Just in case you didn't get your fill of the Lexus LFA last week, here's one more peek at one of its many impressive parts.
This was on display at a supplier booth. It's the LFA's torque tube that connects the engine to the trasnsaxle out back. Looks more than sturdy enough to help harness the power of the car's sick-sounding 4.8-liter V10.
You may have heard the term "automotive supplier" thrown around during all the bankruptcy chaos of the last year, but few actually know what role these companies play in the manufacture of modern automobiles.
Take this cutaway of the Lexus GS450h for instance. Many people would assume that Lexus, or its parent company Toyota, make most of the parts that go into constructing the hybrid SUV. Not quite.
Although Toyota may build core elements like the actual sheetmetal, it's the suppliers that build most of the parts that go into the finished product. This display in the Aisin booth at the Tokyo Auto Show reveals how many parts Aisin supplies for the GS450h. And this is just one of hundreds of suppliers used for this particular vehicle. Yes, building cars is hard.
Ford seems to be conducting consumer clinics to see how the European Mondeo registers with American consumers. Driving around Dearborn were a European Ford Mondeo, a Lexus ES, and a BMW 5-series all identically camouflaged to make them look visually the same.
Cover their rear-ends (as all three cars are equipped with velcro strips around the rear quarters to make the installation and removal of black covers easy), and only the most car-savvy would be able to tell one from the other. This lets Ford know how the consumers rate the Mondeo, free from the influences of the Lexus and BMW brand identities.
The recent arrival of the new Taurus would certainly seem to have muddied the waters on the prospect of a U.S.-spec Mondeo. But this photo suggests that Ford is actively gathering feedback on the Mondeo in the U.S.
If you can forgive the camera bouncing around a bit, this video will give you a decent sense for the sound and sensation inside the Lexus LFA when it's driven in anger by somebody who can handle it. Scott Pruett was on hand this week at the LFA's U.S. media introduction at Homestead Raceway near Miami. And the ride was awesome.
Note Pruett's comment at 00:07. That's top speed turning off the banking into the infield. From there, its a rush of acceleration, braking and turning loads against the LFA's spectacular abilities.
Josh Jacquot, Senior road test editor
Yeah, the LFA is all over the 2009 Tokyo Auto Show. Like a rash, even. But this LFA is irresistible -- it's the one that raced in the 24 Hours of Nurburgring. And it still wears the grit and tire marbles to prove it.
This LFA was shown in Yamaha's booth. After all, that company was largely -- perhaps entirely -- responsible for developing the car's 4.8-liter V10 powerplant for Toyota.
Oh, they had one of those on display, too. Jump with me.
Driving the LFA Racecar on the Nurburgring
Continue reading Lexus LFA Racecar at the 2009 Tokyo Auto Show.
So maybe you're not into the exterior design of the 2011 Lexus LFA. Fair enough: It's polarizing at best, a bit anime at worst.
To appease those who might not appreciate the full extent of the LFA's capabilities, Lexus hung this cutaway version of its new supercar near the show stand. Here you can see the beautiful pack of throttle bodies on the V10 engine, the beefy aluminum control arms and monster exhaust system.
Cool stuff, even if you don' t like the way it looks when it's all covered up. More pics after the break.
Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor, Inside Line
Continue reading 2011 Lexus LFA Cutaway Hanging Out in Tokyo.
This isn't just another Lexus LFA video we found on YouTube, it's the best one we've seen so far. Produced by Lexus, it documents the LFA's development from the drawing board to the production version of the company's first supercar.
Crank it up.
Here is some apparent proof that Lexus has a sense of humor, or at least engages in not-entirely-serious behavior.
Everyone knows that the LFA first appeared at the 2005 Detroit auto show (as the LF-A concept), right? True. But two years earlier at the 2003 Tokyo auto show, the company commissioned three pieces of art that contained within them representations of the exhaust manifold and throttle body of the LFA which had already been in development for three years at that point. Sneaky.
Where would one find such information? Have a look at the Lexus configurator site we pointed you to a post or two ago, and click "MILESTONES" for the full rundown of the decade-long LFA development.
Click to check out Lexus LFA milestones.
If you're not completely into the 2011 Lexus LFA, then this is really not your week, man.
Hot on the heels of the car's early unveiling, official unveiling and our first drive of the thing, comes Lexus' site where you can configure the LFA that you almost certainly will not buy. Seriously, how many of the 500 buyers of this thing are really going to be out there?
But, you know what, who cares? The configurator allows for some truly hideous combos (see lavender car above). We figure the site is probably good for at least an hour-and-a-half of lost productivity. More, if you have a slow connection.
As a side note, the site reveals that Lexus believes Greenland to be part of North America. Just saying.
Visit the 2011 Lexus LFA configurator.
By now you've probably already read our first drive of the 2011 Lexus LFA. It's the Lexus supercar that has finally appeared in the flesh after years of forced hibernation by one Toyota executive after another.
It's quite the impressive piece, and most of those in attendance at today's official unveiling at the 2009 Tokyo Auto Show seemed impressed. Good thing, too, as the new head of Toyota, Akio Toyoda, said during the Toyota press conference that he feels sad about the fact that the company no longer makes exciting cars like the Supra. Yes, he really said he feels sad.
And how does the LFA make you feel?
Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line
Yes, we already posted shots of the LFA that leaked out earlier today. And then there was that YouTube video of the Lexus supercar that busted out around the same time.
But now, officially, from the Hell-Freezes-Over Department of the Car World comes this: The Lexus LFA supercar has finally arrived as a full-on production vehicle.
Regular contributor, Alistair Weaver, had a chance to drive the 552-hp, V10 supercar around the Nurburgring, where the LFA was largely developed.
With seemingly an eternity of very public development and a price estimated at about $400,000 U.S. dollars, could the LFA possibly be worth it?
Read Weaver's First Drive of the 2011 Lexus LFA and view the huge attached photo gallery to find out.
We're a mere five or so hours from the unveil of the long-awaited, full-production 2010 Lexus LFA supercar at the Tokyo Auto Show. But thanks to the ubiquitous some-dude-with-a-camera in Miami the Lexus that's been almost a decade in the making has been laid bare.
The pictures appear on the North American GT-R Owners Club (NAGTROC.org) Web site. We'll have more when Lexus pulls the silk off the car at the Makuhari Messe. And also look for a full First Drive story soon.
Wish we had more information for you on the production version of the Lexus LF-A, but the press release put out by Toyota today was characteristically cryptic.
"This concept vehicle epitomizes the purest form of driving exhilaration and performance."
That's it. Although the company is still calling it a concept, we know that the car shown in Tokyo will be 99% production ready.
Akio Toyoda has only been CEO of Toyota since June, but at a Japan National Press Club briefing today, he made numerous apologies on behalf of the world's largest automaker, the New York Times reported. Public apologies are an accepted part of business practice in Japan, but Toyoda covered topics that resonate plenty in the U.S., too.
First off, he acknowledged the company's $8.6 billion loss for the fiscal year ending in March 2008 and the likelihood of another substantial loss for the current fiscal year. The company was unprepared for the global economic meltdown, he said, and is now a step away from "capitulation to irrelevance or death." He added that Toyoda is "grasping for salvation." He reiterated again his plan to shift the focus away from maximum sales and give more priority to products that people want.
Then, he turned to the floor mat debacle in the United States spurred by several years of customer complaints and a recent fatal crash of a Lexus ES 350 dealer loaner car in California.
"Four precious lives have been lost. I offer my deepest condolences," Toyoda said. "Customers bought our cars because they thought they were the safest. But now we have given them cause for grave concern," he said. "I can't begin to express my remorse."
He didn't forget the impending closure of the NUMMI plant in Fremont, California -- a decision he called "agonizing."
"I know it's a big blow to the local economy," he said.
Finally, he admitted that Toyota just hasn't been building inspiring cars over the last several years, not even in the Japanese homemarket. "They say that young people are moving away from cars," said Toyoda. "But surely it is us -- the automakers -- who have abandoned our passion for cars."
Thanks to Bob Holland for the tip.
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