2011 Lexus Premium on 2040-cars

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Lexus RC 350 F Sport ready to take on Europe's coupes

Rumbling into the slot between the Lexus RC 350 Sport Coupe and the RC F is this, the RC 350 F Sport. Debuting at the Geneva Motor Show next week, the intergalactic malevolence of that spindle grille is given further aggression with a mesh treatment and 19-inch F Sport mesh wheels in dark metallic. Traditionally, F Sport models have also brandished unique fascias, but the standard RC is so visually aggressive to begin with, it still ought to throw quite a scare into rivals like the BMW 4 Series M Sport.
Bigger identifiers come in the cabin and under the skin, foremost being the redrum-reminiscent Rioja Red leather treatment and Silver Performance trim, perforated leather wrapped 'round the steering wheel and a moving center ring in the dash cluster inspired by the LFA. When the coupe is put into Sport+ mode, the included adaptive damping will kick in, and buyers can optionally order the four-wheel steering system when the car goes on sale in the US this fall.
There's a press release with info and specs below, a high-res gallery above and a bright lights, big city introduction on March 4 in Geneva.

Lexus LF-C2 Concept shows polarizing looks are here to stay

Well, that's one question answered. When Lexus released the first teaser for its LF-C2 Concept, we figured it'd be one of two things - either it'd be a convertible based on the LF-LC Concept car or it'd be a thinly veiled concept version of the RC Convertible. Turns out, it's kind of both.
The LF-LC styling straddles the wilder, concepty looks of the LF-LC and the still wild, but more grounded, looks of the RC. That doesn't mean it's not a polarizing piece of design, with Lexus styling trademarks like the dominating spindle grille and separate LED running lights. Lexus' knife-edge cuts and folds in the bodywork have been toned down relative to past concepts, but the overall look here, particularly in the rear fenders, is rather busy.
"The LF-C2 concept shows what's in store for our brand's future design direction," Lexus boss Jeff Bracken said. "This concept shows consumers around the world Lexus' devotion to emotional designs as well as our passion for an exceptional driving experience."

2015 Lexus RC F

I didn't get a chance to drive the Lexus IS F until 2009, two years after the car had gone on sale, but I still vividly remember the day it happened. Having piloted almost every other vehicle in the Lexus lineup at that point, I was stoked to finally get some wheel time in the V8-powered, flared-fender muscle sedan, but fully expected the car to offer a quick, sanitized and ultimately un-driverly experience. Lexus built well-screwed-together, comfortable, quiet, reliable luxury cars for the timid, right?
As it turned out, I was 100-percent incorrect. When the premium brand's lauded "skunkworks team" crammed that massive V8 into the innocent IS, and then tuned the thing for competent hot laps at Fuji Speedway (F = Fuji, if you haven't heard), they seemingly forgot every brand value that Lexus had curated over the previous 20 years. It was raw and loud, had fast-twitch reflexes and a penchant for power slides, and it went unyieldingly across the road surface like a racecar cut loose from the paddock.
As far as Ur- models and origin stories go, the IS F and Lexus F has a pretty compelling, if new, set. A backdrop against which the sequel, this 2015 RC F, must inevitably be viewed. Sure, the otherworldly LFA may have intervened as the second F model, but the RC carries forward an evolution of the 5.0-liter V8 thumper, some shared body and chassis constructions, similar in-your-face design and a ticket price that's squarely in the mix for premium buyers with a hankering to smoke tires.