Production Lexus LF-LC to Get 600-HP Twin-Turbo V-8 Variant
Brand Is Also Working on Eau Rouge/Black Series Competitor
Word on the Tokyo street is that there's a Lexus LF-LC Coupe mule running around Japan packing a 600-hp twin-turbo version of the upcoming RC F's 5.0-liter V-8. That power rating may be on the conservative side. We heard back in March of 2013 that Lexus was overwhelmed by the positive response to the swoopy coupe and decided to go on and green-light it. Until now there has been little to no information on the striking concept, other than the fact that the production version will most likely be called SC. There still isn't much, but our sources confirm the monstrous twin-turbo V-8 will be the SC F. There's a potent hybrid LF-LC/SC H whose powertrain will probably be the fruits of the BMW joint project and make around 500 hp. There will be a third engine, a base naturally aspirated V-8, that will produce a bit less power than the hybrid (450 hp) but get worse fuel economy.
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While Lexus is working hard to preserve as much of the concept car as possible, the SC will surely share its platform with the new, fourth-generation LS. While the LS has traditionally been something of a rival to the Mercedes S-Class, people I spoke with at Lexus have been hinting that the new big Lexus will in fact target the sportier end of the segment -- think Jaguar XJ and Porsche Panamera. Further proof that Mercedes ought to go ahead and write, "Can't Touch This" on their new S-Class. Regardless, the new LS will look to take on the S63 AMG by also using the 600-hp twin-turbo V-8 in what will be called the LS F. You can expect the LS 600hL to return (probably as the LS H), with the same Bavarian-flavored hybrid setup found in the SC H. The base LS will get the 5.0-liter V-8. The new LS will launch in 2016 as a 2017 model. You can also expect to see some sort of GS F, which is needed as the GS already ships with either a V-6 or a hybrid system, neither of which makes enough power for the chassis. Expect the GS F to get the RC F'S naturally aspirated V-8 and get cranked up to right around 500 hp.
Here's the best saved for last. In 2017 you can expect to see a super version of the RC F packing the 600-hp twin-turbo V-8. Think of it as an Infiniti Eau Rouge-fighter with a price tag to match -- about $120,000. However, since Johan de Nysschen has left Infiniti, it's doubtful the Eau Rouge will see the light of day. So think of the Super RC F as a C63 AMG Black Series-fighter. Seeing as how the Benz cost about $110,000 and "only" made 510 hp, $10K more for 600 hp (or more) makes sense. We're hearing RC FS as the name, with "FS" becoming Lexus's answer to AMG's Black Series and (Audi) Quattro GmbH's RS. It's looking like things are about to get interesting at Lexus.
When I was just one-year-old and newly walking, I managed to paint a white racing stripe down the side of my father’s Datsun 280Z. It’s been downhill ever since then. Moral of the story? Painting the garage leads to petrolheads. I’ve always loved writing, and I’ve always had strong opinions about cars.
One day I realized that I should combine two of my biggest passions and see what happened. Turns out that some people liked what I had to say and within a few years Angus MacKenzie came calling. I regularly come to the realization that I have the best job in the entire world. My father is the one most responsible for my car obsession. While driving, he would never fail to regale me with tales of my grandfather’s 1950 Cadillac 60 Special and 1953 Buick Roadmaster. He’d also try to impart driving wisdom, explaining how the younger you learn to drive, the safer driver you’ll be. “I learned to drive when I was 12 and I’ve never been in an accident.” He also, at least once per month warned, “No matter how good you drive, someday, somewhere, a drunk’s going to come out of nowhere and plow into you.”
When I was very young my dad would strap my car seat into the front of his Datsun 280Z and we’d go flying around the hills above Malibu, near where I grew up. The same roads, in fact, that we now use for the majority of our comparison tests. I believe these weekend runs are part of the reason why I’ve never developed motion sickness, a trait that comes in handy when my “job” requires me to sit in the passenger seats for repeated hot laps of the Nurburgring. Outside of cars and writing, my great passions include beer — brewing and judging as well as tasting — and tournament poker. I also like collecting cactus, because they’re tough to kill. My amazing wife Amy is an actress here in Los Angeles and we have a wonderful son, Richard.Read More