Lexus LFA Successor with Possible Twin-Turbo V-8 Spied Testing in Public

Car and Driver

2 days ago

The Lexus LFA's spiritual successor was recently spotted driving around Southern California.
These spy shots are our latest look at the next Lexus supercar, which could be powered by a hybrid twin-turbo V-8.
While we don't know what the low-slung coupe will be called, there are rumors that it will be called the LFR.
When the Lexus RC ends production after this year, the brand will be left without a sports car for the first time in a long time, but that might not last too long. We've been eagerly awaiting more details about the Lexus LFA's spiritual successor, and recent spy photos show that the racy two-door coupe is getting closer to production. And guess what? It'll have a gas-powered engine.
A Car and Driver reader named Kory Hughs graciously sent us a couple of photos of the next Lexus supercar covered in camouflage and driving around the mountain roads near Big Bear Lake, California. While the new images only show the driver's side and rear end of the car, they do provide a glimpse of the quad exhaust pipes, confirming that there's an internal-combustion engine under the rakish coupe's long hood. The powertrain is expected to combine a hybrid system with a twin-turbo V-8, but we're still waiting for Lexus to confirm those details.
Kory Hughs
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Car and Driver
This isn't our first look at the LFA follow-up, which will reportedly be called the LFR. We've previously seen spy photos of it testing at and around the Nürburgring. Unlike the car that was recently spied in California, the ones that were lapping the famous German racetrack used different types of fixed rear wings. They also wore yellow warning stickers, which suggest they feature electric power in addition to their combustion engine. At the time, our spy photographer also captured some images of the car's unfinished interior and claimed that the prototype was lapping the 'Ring in under eight minutes.
It's believed that Toyota's Gazoo Racing division is working on building a new GT3 car for a full-fledged racing program, which it hinted at back in 2022 with a concept that looks an awful lot like the forthcoming LFR—or whatever it's going to be called. Considering a prototype is now testing on public roads, we should learn more about the LFA's replacement sometime next year, and we think the production version could possibly debut for the 2027 model year.
Eric Stafford
Managing Editor, News
Eric Stafford's automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual '97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a '90 Honda CRX Si. Read full bio