports coupe manufactured by the Japanese car maker Lexus, a mark of the auto giant Toyota. The Lexus LFA is a "halo" car made, to promote sales of the entire marque and to prove of what Lexus is capable to do.

Lexus presented the production version of the LFA at the 41st biennial Tokyo Motor Show. It was introduced by Toyota's new CEO, Akio Toyoda at the press conference. When the production announcement was mate, the LFA marked 20th anniversary of the launch of Lexus.

Only 500 units of the super car will be made, with 20 units a month for 25 months from December 2010 to December 2012. Lexus began to take orders starting from October 23, 2009; the buyers were selectively chosen by Lexus in second quarter of 2010. Each car will be made on customer's specifications and it has an approximate cost of US $375,000 depending on options and customization.

Lexus allocated 150 LFAs for the North American market initially sold through a two year lease program. The program is similar to what Ferrari when they sold their F50 and is meant to prevent owners from reselling their LFAs to gain profit. Later Lexus changed their stance allowing buyers to an outright purchase, but only if they agree to sign an agreement giving the dealer first right of refusal to buy back the car if he owner wants to sell it within the first two years.

In Europe, the Lexus LFA can be ordered only from the a single Lexus dealer located in Park Lane, London, from were the car is bought outright.

Variants

Lexus offers the LFA only in a coupe body style and whit a 72-degree 4.8-liter V10 equipped with dual VVT-i. The engine produces some 560 hp @ 8700 rpm and a maximum of 354 lb/ft of torque @ 6800 rpm.

The engine is mated to automated sequential gearbox six speed transmission with gear ratios of: 3.231:1 for the first gear, 2.188:1 for the second gear, 1.609:1 for the third gear, 1.233:1 for the fourth gear, 0.970:1 for the fifth gear and 0.795:1 for sixth gear, reverse gear has a 0.795:1 ratio and the final drive has a ratio of 3.417:1; the power is delivered to the rear wheels; also at the rear axel there is a Torsen limited slip differential. The gearbox has four settings: auto, normal, sport, and wet; Lexus said that in Sport mode, the upshifts take only 200 milliseconds. A dual clutch gearbox was also tested, but the engineers felt that the gear changes are too smoth, which is typical to a Lexus car, but they decided to stick to the single clutch gearbox for its more abrupt and mechanically engaging shifts.

In terms of performance, the Lexus LFA is capable of sprinting from zero to 60 mph in a very fast 3.6 seconds, do a quarter mile time from a standing start of just 11.9 seconds and get to a, Lexus claimed, top speed of 202 mph (325 km/h). As for the fuel consumption, the LFA returns an average of 14.4 miles to the gallon.

The chassis of the LFA features a in house designed and manufactured monocoque frame, from carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP), with aluminum front and rear subframes, which can be removed and replaced. The steering features a electric power steering rack with a 14.3:1 gear ratio. For the front suspensions, Lexus used a double-wishbone arrangement, when at the rear a multi-link arrangement was chosen; also all four wheels featured coil-over dampers. The stopping power of the LFA is provided by a six-piston front and four-piston rear Brembo monobloc brake calipers with 390 mm (15.4 in) front and 360 mm (14.2 in) rear carbon ceramic discs controlled by Toyota's Electronically Controlled Brake brake-by-wire system. The standard wheels on the car are forged 20-inch BBS fitted with 265/35 R20 front and 305/30 R20 rear Bridgestone Pontenza tires.

The Lexus LFA measures 177.4 inches (4,510 mm) in length, 74.6 in (1,895 mm) in width and 48 inches (1,200 mm) in height. The wheelbase measures 102.6 inches (2,610 mm); the front track measures 62.2 in (1580 mm) and the rear track measures 61.8 in (1570 mm). The LFA seats only 4.528 inch (115.0 mm) above the ground. Because of the lightweight materials used for the body and chassis, the LFA weights only 3263 lbs (1480 kg).

Additional Information

Lexus offers a track orientated version of the LFA named LFA Special Edition or LFA N rburgring Edition. The N rburgring Edition models has 10 more hp, a recalibrated transmission, lightweight alloy wheels, stiffer and more adjustable suspension and large fixed rear wing.