The Lexus LF-A - sold out in Japan
It’s being reported that Lexus has already sold all 136 Lexus LF-As destined for the Japanese market, just three months after the official reveal.
We’ve had all the hype on the Lexus LF-A, from a decade long gestation (or did it just feel that long?) through teaser images, proper images and reports that the LF-A was “…the best driving car in the world”.
And then came the price – £336,000. Which is a shed-load of money for any car, much less a Lexus. No heritage; a reputation for boring if well built cars and performance that is remarkable but not astonishingly better than a Nissan GT-R, which costs a fifth of the LF-A. Looked like a hard sell.
And it started to look like an even harder sell when Lexus announced that if you were a US citizen you wouldn’t even be allowed to buy an LF-A. You’d have to lease it. Only in the US, mind you. A bizarre decision. So everything seemed to stack up against the 500 Lexus LF-As being built getting sold easily.
But no one has told the Japanese that the LF-A is overpriced. Or if they have, they don’t care. Because it’s being reported that all 136 LF-As scheduled to be sold in Japan are already sold. Which is remarkable. And must have put a big smile on the face of Toyota.
Now we’ll have to wait and see how many get sold in the US and Europe. But Lexus don’t seem to be making it easy for buyers. In Europe, if you actually want to have a look at the LF-A before you buy the only place is the dedicated mini LF-A dealership in London inside the Lexus dealers in Park Lane. And as we’ve already said, if you’re American you have to take it on lease or not at all.
But over 25% of the total of 500 LF-As already sold is a very good start for Toyota.
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