Lexus has filed a European trademark application for
LC F all but confirming that a high-performance version of the LC is in
development. AutoGuide broke the news and says Toyota president Akio Toyoda
gave the model the green light some time ago to sit alongside the RC F and GS F
in Lexus’ fleet of performance-oriented models.
Lexus says that the standard LC 500 is its most
dynamic model since the famed LFA so one can expect the LC F to be even more
impressive. Don’t consider it a spiritual successor to the LFA however, for the
LC remains a luxurious front mid-engined coupe that competes against the likes
of the BMW 5-Series and Maserati Gran Turismo.
Some key developments for the LC F can
be expected. For starters, it seems probable that the firm’s
naturally-aspirated 5.0-liter V8 will find its way into the F-badged model. In
LC 500 guise it delivers 467 hp but a figure well into the 500’s should be
easily achievable without the necessity of forced induction.