First Impression: Lexus LFA

Lexus was founded in 1989 to function as Toyota's luxury brand. The first two cars made by Lexus were the LS 400 and ES 250. In 2005, Lexus premiered a supercar concept and showed a more refined supercar concept in 2007. In 2008, Lexus reveal a roadster version of the supercar concept. In October 2009, Lexus revealed the production model at the Tokyo Auto Show. Lexus calls the supercar the LFA. The LFA is the first ever supercar made by Lexus. In December 2010, the first LFAs went into production. Over a 25 month span with 20 LFAs produced monthly, 500 LFAs will be produced.

I first saw the Lexus LFA at the June 2011 edition of Houston Cars and Coffee. There was a huge crowd around the LFA. It is a nice looking grand tourer, but there were better looking grand tourer at the event. The LFA's exterior was deisgned with an emphasis on downforce. With air intakes in the back, one would think the engine is in rear, but the rear air intakes help cool the breaks. The side mirrors are designed to help funnel air into the rear air intakes. The engine is actually in the front-middle of the car.The gap between the hood and front bumper help feed air to the engine. It has a small trunk in the rear that is accessible by lifting the rear glass. This is a great initial supercar by Lexus.

The LFA is powered by a 4.8L V10, paired to a six-speed semi-automatic transmission, that produced 552 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque. The LFA goes from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 mph and reaches a top speed of 202 mph. Prices for the LFA start at $375,000. The Lexus LFA is fast, but it is very expensive for car that goes 202 mph. There are cars that are faster and quicker than the LFA and cost less than $200,000.

Jay Leno did a feature of the LFA, which can be seen at www.jaylenosgarage.com. Richard Hammond reviewed the car during Top Gear Series 14, Episode 7. The LFA is playable in Grand Turismo 5, Shift 2: Unleashed, and Forza Motorsport 3.

Final Thoughts: The LFA is the best car made the Toyota Motor Company. It shows that Toyota and its other brands can make exciting high performing vehicles while making boring hybrids at the same time. Toyota can produce the Prius and the Lexus CT 200H hybrids while producing the Lexus LFA. One of Toyota's rival, Honda, stopped making the NSX and S2000 to focus on the production of the CR-Z and Insight hybrids. Compared to the Nissan GT-R, the Lexus LFA is faster and quicker and has a better design. It is fast, but there are several cars that are quicker, faster and less expensive than the LFA. The LFA is a very clever super car and is the fastest production car made in Japan. The price is just too high for what it is. The Ferrari 599, Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, and Lamborghini Gallardo are faster and less expensive than the LFA. Still, there is nothing like the LFA on the road and this car will stand out in parking lots and on the roads. People will stop to look at it.

CarJunkie
Photo taken from a digital camera