LoginThe Lexus LFA Returns But As An EV With No V10 In Sight
- The LFA Concept is based on the same aluminum chassis as the Toyota GR GT and GR GT3.
- Curiously, Lexus has decided not to use the same twin-turbocharged hybrid V8 as the Toyota.
- The design of the car was previewed several months ago with the stunning Lexus Sport Concept.
This is the Lexus LFA Concept and it’s quite unlike the iconic V10-powered weapon that came before it. Long expected to simply be a Lexus-branded version of the new Toyota GR GT, the LFA Concept is instead something else entirely. It’s electric. Yes, you read that right.
The concept, unveiled alongside the twin-turbo V8 Toyota in Japan this evening, was previewed a few months ago as the Lexus Sport Concept. Its since morphed into the LFA Concept and been presented with an electric powertrain. According to Lexus, the ‘LFA’ name is “not bound to vehicles powered by internal combustion engines,” but instead symbolizes a vehicle that “embodies the technologies that engineers of its time should preserve and pass on to the next generation.”
Read: Toyota’s GR GT Drops With TT V8 Hybrid And At Least 641 HP
Toyota Underpinnings
Whereas Toyota revealed a slew of details about its new halo performance car, Lexus has remained tight-lipped about many of the LFA Concept’s important details. It hasn’t provided any details about the electric powertrain that drives it, but regardless of how special it is, or how much grunt it may have, it certainly won’t be able to match the roar of the Toyota.
Interestingly, the LFA Concept is based on the same all-aluminum platform as the Toyota GR GT and GR GT3. That presumably means Lexus had the option of using the same V8 as its parent company, but opted against it.
While the choice of powertrain seems odd, particularly given poor demand for high-performance EVs, there’s no denying the LFA Concept looks beautiful, which isn’t a word we’d use for the Toyota. The interior is also wildly different than the Toyota, although this isn’t a surprise given the LFA is still a concept.
When Will it Launch?
What does the future hold for the LFA Concept? We know it will spawn a production model, and the renaming of the Sport Concept to the LFA Concept, indicates that it will indeed be sold as the second-generation Lexus LFA. Just when it will hit a road near you remains unclear.
