Photo: kelsonik / Instagram
The current lineup includes – in America – the 2024 IS F Sport Performance, the RC F and the LC series. They are all powered by V8 engines in ICE-looks only, and they aren't necessarily the most expensive luxury items out there, with base retail prices ranging from $60k to $107k. However, none of them are true flagships.
That wasn’t the case a few years ago, when the Japanese automaker had an entire lineup of specialists dedicated to the creative endeavor of building the Lexus LFA grand tourer/supercar. The V10-powered model was a stark departure from the automaker’s 2010s lineup and may go down in history as one of the coolest Lexus models ever made. It was also a true performance flagship, and one that’s sorely missed in today’s lineup.
However, the rumor mill hasn’t forgotten that parent company Toyota filed a new trademark, Lexus ‘LFR’, in October 2022, because earlier this year, a mysterious high-performance coupe was spotted testing at Toyota-owned Fuji Speedway. Reports quickly corroborated the mysterious appearance with the GR GT3 Concept unveiled at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, which is expected to morph into the next iteration of the Lexus RC F GT3 in 2026.
Alas, the prototype caught racing on the Japanese circuit was more like a road-legal counterpart, and everyone expects it to wear the Lexus badge on the front as well. There are many rumors and reports that a new high-performance Lexus model is coming that would surpass the current range, including from its motorsport divisions. However, if the Lexus LFR is a success, with or without the massive wing from the GR GT3 study, it probably won't serve as a direct successor to the LFA.
Instead, that could be replaced by a spiritual successor with an all-electric powertrain. As for the Lexus LFR, it could adopt a V8 powertrain in an attempt to destroy the reputation of models like the Ford Mustang Dark Horse (or Mustang GTD, depending on the horsepower available) and even the new Dodge Charger Sixpack. As such, it could even serve as a more combative and expensive stand-in for the Toyota GR Supra that could take on V8-powered rivals from Ferrari and McLaren, among others.
In any case, parallel universes of vehicular CGI are always interested in such apparitions, even if they do not always translate into the real world. However, on this occasion, we are probably looking at something that will soon materialize, and Nikita Chuicko, the virtual artist better known as Kelsonian on social media, thinks now is the right time to work on CGI on the next Lexus sports car to try to break the digital barrier and present his vision before everyone else. What do you think?