Video clips showing the upcoming Lexus halo car on the ‘Ring reveal a rather dissapointing soundtrack
October 30, 2024 at 11:10
- It’s unclear how much power the new flagship performance car from Lexus will pump out.
- Lexus is developing the new road-legal model alongside the GT3 race car.
- Both the LFR GT3 and the production car are expected to be unveiled in 2026.
A pair of prototypes for the next road-going Lexus supercar have been filmed at the Nurburgring, and while the development of the car is far from over, the engineers driving them were more than happy to drive them right on the ragged edge of grip.
Speculation has been rife about the car for quite some time. It’s been in the works for several years and will spawn both a road-legal model and a GT3 racing car. The latter was outed at Spa Francorchamps earlier in the year, but the cars featured in this clip are quite clearly the road-legal model.
Read: New Lexus LFR Supercar Reveals Interior And Confirms V8 Hybrid Powertrain
Visually, the production-spec LFR retains the same overall shape as the racer and, as such, shares a lot in common with the Lexus GR GT3 Concept unveiled in early 2022. This means there’s a long hood and a cabin that‘s set very far back, kind of like the Mercedes-AMG GT. Many of the most dramatic aero elements of the race car have been ditched for the street model. However, there are still plenty of aids that should help suck the LFR to the pavement.
The front of the car includes a large splitter and canards, as well as a hood with a pair of NACA ducts. There are also large air ducts behind the front wheels and air intakes just in front of the rear wheels. The stand-out feature of the rear is the towering wing. As we reported last week, Lexus is testing at least two different wings and it’s unclear at this stage which of the two will be used by the production car.
Then there’s the powertrain. The LFR will hit the market with a hybridized V8, and while little is known about this engine, it should be hugely powerful. This prototype is significantly quieter than the GT3-spec car we spotted in June and doesn’t come close to matching the iconic soundtrack of the V10-powered LFA. It doesn’t even seem to match the V8 burble of the Lexus LC 500.
However, it’s worth noting that these prototypes likely do not feature production-spec exhaust systems, and the soundtrack could change quite a lot by the time the car hits the market. And when will that be? Well, the race car won’t debut until the 24 Hours at Daytona in January 2026, and the street car won’t arrive until after, perhaps in mid-2026.
