VIDEO: Lexus Sets the Bar High, Chains Four Cars on LS in New TV Ad

In another sign that luxury automakers in the U.S. are raising the stakes -or so to speak- with their latest commercials, following Audi's recent A8 ad, Lexus has released a new TV spot as part of an advertising campaign to demonstrate how far the company goes to achieve perfection.

This particular broadcast ad is titled “Chain” and it shows a crane slowly lifting the front end of a LS, which is attached to four more Lexus models (RX, GS, ES and IS) using nothing more than cables and stretch bars. At the end of the spot, a $375,000 LFA comes into the shot and parks directly below the chain of vehicles weighing a total 21,000 pounds.

The key point here is that the commercial is real and that no special effects were used for its creation as Lexus proves in the 'Behind the Scenes" video.

“It isn’t enough to just say that we pursue perfection, we want to demonstrate the great lengths we go to in our pursuit,” states Dave Nordstrom, vice president of marketing for Lexus.

“The new broadcast spot allows us to focus on the foundation of our vehicles, the chassis, and show its almost unbelievable strength. In fact, we feared that it would be so unbelievable, we invited a physicist and structural engineer to witness the shoot, to prove that it did, in fact, occur without the use of special effects or computer generated-imagery.”

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VIDEO: C&D Pits Lexus LFA Against Ferrari 599 HGTE

In 1971, one of the greatest one-on-one boxing matches took place in New York's Madison Square Garden: the bout between Mohammed Ali and Joe Frazier. So big was this event, advertisers dubbed it, 'The Fight of the Century'. Now, two different contenders take to the ring (uh...tarmac). The reigning champion: the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano HGTE. The challenger: the Lexus LFA. Video after the jump.

One is a purebred, Italian racehorse with decades of motor racing heritage under its belt. The other is the new kid on the block: the young hood with its 'doof doof' music and unshakable will to win.

So maybe I went a bit too far with the boxing analogy...

The real scoop here is U.S. magazine Car and Driver putting the V12-powered 599 GTB HGTE and V10-powered LFA through their paces on the narrow, sodden backroads of Wales. Technical editor Michael Austin is behind the wheel of the Ferrari while executive editor Mark Gillies is in the Lexus. Their goal: to find out which of these two, similarly priced front engined, rear-wheel-drive GTs is the best?

Watch the video and decide for yourselves.

By Tristan Hankins

Source: C&D

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Lotus Presents Akio Toyoda with Special Elise to Celebrate Current and Future Partnership

Clearly, it's good to be the boss. How so? Lotus CEO Danny Bahar recently made a trip to Japan to thank Toyota for their companies' long - and soon to be longer - partnership. For those new to the game, Lotus has been sourcing its power plants from Toyota for a while and currently all Loti use one form of Toyota mill or another.

Bahar handed Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda the keys to a Lotus Elise powered by the very last 2ZZ-GE VVTL-i built, saying, "The presentation of Toyota's last 2ZZ engine in the Elise is a symbolic gesture of our continued respect and deep appreciation for our partner not only acknowledging our past but also looking forward to our future together."

Proton-owned Lotus will soon unveil its Toyota-powered Evora S and Evora IPS models in Paris, while the 414E is apparently still in the pipeline and waiting for an investment from the British government.

As for the oft-discussed Esprit, rumors suggest that Lotus's flagship may be powered by Toyota's 1LR-GUE V10. While the Esprit may still be a ways out, we could be getting some information about it as soon as the Paris show, so stay tuned.

On using his company's engines in Lotus cars, Toyoda said, "A Toyota engine in a Lotus car creates a completely unique drive feeling – a special blend featuring the best of Lotus and Toyota that we hope many car lovers continue to experience and enjoy." That, and they're reliable as hell, so you know your car won't spontaneously combust...

By Phil Alex

Japanese Grudge Match: Nissan GT-R vs. Lexus LFA

There's only so much that can be said about a drag race between a Nissan GT-R and the Lexus LFA. It's a traditional competition pitting Japan's two Euro-fighting high-tech supercars against each other in an attempt to figure out which one is faster in the quarter mile.

No matter who's faster, the better buy should be clear. At a $300,000+ price gap, it won't be hard to figure it out; on the other hand, exclusivity has no price.

Thankfully, Motor Trend showed us how the duel would play out. While informative, it ain't Top Gear with the Jezza. To watch it through Motor Trend's eyes, check it out after the break.

By Phil Alex

Via: Autoblog.com / MT

Lexus Prices Nürburgring Package for LFA Supercar at $70,000

If owning one of the 500 examples of the LFA supercar that Lexus plans to build doesn't claim victory to your ego, then you'll be happy to know that the Japanese automaker has just released U.S. pricing for the Nürburgring Package that will be strictly limited to only 50 units worldwide.

Those that choose to tick the option will be charged an extra $70,000, while Matte black will carry an additional cost of $20,000. The standard LFA carries a MSRP of $375,000, meaning that with the Nürburgring Package, increases the total price to a $450,000.

The 75 grand will get you a tweaked version of the 4/8-liter V10 engine producing 562HP or 10 more horsepower than the standard LFA along with a modified transmission that reduces gear-shift time by 0.05 seconds to 0.15 seconds.

A sportier-tuned suspension, exclusive black mesh-type alloy wheels with dedicated high-grip tires for better handling, as well as a larger front spoiler and fixed rear wing for improved high speed down force, are also part of the Nürburgring Package.

And if that ain't enough, in addition to the vehicle specs, Lexus will throw in a package of special privileges in association with the Nürburgring course itself.

The company said that perks include, but are not limited to, private parking, co-pilot ride, one night stand at the Lindner Congress and Motorsport Hotel Nürburgring, private training with Nürburgring chief driving instructor, a Nürburgring branded jacket, as well as a one-year annual pass valid for driving on the Nordschleife and admission to ring werk leisure park.

The limited edition LFA with the Nürburgring Package will be available in four exterior colors – whitest white, orange, black and matte black complemented by a choice of three interior colors – black, red, and violet. All come with a carbon fiber center console and door trim.

Lexus LFA: Early Customer Interest Exceeds Production Numbers (You don't Say...)

To no one's surprise, in the three months that have passed since the official introduction of the LFA at the Tokyo Motor Show in October 2009, the number of formal expressions of interest in purchasing the $375,000 V10 supercar is already far greater than the limited production run of only 500 examples, Toyota's subsidiary announced today.

Lexus said that it will continue to accept "formal expressions of interest" up to mid-March. At that point though, the 500 LFAs will be allocated across the 56 countries where they are on sale, with confirmed orders with deposits to be invited from the end of May.

Devshi Varshani, the Personal Liaison Manager who looks after all LFA sales, said: "The level of interest we have witnessed reinforces just what an exceptional car the LFA is. Even though few people have even seen the car in the metal, let alone experienced its breathtaking performance, it has quickly achieved the status of a truly rare and highly sought-after machine."

The Japanese automaker's first-ever supercar is powered by a mid-front mounted 4.8-litre V10 engine that churns out 552bhp for a zero to 62mph (100km/h) sprint time of just 3.7 seconds and a maximum velocity of 325 km/h or 202 mph.

Lexus GS-F said to be Still Under Development, Could get LFA's V10 Engine

Given that the latest Lexus GS has been in the market for a while, most of us have abandoned the idea of an F-badged variant of the current model that would compete head on with the Audi RS6, BMW M5, Cadillac CTS-V and Merc's E63 AMG. But even though common sense says that, if Lexus wants to go ahead with the GS-F, chances are the automaker will wait for the next generation GS, Japan's Best Car magazine claims it knows otherwise.

In fact, the magazine says Lexus is working on the current GS and that the super-sedan will most likely be powered by a slightly modified version of the LFA's 4.8-liter V10 powerplant that produces 553HP at 8,700 rpm and 480Nm or 354 lb-ft of torque at 6,800 rpm in the two-door supercar.

Only time will tell if the story about the GS-F is true, but we wouldn't hold our breath if we were you..

Via: Best Car

Lexus Officially Confirms World Premier of LF-A Supercar for 2009 Tokyo Motor Show

The good news is that Lexus just announced that along with the Japanese market debut of the LF-Ch compact-premium hybrid concept, the firm's Tokyo Motor Show stand will also play host to the world premiere of a "revolutionary two-seater supercar", in other words the LF-A. The bad news is that Lexus did not release any photos or information on the long-anticipated V10-powered supercar that is said to compete price- and performance-wise with no less than the Ferrari 458 Italia and other exotic models.

Furthermore, it has yet to be confirmed if the maker will reveal the final production version of the LF-A or if Lexus will follow the example of Toyota and its FT-86 RWD compact sports coupe and Honda with the CR-Z hybrid coupe, introducing a thinly disguised concept model.

2010 Lexus LF-A V10 Supercar Scooped with Minimum Camouflage

Our spies have captured a thinly disguised Lexus LF-A prototype as it was heading to the Nurburgring race circuit for further testing about a month before the Japanese automaker officially unveils the V10-powered supercar at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, which runs from October 23 to November 8. The LF-A has been making the auto show rounds since 2005 when the coupe version was first revealed at the Detroit Show and was followed later on by a roadster concept.

These latest photos reveal that the design of the production model remains remarkably faithful to the concept with only minor modifications such as the less prominent side scoops and front fenders, and the replacement of the front-column-mounted rearview cameras with conventional mirrors.

The front end of the LF-A has also received a subtly makeover but it is most likely that many of these changes were made to improve the vehicle's aerodynamics.

Power is said to come from a high-revving 5.0-liter V10 producing over 500-horsepower which should allow the first Lexus-badged supercar to hit the 100km/h (62mph) mark in under 4,0 seconds and top out at around 200mph or 320km/h.

Just like Mercedes-Benz recently revealed SLS AMG Gullwing, the LF-A features a front-mid engine, rear-wheel drive layout. The V10 engine is paired to an automated manual gearbox with paddle shifters.

Rumors from Japan suggest production will be strictly limited to 500 units, 120 of which are destined for Japan at an estimated price of around 30 million Yen a piece ($328,000 US - €222,000 at the current exchange rates) or about twice as much as a JDM Nissan GT-R V-Spec.

There was also a report from Japan's Best Car early this year claiming that Lexus is also planning to develop an even more pricier and exclusive version of the LF-A that will be motivated by a 5.5-liter V10 delivering well over 500 horsepower.

VIDEO: Lexus LF-A V10 Supercar Proves Too Hot for the Nurburgring...

Damn that Youtube; you can't have an unfortunate moment these days without someone uploading a video and circulating it around the web for the entire world to see. Lexus' "Moment of Zen" came during this past weekend's Nurburgring 24-hour endurance race when one of the two participating V10-powered LF-A sportscars caught on fire. If you dying to see what happened out of pure interest (or boredom, doesn't matter) hit the jump to watch the video.

Via: Egmcartech

Lexus Reveals LF-A 500HP V10 that will Race at the 24h of Nurburgring!

Even though we have yet to see the production model of the Lexus LF-A study that has been previewed in both coupe and roadster forms in the past, the Japanese automaker decided to put its long anticipated (and overdue...) supercar to the ultimate test by entering two race-spec versions at this weekend's Nurburgring 24-hour endurance race. Seen here for the first time in race livery, the 200mph+ (321km/h) LF-A sportscars are powered by a front-mid mounted V10 engine producing 500HP. The LF-As will be entered by Gazoo Racing, which from what we learned, is a Japanese market, Toyota-owned, e-commence website that has its own racing team.

The team that will tackle the 'Green Hell' will be made up of a combination of professional drivers, Toyota test drivers, dealers and a pilot that Lexus refers to as "Morizo" who is none other than Toyota's soon-to-be CEO Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the firm's founder.

According to a previous release from Lexus, the knowledge gained from the endurance race will be fed back to engineering teams to assist with further development of the production LF-A.