After months of teases and race-car previewing, Toyota is publicly unveiling its production-spec LF-A supercar at the Tokyo Auto Show [via Automotive News [sub]]. And it’s a legitimate front-engine supercar, with a 4.8 liter V10 motivating it to 60 MPH in 3.7 seconds. It even has a true supercar pricetag: $375,000. But how does this car square with Toyota’s appliance-and-environment-driven image? “It’s our mission as automakers to offer cars that possess the ‘fun’ spirit that should be at the base of any car,” explains Akio Toyoda, who sees the supercar as a way to gain attention in developing markets. But having axed its own front-engine V-10 supercar, Honda is reacting to the LF-A by retreating into greener-than-thou sniping. “Sure, there are folks who like that ‘vroom’ of the engine out of nostalgia,” snickers Honda prez Takanobu Ito. “The era of V10 engines is gone.” And you’ll never guess what vehicle Ito offers up as Honda’s counterpoint to the LF-A.
Ito claims that, in certain ways that are apparently more evident to firms that recently canceled their own supercar development, Honda’s FCX Clarity is a comparable sportscar. Sort of. But the sour grapes are so evident here it hurts. “It’s light because it’s not weighed down by a ton of batteries,” Ito says, making what may be the first Hydrogen-versus-battery sport-factor argument in history. “When you weigh a car down like that, it undermines the characteristics of a sports car.” Take that Tesla! “But if you have a light car like the FCX Clarity that’s powered by a motor, you get maximum torque from a zero start and acceleration is incredible. In a way, that’s a sports car.”
And Ito is right. Cars, especially enthusiast-oriented cars, should be as light as possible, and an EV sportster without the battery weight does sound appealing. But an FCX Clarity? That’s like calling the Volt a sports sedan. And calling V10’s “the past” is no more accurate than calling hydrogen “the future.” Now if Ito had said that the world needs a new-age NSX that was actually true to the original concept (which, incidentally, Ito created), we’d be listening. Holding up his California-only, lease-only fuel cell experiment doesn’t make Honda look any more prescient or admirable.
[Thanks to Joesph Kaitschuck for the video tip]
As of right now, Honda is profitable. Toyota isn’t.
FCX brings new stuff to the table. LF-A doesn’t. It’s only an NSX imitation 20 years late and 200% overpriced.
http://lexus-lfa.com/
Maybe I’m suffering from supercar fatigue, but I really didn’t think the world needed yet another carbon fiber mega dollar loss maker. What is Toyota trying to do? Exorcise the vanilla demon that spawned their current white goods-on-wheels product lineup? And what exactly does this car do that a Porsche Turbo can’t for a third of the price?
At least by publicly stating that only 500 will be made and that they will only be offered to a hand picked list of “high-profile” individuals, they are at least admitting that this is an exercise in marketing as opposed to automotive engineering.
Well, the LF-A and the Clarity are both halo cars that won’t be profitable, I guess they have that in common.
The whole Clarity as sports car thing is embarassing though. Maybe they should put a fuel cell drivetrain in an S2000 or Si if they ever want to credibly make that argument.
Nice job on Toyota for the LF-A. I’m seriously impressed.
But how does this car square with Toyota’s appliance-and-environment-driven image?
The IS-F would like a word with you. And maybe the LS 600h L.
Is Toyota becoming the new Honda?
IS-F is pretty neat, but it’s 4 door, and of course it’s not V10. LF-A is basically Toyota’s toe-to-toe answer to Nissan GT-R.
If only my bike had a proper cat to produce similar emissions to a car, I’d be able to have my cake & eat it to:
0-60 in 3.5
1/4 mile in the high 10’s.
average street mileage of ~ 40mpg.
If that is too sucky for you, you can pay the $69k or so for the electric bike that is out, most likely faster than the above, with 0 emissions.
Whoops: here it is:
http://www.ridemission.com/mission-one-superbike/the-bike/
This has all happened before. In 2002 Chevy made the decision to dissolve the production of the Camaro, leaving the rear wheel drive Pony Car market to Ford and the Mustang. In 2006, with Mustang sales through the roof with a great design and total control of the niche market, Chevy said, as does Honda above, that the Monte Carlo was a comparable car to the Ford. Yeah, that worked out well.
Isn’t this car 10 years in the making? Hat’s off to Toyoda for sticking to his guns and bringing this car to fruition (even though at a 500 car run at $375k each, not everyone will get a taste).
The notion that Honda’s CEO canceled the NSX and is now pushing the Clarity as Honda’s answer makes no sense and further highlights the fact that Honda has no idea what its future plans are. Autblog recently reported that Honda is now reversing its stance against electric-only cars and is researching bringing a competitor to the Nissan’s Leaf and the plug-in Prius.
As if the Crosstour wasn’t enough indication of their WTF-are-they-doing nonsense.
SupaMan :
October 21st, 2009 at 1:08 pm
The notion that Honda’s CEO canceled the NSX and is now pushing the Clarity as Honda’s answer makes no sense and further highlights the fact that Honda has no idea what its future plans are.
—
It makes all the sense. The NSX replacement will never be profitable and won’t really promote Accord/Civic/CRV sales.
The Clarity, on the other hand, has a chance (though small) of being the new Accord.
Say, if the Accord platform will be making $10B revenue per year for Honda, then even if there is a 1% that the Clarity become the next Accord, it’s worth an annual investment of $100M.
We’re at a real turning point in automotive history. The problem is that we don’t know where we’re headed. Electric? Parallel hybrid? Serial? Hydrogen? Diesel? Gas? Turbo? Supercharger?
Every solvent automaker has a bet in most of these pots and is waiting for something to take off. So far, the Prius is the only real success in the US, and no one has been able to replicate it.
You have to feel for Honda. Their mainstream products — Civic, Accord, CR-V, Pilot, Fit and Odyssey are well done and big hits. But where they have tried to innovate — Insight (1 and 2), Ridgeline, Crosstour they have failed to gain real market traction.
I hope the CR-Z can be profitable at the $18-20K mark for them — maybe then it will be popular, as the RSX and CR-X once were.
Pete Zaitcev :
October 21st, 2009 at 12:55 pm
IS-F is pretty neat, but it’s 4 door, and of course it’s not V10. LF-A is basically Toyota’s toe-to-toe answer to Nissan GT-R.
If that’s the case, they’ve overpriced it by about $300k.
Who in the hell is going to be lining up to drop $375K on a Toyota?
For that kind of jack give me a Murcielago or a Scuderia.
F*#@, Toyota, just because you can do something does not mean that you should.
It’s a sports car on par with all those Italian makes, except it has a dealer network that spans the country and people are going to pay extra attention to this car since it is from a company not known for doing this type of thing. Don’t sit there and say well I would rather buy a Murcialago, when you can’t and won’t be able to afford either car.
Agreed that $375K is pretty aggressive pricing…is this car going to be $100K hotter than the new Ferrari 458 Italia? Doubtful.
Methinks the fine executives from Toyoda have slipped some crack in their sake or something…it’s like charging $150K for a Lexus LS 460 when you can get a nice S-class for $100k.
Still, I’m always glad when amazing, outrageous supercars actually get made, rather than remaining dreams or getting 86’d due to the bean counters. Chances are I’ll never own one (or a Ferrari for that matter) but good for you, Toyota.
TOTAL sour grapes from normally admirable Honda.
Check out that white LF-A. It even sounds like White Elephant!
A ludicrous price point. Engine on the wrong end of the car. Yesterday’s transmission tech. And it looks funny. If Toyota wants to recover their lost enthusiast cred, how about a decent competitor to the 370Z, RX-8, Evo, and STi??
@AWD-03:
“Don’t sit there and say well I would rather buy a Murcialago, when you can’t and won’t be able to afford either car.”
Eff you and the horse you rode in on. I am not some poseur claiming that I could afford either car. My point was that in the price range of this car there are makers that have pedigree and market cred. If Toyota had priced this thing in alignment with the GT-R that would be one thing. They really shot for the moon with their first foray into the “supercar” world. It is like Wal-Mart putting caviar next to the tuna fish.
I just don’t see a lot of people lining up to drop $375k on a car that looks like a riced out ’02 Celica, even if it is wonderful to drive. For that kind of scratch people want beauty, or at least emotional expression (thining Lamborghini here) with their performance. I could be proved very wrong, however. I’ll be interested to see how this plays out.
I also agree with Honda to some extent. I find the CR-Z much more interesting than the LF-A. The former should be light, economical, and feature performance you can actually access on the street without fear of jail or killing someone.
@ talkstoanimals
The Honda man was talking about the FCX Clarity, Honda’s hydrogen-powered people pod, not the electrified CRX-esque CR-Z.
Wow, I did not see this price coming. I thought it was going to be priced in the Vantage / 911 Turbo area. I don’t see why anyone would buy this over any of the similar priced competition. It would be like pricing the original LS at 2-3 times as much as the S-class. Just insane.
My point was that in the price range of this car there are makers that have pedigree and market cred.
“Pedigree” and “Market cred” are like “Heritage” or “Character”. That is, they’re nice ways of saying something is an unreliable, poorly made pile that happens to drive well when it’s not sitting in the garage between three-month repair layovers.
There’s a market for people who want a very nice, very fast car but don’t want to put up with the mechanical princesses that are European—and especially Italian—supercars. The original NSX scared the bejeezus out of Ferrari; I suspect the LF-A will do it again.
@Boff,
I understand that, which is why I agree to some extent (i.e., with the spirit of the comment, not with letter of the comment). The Clarity is vaporware, and I’m not talking about the water vapor that comes out of the tailpipe. But the CR-Z, which would have made a more apt counterpoint to the LF-A for the Honda man, seems more in tune with the direction of where the automobile is headed. The LF-A is in tune with where the automobile was – in 2006 and ’07.
“That is, they’re nice ways of saying something is an unreliable, poorly made pile that happens to drive well when it’s not sitting in the garage between three-month repair layovers.”
Tell that to the people who smoke their GT-R transmission using the factory installed launch mode.
The original NS-X was not priced like a Ferrari, which is the whole point I was trying to make. Yeah, I would take Ferrari like performance at a cheaper price any day. Toyota is not offering the cheaper price. And mechanical reliabiity is yet to be determined.
The original NS-X was not priced like a Ferrari, which is the whole point I was trying to make. Yeah, I would take Ferrari like performance at a cheaper price any day. Toyota is not offering the cheaper price. And mechanical reliabiity is yet to be determined.
Precisely. Toyota is asking a select few customers spend more for a Toyota than a Ferrari, Aston MArtin, Porsche, Lambo, etc., all established super car brands. Sorry, but I don’t see why anyone would drop that kind of cash to be seen in a Toyota. I don’t generaly see people point and whisper to each other, “Is that a Toyota?!” Make no mistake, that is a big part of owning a supercar, to be seen.
Toyota finally builds something remotely sporty and everyone complains?
sfdennis1 :
October 21st, 2009 at 2:15 pm
Agreed that $375K is pretty aggressive pricing…is this car going to be $100K hotter than the new Ferrari 458 Italia? Doubtful.
It looks 100k better than a 458 in my opinion and more exclusive to boot.
Toyota couldn’t get people to spend 50 grand on their last supra. What makes them think people will spend 375k in a segment where the badge is everything? Then again the Zonda ended a success, but that took years of buzz to really take off.
As far as honda, I don’t think they are calling sour grapes. They will be the first to bring a reasonably priced green sports/sporty car to the market.
Honda, seriously. You could argue that they’re both halo cars that may inspire trickle-down tech. But a sports car? I hope that’s just the translation.
As for the Lexus, I agree it’s not $100K better than a 458, but at least you’ll be able to drive it 100% of the time. And I don’t think either car is really that pretty. Loving the IP.
The NSX was a FANTASTIC idea with one HUGE mistake. A limited displacement engine that was naturally aspirated. Seriously, the NSX is an INCREDIBLE car. In nearly every way better than equivalent priced cars of the time. Except one. HP/Torque. A supercar that eventually had the same HP as a Toyota Camry was doomed during the HP wars. It’s a shame Honda couldn’t figure this out or invest some resources to correct this problem.
As for the LF-A. Please step away from the crack pipe. Priced at $130,000 or less and you’ve got something…. And even then it’s questionable as a 500+ HP benchmark 997 TT can be had for that kind of money. This car is a total fail….
psarhjinian :
The NSX was also cheaper (both to buy AND maintain) than contemporary Ferraris. The $100k+ that a Ferrari or Lambo buyer would save over buying this thing can pay for a LOT of repairs.
This car also has nothing unique going for it. It’s a front-engined V-10 car-like a Viper. Actually, the Viper is more powerful and looks better. I’m not saying a Viper is a better car, but if I’m paying that much I would at the very least want something mid-engined and/or V12
I would love to see a sub-$100K NSX and German import fighter from Toyota.
But it would need RWD, manual trannies / dual clutch auto and a bunch of other stuff that Toyota really doesn’t do
V10 engines are actually quite rare. Viper and BMW M5 is all I can think of right now….
Maybe the v10 is an offshoot of a F1 design
Lambo and Audi R8 have V10 options (two boys from the same mother)
And Ito is right. Cars, especially enthusiast-oriented cars, should be as light as possible, and an EV sportster without the battery weight does sound appealing.
It does sound appealing, but Ito is conveniently ignoring all the mass and volume needed for the hydrogen fuel cell system. Why do you think the Clarity is so huge to begin with?
Fuel cells are relatively low power. Honda doesn’t like to mention this but to even get that 10 second 0 to 60 time, the Clarity has to use (that’s right) a battery (rumored to be about 16kWh). The car is essentially a serial hybrid with a (~1 million dollar) hydrogen fuel cell range extender (with a nearly non existent fueling infrastructure) and a battery they won’t let you charge from an outlet.
Now consider this. The Tesla Roadster Sport costs $136K and has a 0 to 60 time of 3.7 seconds. To get that kind of performance out of a fuel cell, the stack would have to be very large, meaning the car would be huge and would cost millions of dollars.
New Supra! And they kept the 412kW V10 (for the supercar run at least) – I want one.
V8 and hybrid versions to follow.
In my humble opinion the proper answer to LF-A would be NSX powered by turbocharged V6 mated to a lighter but stronger (carbon?) frame and either manual or dual-clutch tranny. The motor should reside in the same place where NSX was intended to have it: behind driver seat. It could be claimed greener and if it is lighter it would sip less fuel. With mid-ship design and Honda’s handling souse it could be tantalizing. Alas, we are to trust that California only Hindenburg mobiles are the best state of motoring. Sad. Mr. Soichiro Honda is not resting well, I am sure.
The NSX was a FANTASTIC idea with one HUGE mistake. A limited displacement engine that was naturally aspirated. Seriously, the NSX is an INCREDIBLE car. In nearly every way better than equivalent priced cars of the time. Except one. HP/Torque. A supercar that eventually had the same HP as a Toyota Camry was doomed during the HP wars. It’s a shame Honda couldn’t figure this out or invest some resources to correct this problem.
Many supercars in it’s price range had similar levels of performance. The problem with the NSX is that Honda never improved it. It’s a reminder that Honda really was, and is, small and does have limited resources to spread around.
The nice thing about the NSX is that a) the chassis was worlds ahead of many contemporary exotics at the time and b) it really was about as benign as Prelude in terms of ownership. I think people forget this, what with modern Ferraris being reasonably reliable and modern Lambos not requiring you to bake, contort or otherwise compromise your physical health to drive.
The NSX was also cheaper (both to buy AND maintain) than contemporary Ferraris. The $100k+ that a Ferrari or Lambo buyer would save over buying this thing can pay for a LOT of repairs.
Yes, but as with this car, was that $100K worth it? Think about the 308, 348 or God help me, the Diablo or Countach. Terrible cars, both to own and to drive, next to the NSX. But they did have “pedigree”, and were fun. Note that I’ve never driven one, chiefly because I can’t fit in the damn things; the cockpits are so bad.
Now, in those terms, the LF-A isn’t nearly as revolutionary, mostly because it’s not as cheap, but also because the Italians don’t suck quite so badly anymore. But it will be interesting to see what Toyota brings to the plate, especially if the car does turn out to be easy to own and—this is important—easy to buy. There’s a lot of very newly rich people—likely more to come as the income gaps spread and the economy recovers—and the very rich aren’t always willing to put up with the kind of crap Ferrari or Mercedes puts prospective and current owners through.
because the Italians don’t suck quite so badly anymore
Interesting observation.
The exotic supercar field has had to get their shit together as people expected to be able to drive those cars more miles. For a long time they couldn’t do it because they were so fragile.
The “everyday” supercar might be something the Japanese can do. Time will tell for the GT-R, but I know a few NSX owners who have extremely reliable experiences.
Maybe the LF-A will help lift the bar further. “Pedigree” needs to be defended with still better products, as Porsche are discovering from the GT-R attack.
Toyota’s brand is based on reliability. To that simple idea, Lexus adds luxury. “Reliable luxury” is the brand’s raison d’etre. It can, in theory, stretch all the way from the mid-market IS to the upper reaches of exclusivity.
Saying that, at a $370k price point, reliable luxury loses its potency. Anyone who can afford to shell out that kind of money for a car has plenty of Mercedes and BMW and every other damn thing to ferry him or her to and from wherever they want to go every time they want to go. Hell, they probably have a second car stuffed with security men following them around.
Above the price point where a car ceases to be like a tissue, wealthy buyers prize pedigree. Exclusivity. What they really really want is pedigreed exclusivity.
So, a few questions:
1. WTF does the LF-A have to do with luxury? About as much as the IS-F, I reckon. Which is something, but not much. Not enough to fit the brand’s remit, certainly.
2. Who wants a Lexus sports car? The SC was an ugly joke, but it kinda sorta made sense. In the same way that the Mercedes SL makes sense. As a Lexus, the LF-A lacks ANY of the aforementioned brand cachet. Unless, I dunno, they race it or something. Which would contaminate the “core” products’ purity. No win.
3. Isn’t this a repeat of the Maybach debacle, only worse? The Maybach made top-of-the-line Mercedes owners feel poor. The LF-A sets the bar annoyingly high(er) for Lexus LS owners.
4. Pedigree chum?
In conclusion, no matter how awesomely awesome the LF-A is, and I’m sure it is, Lexus needs this high-priced NON-LUXURY halo car like a hole in the head. It actually damages the brand.
A reliable supercar DOES matter ‘some’ at $75 – $125K. At $375?????? Doesn’t mean squat. Nearly 1/2 a million out-the-door on a car and you could care less about spending money to maintain, fuel, or insure. What you do care about is looks & exotic pedigree. This car has neither. Trust me, this car will be a HUGE HUGE HUGE flop. The ONLY thing that could save it would be MAJOR RECORD breaking performance, and at 3,100 lbs 550HP/350TQ that’s not going to happen. Matter of fact, I suspect the $100,000 cheaper Ferrari 458 will outperform this car. Oh yeah, and it is A FERRARI. And oh yeah, it looks 1,000 times better. Did I mention it was mid-engined? Lexus, what are you smoking?
A reliable supercar DOES matter ’some’ at $75 – $125K. At $375?????? Doesn’t mean squat. Nearly 1/2 a million out-the-door on a car and you could care less about spending money to maintain, fuel, or insure.
Nonsense. What DOES matter is being left stranded at the side of the road while punks driving Aveo’s lean out the window and yell “Get a Corvette yuppie scum”.
Trust me, this car will be a HUGE HUGE HUGE flop.
I’ll take Toyota/Lexus’ ability to work out what their target market will buy rather than yours.
The ONLY thing that could save it would be MAJOR RECORD breaking performance….
In just a few outings they’ve performed pretty well already. Easily frightening a few manufacturers.
Since Lexus is the Japanese Buick is this the Japanese GNX?
A Toyota powered supercar with a much more storied brand and much more interesting engine location can be had for 1/10th the price at one’s local Lotus dealer.
Much better than this robotic freak.
Or hell, clean MR2 Spyders are $10-13K.
And Honda needs to stop babbling about the FCX Clarity because:
1) In the world of advanced low emissions cars that people actually buy the Prius kicks the Insight’s ass.
2) Hyundai, which was making a Yugo grade piece of crap cars back when Honda was already well established with years best selling Accords, can make a RWD V8 luxury sedan and a RWD turbo-I4 coupe, and Honda can’t.
3) Acura has never sold a good car (except for the rebadged Honda NSX), and survives only by selling rebodied, pimped Honda SUVs.
Labor Day WE, I had a ride in a twin super charged NSX. It was incredible.
First of all, let’s all agree that there’s no telling how quickly Lexus will be able to sell 500 LFAs. Who would $375,000 for a Lexus sports car? It’s hard to say, but it might be the same sort of people who were just willing to pay $265,000 for a limited edition Alfa Romeo 2-seater coupe (the 8C Competizione), and the Lexus is far more powerful. An economic downturn is a bad time to launch a supercar, to be sure, but Toyota’s goals are very modest: 500 cars is nothing for a total production run. Exclusivity is a powerful motivator, especially for the well-to-do. Absurb though it seems, Lamborghinis are a dime a dozen among subsets of the ueber-rich; the Lexus is at least rather more unique. That will undoubtedly drive some sales. I also disagree with Mr. Farago: even the very rich — who can afford a stable of cars — don’t want a breakdown by the side of the road. If the LFA is more reliable than European exotica, or is so perceived, then it can be enjoyed more often.
Secondly, people criticizing the car’s packaging and price need to take a closer looks at its competitive set. Yes, $375,000 is a stratospheric figure, and perhaps too high (particularly for Toyota’s first true modern supercar). However, it’s in the right range. This car is not a competitor to 458 Italias and Gallardos and V8 Vantage Astons. It’s a high-powered, track-ready front-engined GT car with a normal cabin and a modest trunk. Its natural rivals are the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, the Mercedes SLR McLaren, and (to an extent) the Aston Martin DBS. The Ferrari is $325,000-ish (with nearly the same power-to-weight ratio); the Aston is much cheaper at about $275k (but is heavier and rather less powerful). However, the SLR started at $450,000 in 2005, and is more than a half-million now. The SLR has more power (about 617 hp, versus 554 in the LFA), but weighs 600 pounds more. By the SLR standard, then, the LFA is fantastic value for money, and Lexus aim to sell just 500, whereas Mercedes was trying to sell seven times as many. Finally, those that sneer at the LFA just because it’s front-engined need to do a little reading: look at the performance figures for the Ferrari 599 and tell me they’re something at which to scoff.
This is my main reason for commenting, though: I think the LFA actually makes some sense. It doesn’t mesh well with Lexus’s current branding, but it does — in some ways — point the way toward where they’d like to be. If Lexus is really serious about being respected as an equal player to the Germans, they need lots more sport in the lineup. The IS-F points in this direction, but the LFA does it even better.
For years and years, people have sneered about Toyota/Lexus “appliances”, cars that are soulless isolation chambers, allergic to sporty driving (as if Chevy and Ford midsize and large sedans were some sort of Maserati Quattroportes on the cheap). There are a lot of luxury/sport buyers who would never consider a Lexus for precisely those reasons, because they believe Lexii to be stodgy cars for old peopole, or think other people will think that. Therefore, the LFA is a glass of ice water in the face of such people. It’s Toyota saying, “You think we can’t make a world-class sports car? You think we don’t know how to make a car that stirs the blood? Really? Wrong answer.”
I think that the LFA is a halo car that makes sense, because, fundamentally, it gives credibility to the idea that Lexus can build a hardcore GT car. And if Lexus can do that, they can (theoretically, at least) build a sports sedan. The link will be even stronger if the next F model, the rumoured GS-F, is actually powered by a V-10, as has been suggested numerous times. Even if only the basic architecture is the same, it’s a powerful link to the LFA. Toyota is giving its owners and fans a way to refute the charge that it is a totally boring car company. If their goal is to win some sports sedan buys who otherwise would buy something Teutonic or a Jaguar, then this is exactly the thing they need to foster an impression of sport in the lineup. Then they have to follow through on the F models, and let that percolate through the more garden-variety models of the IS/GS/LS lineup, but it’s still a good idea, marketing-wise. I don’t know if it will work, but it seems to send the right message — sportiness is coming to Lexus.
Lastly, just look at the specs: it’s a pretty impressive machine. We’ve become jaded these last few years thanks to the horsepower wars, but this is an authentic 200-mph car, which is still a rare thing. A 9000 rpm rev limit is just as fun, and the noise is superb, if a bit unusual for a Lexus. I agree that it should cost less, but it is going to be a serious performance machine, if the numbers are accurate. Aside from the engine, it’s not particularly unconventional, and the transmission is the same as the pack, not particularly innovative, but it’s still an exciting car, from an enthusiast perspective.
@ carsinamerica
Great post – thanks.
Over the years I was lucky enough to spend time with the great Ove Andersson on a number of occasions.
When Toyota suddenly pulled from World Rally and jumped into F1, he was quite effusive about the “greater plan” that would eventually tie it all together.
I’m not sure I understand it in this market yet, but Prius to LF-A with leaders and/or near-leaders in every segment might continue to work.
no_slushbox :
3) Acura has never sold a good car (except for the rebadged Honda NSX), and survives only by selling rebodied, pimped Honda SUVs.
Wow, really? Every Acura is a ‘rebadged’ Honda becuase the Acura nameplate is US only (or at least was at the time of NSX).
Robert Farago,
Toyota has been racing the LF-A at endurance races.
I remember them finishing 124th i believe at the nurburgring 24 hour.
Lexus LF-A VS Viper SRT10 ACR @ Nurburgring