LFA Appreciation | Page 3 | FerrariChat

LFA Appreciation

Discussion in 'General Automotive Discussion' started by Sterling Sackey, Jan 23, 2018.

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  1. Sterling Sackey

    Sterling Sackey Formula 3
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    #51 Sterling Sackey, Feb 1, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2018
    I am seeking an LFA off-market if any owners are watching! Please contact me [email protected].
     
  2. Sterling Sackey

    Sterling Sackey Formula 3
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    The LFA at its world debut in October 2009 at the Tokyo Motor Show. The team must have been proud, this was a car they had poured their hearts and souls into for many years. Even Toyota's CEO, Akio Toyoda, had played a huge personal role in developing the car as mentioned previously.

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  3. Tcar

    Tcar F1 Rookie

    Now the giant cheese graters are on the rear of the car, too... ugh...
     
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  4. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    May 23, 2006
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    Great to receive meaningful feedback from someone with actual LFA ownership experience.

    I think the LFA is an engineering tour de force with sublime design, a true Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, a car for connoisseurs with discerning taste, available for a fraction of its real cost, an astute acquisition IMHO.

    A very special car, completely worthy of this proper 'resource' thread, where accurate information, illustrations & images can freely be shared to enhance our knowledge, thank you for doing it, as we know, maintaining these relevant threads takes time & effort, well-played.
     
  5. GuyIncognito

    GuyIncognito Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Jun 30, 2007
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    what's the current market on these cars? they're intriguing. definitely grown on me over the years, much like the original NSX.
     
  6. Sterling Sackey

    Sterling Sackey Formula 3
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  7. GuyIncognito

    GuyIncognito Nine Time F1 World Champ
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  8. drive4fun

    drive4fun Rookie

    Jan 19, 2005
    40
    When it was first introduced, I tested the LFA at the Monticello track with Scott Pruitt driving (then swapped seats). As a multi NSX owner and one of the very early LS400 buyers in 1989, I had built up a lot of expectation for the car. Almost all the bits were there: great engine, superb workmanship, scarcity.....but I remember chatting at the track with a few others who tested it and agreeing it just didn’t feel or look or drive like a $375k Car. Though far less sophisticated, the Ford gt thrilled me in every way and felt like a bargain for $160k. I also felt the Carrera GT was real value and exciting though a $10k negotiating gap with a salesman kept a new one out of my garage! One of my periodic car mistakes. I do love projects that focus on a holistic excellence which was the journey of the LFA design team; and I continue to hold this car in high regard, but I have to say I don’t regret taking a pass on the purchase.


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app
     
  9. Sterling Sackey

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    Chris Harris gives his thoughts on the LFA Nurburgring as he rockets around the track...

     
  10. kizdan

    kizdan F1 Veteran

    Dec 31, 2003
    5,505
    #60 kizdan, Feb 7, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 7, 2018
    What stood out to me when the LFA was introduced was that it cost more than a 599, had less power, and nowhere close to a racing pedigree that Ferrari has - who would want one? Apparently, not many, as new ones sat at dealerships, in some cases, for years! I started referring to it as a LAF.

    Seriously, I still do not understand why anyone would want one. It looks like a glorified Celica. It has a V10 - so what? What link to anything Toyota has ever done in their history does the V10 have? I don't think I need to point out anything about the rich history Ferrari has with V12s..............

    I'm pretty sure they started off with a 575 as a benchmark. So many years passed by before the LAF finally got introduced. Subsequently, the 599 had gotten introduced, and trounced the LAF in every way.

    It was a statement that Toyota was trying to make where no statement was necessary. It's not as if it was succeeded a long line of high performance sports cars..............
     
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  11. Tcar

    Tcar F1 Rookie

    And it's ugly.
     
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  12. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    The V10-powered TS010 Le Mans racer, podium finisher @ the 24 hours in 1992 for example, and others besides





     
  13. GuyIncognito

    GuyIncognito Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    and their (not very successful) F1 team...

    remember, the V10 era was also the manufacturer era. BMW built a V10 for the M5/M6 as a connection from their F1 team to their road cars as well.
     
  14. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    Exactly.

    As is often the case engine configuration begins in the race cars and ends up in the road cars, and in the same way the V10 had an established Toyota Motorsports linkage by the advent of the LFA.
     
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  15. LNtoast

    LNtoast Karting

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  16. buddyg

    buddyg F1 Veteran
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    To me it’s an ugly car but that’s just my .02 cents.
     
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  17. aaladesawe

    aaladesawe Rookie

    Mar 26, 2017
    35
    Why are you on this forum?
    If you don’t like the LFA
    Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder
    Don’t spoil it for others


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  18. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    Beauty is always subjective, that said, I'm not sure Lexus had the former as it's design brief.

    The original LFA Press release does a good job explaining the car's styling as far as aerodynamics and exterior design are concerned, making it clear that the focus was on "mold-breaking styling".

    It goes on to clarify "As well as its low weight and high strength, carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) also gave the LFA’s designers a far higher degree of design freedom, allowing them to create shapes, curves and edges that would have been impossible with metal. For example, the sharp trailing edges at the rear of the LFA that ensure the wind breaks cleanly away from the body for superlative aerodynamics would not have been possible had traditional metal been used for the bodywork .... Its numerous air-intakes and aerodynamic features, for example, fulfill a functional role first and an aesthetic role second – a clear example of form following function in the L-finesse idiom"

    As someone just posted in another thread (thanks Matt), "it speaks its own design language, it knows exactly what it is".

    Design appreciation comes from understanding the form and it's function, and I think that's a factor in some people's appreciation of the LFA, or lack thereof. On the other hand, it's okay to not like it, not everyone understood or liked the work of some of the great masters.

    I recall 2 other Supercar icons that were not always appreciated as beautiful when launched, but are now thought of almost unanimously in reverence.

    From a personal standpoint, having owned multiple examples of what many consider to be some of the world's most beautiful sportscars (Miura SV, 288 GTO etc), I think the LFA's design rocks in an aggressively sublime way for a front-engined car, but I confess that taking the time to understand what it's design is about helps to that conclusion. I say thank goodness it's different, refreshingly so.
     

    Attached Files:

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  19. kizdan

    kizdan F1 Veteran

    Dec 31, 2003
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    This pretty much reinforces my view. I would take a Formula 1-inspired motor over a lesser form of racing inspired motor any day of the week.
     
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  20. kizdan

    kizdan F1 Veteran

    Dec 31, 2003
    5,505

    This isn't a "Let's praise the LAF" thread, it is a discussion thread. How is a differing opinion from yours going to "spoil it for others"? If you like/love the car, more power to you. Nobody else's opinion should make any difference to you.
     
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  21. Sterling Sackey

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    If you consider a 4.8-liter V10 that revs to 9,500 RPM to be anything less than Formula 1 inspired, all it does is shed light on the off-base way in which you form all the opinions you've posted in this thread thus far.

    Actually, you're wrong. This is a thread for celebrating the car and sharing information about it. If you don't like the car, there is no need to offer your opinion here. It has been said many times on other corners of the internet, and offers nothing new for people who actually want to learn factual information about the LFA. I'm sure you will find happiness in the Ferrari section, please head that way.
     
  22. Sterling Sackey

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    #72 Sterling Sackey, Feb 8, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2018
    As for the countless comments on the styling... guys, there have been a great many incredible supercars that aren't the first word in looks. The Porsche 959 and Ferrari F50 come to mind if you'd like examples. For years, the now-beloved Japanese sports car the Honda/Acura NSX was said to be a Ferrari ripoff with a strange looking rear end. Over time, people learn to appreciate these designs as they are. In addition, serious enthusiasts understand that supercar styling represents more than just a sketch on a piece of paper, it is form following functional decisions made by an engineering team. It's okay to simply appreciate the car for its attributes, and move along. There is no need to conduct a post-mortem on this car's styling 8 years after its debut in this thread, as I said above it has all been said before and the purpose of this thread is to share information on the car that doesn't follow the same stereotypes we have heard for years.
     
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  23. Sterling Sackey

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    #73 Sterling Sackey, Feb 8, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2018
    Below is one of the most interesting car-related articles I have ever read, chronicling the story of Hiromu Naruse who was Toyota's chief test driver for many decades (from the days of the 2000GT onwards). As previously mentioned, he died behind the wheel of an LFA Nurburgring prototype, after he went out a fated "one last time" to ensure that the damper settings were just right on this record-setting version of the LFA. Naruse was known for pushing his engineers to the absolute limits, insisting that they lived and breathed the car they were working on, 24 hours a day. I wish that Lexus had named the LFA Nurburgring the LFA Naruse instead, as his name and the story associated with it really deserved to be extolled on this incredible car.

    http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a10348883/the-incredible-tragic-life-of-toyotas-most-important-test-driver/

    Behind the wheel of LFA:

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    Chatting with Akio Toyoda, the head of Toyota as a company, who was intimately involved in LFA development and was one of the drivers in their 24 Hours of Nurburgring campaigns:

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  24. Gmack

    Gmack Rookie

    Sep 10, 2017
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  25. Sterling Sackey

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    #75 Sterling Sackey, Feb 8, 2018
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2018
    Yes, it's been noted that they've had serious offers in the $800k's which they have turned down. Values like this are corroborated and supported by the recent Gooding sale, I don't blame them for asking that much for a Nurburgring car in that livery. Whoever specced that car in the proper release-spec Orange over black Alcantara is a smart individual!
     
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