LFA Appreciation | Page 6 | FerrariChat

LFA Appreciation

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

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  1. aaladesawe

    aaladesawe Rookie

    Mar 26, 2017
    35
    I have owned amg , Bentley, Lamborghini and Ferraris for your information


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  2. Sterling Sackey

    Sterling Sackey Formula 3
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    The front and rear fenders, doors, roof rails and rocker panels are actually made from a special material called "blast fiber," not fiberglass. I haven't found any literature on why this material was chosen other than ease of replacement if the panels are damaged, but I'm sure the team had their reasons (weight was likely the same or minimally different from carbon fiber, and maybe the material resulted in higher paint quality, for instance). This, after all, was not a car that was built to a budget in any capacity, really. The entire passenger-cell "space frame" is high-grade carbon fiber, which is something that is missing in cars like the Ferrari 488 to this day (these have an aluminum chassis still), and was only recently introduced in McLaren's 720S (the previous McLaren MP4-12C/650S/675LT cars had a carbon fiber tub, but it did not continue to the A-pillars etc.).

    They did put them together with great precision, yes. Each LFA actually has a huge folder of paperwork retained by Toyota that details the torque measurements of each and every bolt, which were hand tightened with a manual torque wrench. This was recorded for each and every car and signed off by the worker who tightened the bolt, and the manager of the assembly line as a whole. Some of the files are shown in the below picture:

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  3. Sterling Sackey

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    #128 Sterling Sackey, Mar 18, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2018
    LFA chassis, the entire dark area is carbon fiber. This contributed to the LFA's curb weight of 3,263 lbs, versus an aluminum-chassis Ferrari 599 GTB's curb weight of 3,722 lbs.

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  4. Sterling Sackey

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  5. Solid State

    Solid State F1 Veteran
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    Thanks for the clarification. On the video I thought I thought I heard "glass-fiber" instead of "blast fiber". The space frame is of course CF as clearly shown in the video. Put together with such perfection! Too bad it does not have the look or power to match the effort IMHO. Did they really re-open an entire factory, retool, and then run just 500 cars over two years at a huge loss only to shut down again? I can't see Ferrari contemplating such a baked-in loss. Wouldn't get past the accountants. Best.
     
  6. Sterling Sackey

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    I'm not sure what the video says, but yes, "blast fiber" is what the official information from Lexus says.

    I would say 552 horsepower from 4.8 liters, or 115 horsepower-per-liter is fairly satisfactory for the year 2010 when this car debuted. The 599 GTB which commenters like to compare this car to had 612 horsepower, but weighed considerably more as referenced above. As a result, the LFA has 5.9 pounds per horsepower to move around, while the 599 GTB has to move 6.1 pounds with each of its horsepower.

    Yes, the intention of the car was to show off what the company was capable of producing, and change the perception of the Lexus brand towards becoming a dynamic performance brand. Akio Toyoda insisted that the car take on a sporting edge instead of a grand-touring edge for this reason, and told the team after multiple personal test drives during the car's development to pursue as sharp of a driving experience as possible in pursuit of this goal. He also encouraged them to enter 24 hours of Nurburgring on multiple occasions (in which he participated as a driver) with the specific goal of honing and battle-testing the road car. Profit or loss was not part of the conversation with this car, it simply didn't matter to a company as big as Toyota.
     
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  7. Solid State

    Solid State F1 Veteran
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    I understand and thanks. Folks like to compare it to the 599 GTO instead at which it is +100 hp down so not really acceptable for the effort. The video tells the story that the mid-front decision was made and they had a problem getting a standard V10 to fit. So they went on a long and tedious design phase to get more horsepower in the available space. What they cam up with looks fantastic. I can see the quality in the materials and construction. That engine must be extremely reliable. On the other hand, putting miles on an LFA would not be cheap as when things fail, and they do on top line Japanese, the parts will be very expensive. Simple parts like exhaust systems and some pollution or fuel/coolant delivery parts would be priced like those in yellow boxes I'm sure. But then these cars are not a rational buy in the first place!
     
  8. aaladesawe

    aaladesawe Rookie

    Mar 26, 2017
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    One of the best ever


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  9. Sterling Sackey

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    #134 Sterling Sackey, Mar 19, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 19, 2018
    "...they had a problem getting a standard V10 to fit. So they went on a long and tedious design phase..." Wow, I love the negative spin on what is a huge positive about this car, or any bespoke supercar. Perhaps instead of going on a long and tedious design phase to develop new engines, supercar manufacturers should simply install Corvette V8s or Viper V10s in their newest models.

    The LFA is quite a bit lighter than your 599 GTO, which some people prefer in a supercar. I actually had the dry weight number on the 599 GTB, curb weight is 3,953 lb according to Car & Driver's June 2007 instrumented test. It is tough to find a measured curb weight for a USA-spec 599 GTO, but we will assume Ferrari's 220 lb weight reduction claim is accurate (despite Car and Driver's listing the 599 GTO at 3,850 lbs), so it would sit at 3,733 lbs ready to drive. Car and Driver's instrumented test of the Lexus LFA showed a ‎3,583 lb curb weight with full fluids, etc.
     
  10. Sterling Sackey

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  11. ferrariwithsnowtires

    ferrariwithsnowtires Formula Junior

    Dec 17, 2005
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    I was told by the Lexus rep when the car was at the prototype phase that the non CF body panels were chosen to keep the replacement costs down when the car is damaged
     
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  12. Jalpa_Mike

    Jalpa_Mike F1 Rookie

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    Image Unavailable, Please Login Pretty cool car. Paul Williamsen brought one to our “Exotics @ Redmond Town Center event back in 2012 (I see Paul in a few of the photos posted). Had a cool photoshoot that morning with his LFA and my Countach. Quite the contrast (in looks and technology!). :)

    Mike
     
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  13. Jalpa_Mike

    Jalpa_Mike F1 Rookie

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  14. Sterling Sackey

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    They actually look pretty great next to each other! The LFA looks like a big car when photographed alone, but these photos make it clear it's actually quite small & compact.
     
  15. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    On this theme, I don't know if you recall this one, but here is our former Countach 25th Anniversario in one-off Argento/Rosso livery with an LFA, this image from back when it lived back East before I bought it back from the gentleman I sold it to

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  16. Sterling Sackey

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    I love seeing a group of supercars that aren't the usual suspects!
     
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  17. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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  18. aaladesawe

    aaladesawe Rookie

    Mar 26, 2017
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    I love to own the 575 , 599 and yes LFA


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  19. Solid State

    Solid State F1 Veteran
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    Sterling, I was absolutely not attempting to negative spin this car. I really like the quality of this car and was a fan of Toyota maybe even before you were born. You seem to have a skin thin and I have no skin in this game at all. To date I've bought new six Toyata's some before there was a Lexus. I admire them. Quality and fit and finish is out of this world. I don't own a 599GTO and the folks here know I don't think as much of that car as others would like me to. The LFA is special. Nuff said. They are not, however, in the same romantic league in the US as Ferrari and other exotics due to their somewhat daily driver looks. Read into that what you want but its true enough. Best.
     
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  20. kizdan

    kizdan F1 Veteran

    Dec 31, 2003
    5,505
    Say whatever you like about the car. This is an LFA discussion thread, although so many posting act as if it is an appreciation thread. You say anything negative, and they jump all over you.

    Maybe the thread starter should change the title of the thread to "LFA Appreciation thread", so that he doesn't come off as such an ass attacking anyone saying anything negative about it.
     
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  21. Sterling Sackey

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    Oh boy. I think the first post makes it fairly obvious that this is an appreciation thread, but some people have trouble with being positive on internet forums regardless of the topic.
     
  22. xotik

    xotik Formula Junior

    Feb 23, 2009
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    Chad
    I have certainly learned lots about this car I never knew before. Thanks OP!
     
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  23. kizdan

    kizdan F1 Veteran

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    #149 kizdan, Apr 9, 2018
    Last edited: Apr 9, 2018
    Haha......you deem this an appreciation thread because of the 1st post? 1 post doesn't make a thread.

    What is with the reluctance to properly re-title the thread????

    If this was titled as an appreciation thread, my 1st post in this thread would have been quite different from what I actually posted.
     
  24. joe sackey

    joe sackey Five Time F1 World Champ
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    It's always the OP's prerogative to title a thread as they wish and deem it an appreciation or a discussion thread.

    Bear in mind that a thread automatically becomes an appreciation thread obviously by virtue of it's historical, technical, photographic and illustrative content, also pointed out in the mission-statement 1st post and clearly established within the 1st page, as such the name doesn't need to be changed at all so far as the content is LFA-specific.

    I can think of a slew of multi-million view threads some of which have been accepted as such and endured for over a decade covering cars such as the Miura, Countach, 288 GTO, F40 and more besides, none of which have the word "appreciation" attached to their title.

    If you think this thread is too much of an appreciation thread for your liking, there is nothing wrong with that viewpoint, nor is there anything to stop you starting another LFA thread and naming it as you wish. Meanwhile, I doubt the OP is going to rename the thread, but we can always wait & see.

    Some negative comments are understandable as an expression of one's opinion, and on a public forum they are welcome because they are a valid contribution. That said, the fact remains that people prefer positive input as a whole, so don't be so surprised when you receive a contrarian point of view in response to negative comments, such is the nature of a public forum. As much as you have a right to post something negative, so the OP, or anyone else, has a right at rebuttal. However, I don't think anyone has actually attacked anyone in this thread, for the most part the discourse has been quite nice & positive, and the OP has proven to be a thoughtful and knowledgeable contributor from whom we can all learn. Thank goodness he started this thread of his own volition, long may it thrive.
     

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