Lexus unveiled the production version LFA supercar back in 2010, after three concept versions were unveiled in 2005 and in 2007, and then again in 2008 in roadster form. Even if the car stayed in production until 2012 with only 500 units built, at the end of 2020 the company still had one LFA unit unsold. Still, the LFA proved itself to be a very good investment: after being bought new for $375,000 there are units out there these days selling for more than $1 million.
And, ever since the production ended, people were talking about a successor for the LFA. Initially, Lexus said it has no plans for a new generation LFA, but after that, it reversed its initial statement and said that there “might” be a new supercar after all. It was even rumored that the new LFA could be developed in cooperation with BMW… We now believe we are less than a month from the debut of a pre-production version of Lexus’ coming supercar, which could take place at next month’s Monterey Car Week.
In early 2022 Lexus unveiled the Sport Concept an electric concept that gave us hope that the wait is finally over. We also thought that the next LFA will be offered with an electric powertrain, just like the concept, but it seems that those rumors were wrong. And so were the previous rumors that suggested the next LFA will be offered with a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 with hybrid assistance.
The Japanese magazine Mag-X reports that the next LFA will borrow its powertrain from the Lexus LC endurance racer. The latter is powered by a newly developed 5.0-liter naturally aspirated V-8 twin-turbo engine that delivers a total of 470 horsepower.
Lexus built this new V-8 engine because it wanted a serious competitor for models like the Porsche 911 and BMW 8 Series, but the pandemic killed Lexus’ plans. Now, the engine is getting some fresh attention, and it seems it will be featured in the next LFA supercar. However, with a current output of just 470 horsepower, the company will have to find a solution to increase this output to more than 552 horsepower – the amount of power delivered by the first generation LFA. It is believed that the company will assist the V-8 with a hybrid system that will bring the final output to more than 700 horsepower.
It also said the LFA II will “be put on the market as a substitute for the GR010 Road Going version.” The Gazoo Racing GR010 is Toyota’s entry in the Hypercar class of the FIA World Endurance Championship, powered by a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 hybrid system. rated at an unrestricted 938 horsepower, though race regulations cap its total output at 670 horses. At the moment, Hypercar class rules mandate that participants sell at least 20 road-going versions of their entries within a two-year period, so we’re not sure how the LFA II supplants the GR010 with a different engine.
The U.S. market should get its first look at the Lexus Electrified Sport Concept in August at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. It is also very possible that the new LFA will make its world debut somewhere in the States since this was the biggest market for the first generation.
