The 2012 Lexus LFA. Image: Lexus
Consider this: For the price of a single Lexus LFA, you could buy three Nissan GT-Rs and still have plenty left over for track days, gas, tires and brakes. The Nissan, at roughly a quarter of the price of the LFA, is actually quicker from 0-60 mph and in the quarter mile. Yes, the GT-R gives up some 10 seconds around the Nürburgring to the LFA Nürburgring Edition, but the last GT-R to lap the ring for an official time was a 2011 model, and it ran on a semi-wet track. A 2013 GT-R, on a dry track, would likely produce a much closer lap time.
What the GT-R doesn’t offer is exclusivity. Nissan builds thousands of them, whereas Lexus is only building 500 LFAs, ever. Despite a rough start to sales caused by the global recession, Lexus claims to be doing well with the LFA at the moment. So well that Autoguide reports an LFA II supercar is in the works.
Don’t expect the LFA II to be just slightly faster and a bit more expensive. In fact, sources say the LFA II will be twice the car at twice the price. Expect performance to legitimately challenge the fastest cars in the world, and expect the price tag to range from $800,000 to a million dollars per car. That sum buys you greater exclusivity, too, since only 100 copies will reportedly be built.
Akio Toyoda, Toyota’s CEO, is said to be behind the LFA II project, which is supposed to further Toyota’s reputation for building performance cars. Frankly, we’re puzzled, since building unattainable supercars is hardly a way to draw buyers into showrooms. If Toyota wants to establish itself as a performance car company, it would be better served to build more affordable sports cars like Scion FR-S, which mere mortals can afford to buy and drive.
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
