Toyota has been busy the last year or so, with the arrival of their ultra successful Toyabaru FT86 twins as well as possibly the next Toyota Supra. The success of the FT86 has been stunning, leaving other automotive manufacturers like Dodge, Chevy and Honda to follow suit. Nissan recently announced their intention to join the rear wheel, front engine lightweight revolution, by reviving the Datsun 510 as well.
The FT-1 has certainly captured the imaginations of the 90s enthusiast that dreams fondly of turbocharged inline six sexiness that was the 2JZGTE. Yes, it’s still a concept car but a concept that undeniably raises the stakes in the stable of somewhat bland Toyota sporty offerings.
And while the Supra fans can dream about what possible influences this new concept will have on the Toyota badge, BMW and Toyota have surprised with the breaking news that there’s a LFA successor on the way. Think the BMW partnership is somewhat unexpected? Not with Toyota and BMW’s great continuing partnership based on the BMW diesel engines the announcement isn’t much of a shock to those in the know.
The Tokyo Motor Show brought exciting cars, concepts and themes to the upcoming year for many automotive manufacturers, but Toyota just may have stolen the show. Along with the LFA II announcement, there is talk of Toyota and BMW working together on the FCV prototype, which also made it’s grand appearance at the Tokyo Motor Show.
BMW’s much anticipated i8 reportedly is being used by Toyota at their research facilities which on the surface seems as though the LFA II may have some design or engineering cues from the i8. And according to rumors the powerplant for the upcoming Toyota will feature a hybrid system with a BMW 4.4liter turbocharged V8.
Performance nuts and number geeks may complain about the power output being relatively similar to the existing LFA, estimated around 600hp but we would beg to differ. With a step down in displacement from the 4.8 V10 to a turbocharged 4.4 V8, coupled with an electric motor and you see the beginnings of Toyota’s true new supercar.
How much of the new LFA II will share with the BMW i8? And will BMW release their version of supercar?
The original LFA which debuted in 2005 was a much heralded success especially after the refined version in 2007 with cutting edge exterior and interior styling cues and technology. We know the V10 engine won’t be returning, but it’s worth mentioning the awesome carbon fiber polymers that the LFA incorporated will hopefully be making a huge return in the LFA II.
Will there be a track version and Nurburgring model as the previous LFA did? It’s a fair question to ask, but one that bears mentioning as those versions undoubtedly raised the performance bar for the LFA. At the time of this writing, MSRP on the LFA II figures in the 350,000 dollar range, making it slightly cheaper than the 445,000 track versions of the LFA but an expensive proposition nonetheless.
Happy Boosting!
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