Rallye Lexus Tuner Meet May 18th 2008

We had our first Lexus Tuner meet here on May 18th, the event was a success, the weather held up despite the bad weather report and continual rain we had all week, we had 60 registered entrants and 57 of them show up for the meet and about 200 people show up to join us.

Bill Finsilver, Pam Palasciano, Andrew Jones, Lee Morse, John Tetta along with many other Rallye Lexus employees and Lexus Eastern Area office was on site to help with the event.

Lexus Eastern Area made the IS-F dyno drive and driving simulators possible. All participants got a chance to drive the IS-F on the dyno and feel the lightning fast shifting of the 8 speed transmission and the amazing precision of the throttle blip downshift. The two driving simulator was quite amazing in all areas, it featured a PC based race program, 5.1 channel digital surround sound, a 40 inch LCD display and all the gadgets you'll find in a real race car that included a pedal shifter, the simulator was set up on a NASCAR style track with infield turns, all participants got to drive the IS-F around the track and got their adrenalin pumping.

We all had a great time talking to car enthusiasts and got to meet tons of great people and to be the first to reach out to the tuner market at the grassroot level. we all are looking forward to our next event which is going to be even better than this one, so stay tuned to our blogs for more updates and we hope to see you soon.

- F-Champ -

Lexus LF-A supercar up close

Prototypes for Lexus’ upcoming LF-A supercar have been spotted testing at the Nurburgring for the good part of a year but firm details about the car are still hard to come by. Most reports claim the LF-A will be powered by an F1-derived, high-revving V10 engine displacing 5.0L and developing in excess of 500hp. There are also rumors a hybrid version could be offered but how much power it will have or what affect the batteries and electric motor will have on handling and weight is still unclear. One thing we can be certain of is that the powerplant of the new LF-A will be one of hottest sound engines around, as testified by the high-speed drive-bys in this latest spy video.Competing against such cars as the Audi R8 and BMW M6 and even Nissan’s GT-R, the LF-A will have a price tag significantly higher than any of its current offerings including the current LS600h flagship. The car’s front mid-engine placement, along with a rear-mounted transaxle and rear-mounted radiators, should allow for excellent weight distribution. The V10 is mounted in front of the passenger compartment but behind the front-axle centerline. It’s connected via a torque tube and propeller shaft to a transaxle that is controlled by paddle shifters. The torque tube is a structural member that adds rigidity to the drivetrain and chassis while also reducing vibration.
Zero to 60mph acceleration times for the LF-A should fall below the four-second mark and top speed will almost certainly exceed 200mph.
Following the launch of the coupe early next year, Lexus will add a roadster model based on January’s Detroit Auto Show concept car. However, the car will make its first public debut – albeit in full race mode - at this month’s Nurburgring 24 hour endurance challenge where it will compete alongside Porsches, Aston Martins and Corvettes. The racing version is distinguished from regular production test-mules by its chunky GT wing, bigger wheels and brakes, custom bodykit with oversized intakes and front-mount canards.