Lexus LF-A – revealed +video

Lexus has revealed the LF-A at the Tokyo Motor Show, featuring a 553bhp V10 with a 0-60mph of 3.5 seconds.

In the car world, particularly with the changing landscape brought about climate change concerns, a year is a long time. Which of us a year ago would have expected BMW to turn up to the Frankfurt Motor Show with a ‘Supercar’ powered by a 1.5 litre engine (Vision ED)? Or see Aston Martin about to release a tiny city car based on the iQ (the Cygnet). It is starting to feel like the end of the real supercar. And Tokyo was shaping up to be completely ‘Eco’, with super frugal new cars abounding from the Japanese car makers.

Until Lexus announced it was bringing a Supercar to Tokyo, that is. After four years of waiting and endless spy shots of the LF-A pounding round the Nurburgring we finally see the official reveal of the Lexus LF-A. A glorious 4.8 litre V10 Supercar with 552bhp, 354lbs/ft of torque, a 9,000 rpm redline, a six-speed sequential ‘box, a 0-60mph time of 3.5 seconds and a top speed of over 200mph. That’s better.

Sadly, the LF-A still won’t hit the roads for over a year as Lexus tell us that deliveries won’t start until 2011. And there will only be 500 LF-As made at the less than bargain price of £336,000. Which does seem a great deal of money for a Japanese car with similar performance to that other Japanese Supercar – the Nissan GT-R – which comes in at about 1/6th the price. Still, it does look special.

There’s huge attention to detail, as you would expect from Lexus, with 390mm Carbon Ceramic brakes, track-tuned suspension featuring aluminium monotube dampers, a drag coefficient of just 0.31, a leather and Alcantara  clad cabin with LCD displays and front and rear carbon fibre crash boxes.

It certainly looks like Lexus has created something of a masterpiece with the LF-A. Let’s hope it drives as good as it looks. As you already know, Thomas Bangma – a Dutch car journo – reckons the Lexus LF-A is the best driving car ever built. A promising start.

Video and pictures below, and all the bumph from Lexus in the Lexus LF-A Press release.

Lexus LF-A Photo Gallery

[nggallery id=304]

Lexus LF-A Video