Is the Lexus LFA worth £320k? It could be, but there are a few things that will make it worth the ticket that I’ll cover a little later. I’ve driven most of the high -end supercars on the market, Ferrari 430, 599GTB, Gallardo, Aston DBS, Murci LP640 etc. However, I doubt I’ll get my backside into an LFA any time soon, so I’ll have to go by what other reports are saying and digest the opinions.
24 hours after the public launch of the car, most of the global car magazine industry has posted first thoughts on their blogs and websites, so here’s a run down on what they’re all saying.
Car Magazine in the UK has a fairly pessimistic review initially, comparing the speed and quality of the paddle shift with it’s single clutch and reckoning that it’s too slow and too clunky around the town. If that’s true, it’s a bad thing. As they say, when was the last time you heard of a Lexus with a poor shift? They also compare the performance stats to the Nissan GTR at a fraction of the money, though they heap praise on the handling:
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“Scythe into a corner and you can feel the outside rear tyre loading up, and initially this can make you think the handling a little edgy. But you soon learn to trust the chassis, keep the pressure on and not back off the power. From there you can either keep it neat or ride out an enormous slide, M3-style.”
By ‘edgy’, I guess they mean very neutral and with two turns lock to lock, it’s certainly going to take a little time to get your confidnce up in high speed sweeping turns. Sounds good. The Car guys sum up by saying that at £150k, it could stand beside a 599GTB or new McLaren, but at over £300k, it’s not worth it.
Road and Track are more positive, though with a more lightweight piece, describing the cars long gestation period and fine handling balance. I imagine it will have great balance, with the V10 set well back and a transaxle gearbox. They seem to agree, though they’re saving their main review for the print edition.
My view? Can’t say until I get my backside into one, but any car with a v10 that spins to 9,000 has got to sound fantastic, just check out the video below. Add in two turns lock to lock, a transaxle paddle gearbox and that oh so cool dash and body styling that I personally think will be stunning in colours other than white and I think it will sell.
To answer the question I asked at the start, ‘Is It Worth It?”, that’s the wrong question. It’s not so much is it value for money, more a question of “Can Lexus find 500 buyers worldwide who are interested enough in owning something that’s rare and exclusive enough for them to hit the Black Amex?” The fact that it’s nearly £100k more than a 599GTB is irrelevant, they probably already have one of those anyway.
My personal opinion is that now that it’s finally here, Lexus have to have the courage to put their stones on the block and go racing properly, either with the LFA or some other effort. Success in a series like ALMS / ELMS would give the Lexus brand the racer edge that it needs to be able to continue asking big money for fast cars in the future, rather than making the LFA a simple one-off exercise of “We built it to prove we could”