With all the time, energy and resources used in building the Lexus LFA supercar, it seems the Japanese automaker might not be all that interested in anyone driving the vehicle as they’ve made it prohibitively difficult to get into. It’s not the cost that might keep people away ($375,000 being a rather reasonable price for a full carbon chassis exotic with a high-revving V10), but rather the complex process Lexus has devised by which potential “owners” have to jump through hoops to get into an LFA. And lets not forget, that 24 months later, the car goes back to Lexus – because it’s just a lease after all.

So what’s an LFA cost to lease each month? How about a staggering $12,398.44. And if you thought the whole idea behind a lease was to make a car more affordable, forget it. Lexus wants all that cash up front – a total of $237,562.56. But it’s not that simple. First Lexus has to actually choose you, after which you will be notified and then drop off a $10,000 deposit while Lexus checks your credit. then Lexus wants an additional $50,000 lump sum deposit.

Once the car has been built specifically for you (which is likely to take a while) candidates will have to then undergo a second credit check before handing over the $237,562.56, bringing the total to $297,562.56.

Now if there is some good news in here, it’s that Lexus will actually sell the LFA to leases at the end of the 24 months, for the residual value of $93,750.

What’s the purpose off all this nonsense? Well, Lexus devised this plan to weed out speculators who might try and buy an LFA in order to resell it at a higher value. Unfortunately for Lexus, they might have weeded out quite a few folks who really want the car but just don’t have the desire to participate in a lengthy series of payment, credit check, payment, credit check, payment, payment. And on top of all this, when you add the total lease price to the residual value, the number is actually $391,312.56 – or roughly $16,000 more than the MSRP. Plus Lexus will actually make you pay a $700 acquisition fee and then there’s those pesky taxes.

Is it worth it to own the first Lexus supercar? That’s still up in the air. The LFA has all the potential to be a world-class exotic, with its V10 engine and carbon fiber monocoque chassis, but can the notoriously dull Lexus brand build a full-fledged exotic?

Official release after the jump:

For the third straight year in a row Lexus will compete at the Nurburgring 24 Hour race, once again using one of its LFA supercars. And much like the past two years, the team will be operated by Gazoo Racing, which fields Lexus race cars in Japan’s Super GT series.

There’s no word from Lexus yet on what class the LFA will run in but judging from the pictures it seems like a more track-focused model than the past pre-production models. Lexus also isn’t messing around when it comes to racing talent, fielding a team of six Japanese and German drivers with some very impressive resumes. Included among them are six-time Super Taikyu Endurance Series champion Takayuki Kinoshita, 2002 JGTC GT500 winner Akira Iida and 2008 Nürburgring 24 Hour second place finisher Jochen Krumbach.

This year’s Nürburgring 24 Hour races takes place from May 13 to 16th and we’ll be sure to keep an eye on Lexus’ efforts.

News of this new Nürburgring racer comes just a day after rumors of a Lexus LFA Nürburgring Edition surfaced.

GALLERY: Lexus LFA Nürburgring Racer

Official release after the jump:

The Lexus crazy folks over at LexusEnthusiast have uncovered a Japanese story about a possible Nürburgring Edition of the new LFA supercar, adding credibility to earlier reports that a more track-focused model is on the way. The extra high performance model is reportedly named after the world famous race track/public road where the LFA underwent extensive testing and which is used as a benchmark to rate all high-performance vehicles.

Upgrades to the LFA Nürburgring Edition are to include a front splitter, a large rear spoiler (fixed), a stiffer suspension, lighter weight wheels, stickier tires and a slight bump of 10-hp. This would bring the LFA’s total engine output to 562-hp from its 4.8-liter V10.

The model will be offered in just four colors: black, matte black, the orange color seen above and another color that was lost in Google translation.

Lexus has yet to confirm details of a Nürburgring Edition LFA, but we’re excited about the possibility, although we’re a bit surprised the carbon chassis creation is being eclipsed so quickly.

GALLERY: Lexus LFA Nürburging Edition

[Source: レクサスとの道[LEXUS] via LexusEnthusiast]

Lexus is looking to bring back the IS SportCross – at least in Europe. The wagon body style of the original IS300 was a massive flop in North America, causing Lexus to eliminate the oddly shaped five-door from its product plans when it came around to building the second generation of cars.

With North Americans being early adopters of Lexus vehicles, Toyota’s luxury arm is now looking to make more of a push in Europe as its models finally start to become more popular there. Lexus now admits that its decision to drop a wagon model most likely slowed sales and the growth of the brand in a market where wagons are seen as the functional yet cool alternative to boring sedans.

As a result, Lexus is now looking to bring back the IS wagon for the third-generation model, due out soon. And according to a report by AutoCar, the wagon is likely only to be sold only as a hybrid (which sounds strange to us). This model would then help Lexus compete more strongly with the popular BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class wagons.

There’s no word about the wagon returning to North America and while the segment does seem to be growing with the Cadillac CTS SportWagon on sale now and the Acura TSX Sport Wagon coming, it’s still not clear if the U.S. market will accept luxury wagons in numbers significant enough for Lexus to bring the SportCross back to our shores.

IS-F SportCross anyone?

[Source: AutoCar]

After announcing the IS350C F-Spot Special Edition earlier this week, Lexus has now provided us with the first photos of the sporty drop-top. Priced from $57,500, it will be offered in only Tungsten Pearl (above) or Obsidian. Unique to the Special Edition is a set package of F-Sport goodies including: new 19-inch forged wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport tires, upgraded front and rear brakes, lowering springs, Bilstein shocks, sway bars, a new F-Sport grille, as well as F-Sport floor mats, an F-Sport shift knob and F-Sport badging.

The package also features black leather seats with blue stitching, while standard features include heated and ventilated front seats with wood trim, Bi-Xenon HID headlamps with Adaptive Front lighting, Lexus Navigation, a rear back-up camera, Voice Command casual-language voice recognition system and Lexus Enform with Safety Connect.

Just 100 F-Sport Special Edition models will be offered, with sales beginning later this month. The car will officially debut at the New York Auto Show on March 31st and we’ll be sure to bring you plenty of live photos then.

GALLERY: 2010 Lexus IS350C F-Sport Special Edition

Official release after the jump:

Lexus has just announced a new Special Edition version of the IS350C, complete with many of its F-Sport accessories. Priced from $57,500, it will be offered in only Tungsten Pearl or Obsidian. Unique to the Special Edition is a set package of F-Sport goodies including: new 19-inch forged wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport tires, upgraded front and rear brakes, lowering springs, Bilstein shocks, sway bars, a new F-Sport grille, as well as F-Sport floor mats, an F-Sport shift knob and F-Sport badging. (Model different from shown).

The package also features black leather seats with blue stitching, while standard features include heated and ventilated front seats with wood trim, Bi-Xenon HID headlamps with Adaptive Front lighting, Lexus Navigation, a rear back-up camera, Voice Command casual-language voice recognition system and Lexus Enform with Safety Connect.

Official release after the jump:

Lexus will debut its latest model, the CT200h, in front of a North American audience for the first time at the New York Auto Show at the end of the month. Officially unveiled at the Geneva Auto Show last week, the CT200h is not only a luxury hatchback, but the first hybrid in the compact premium class.

Power comes from a version of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive system using a 1.8-liter VVT-i 4-cylinder, however, Toyota has yet to announce any engine output numbers. A similar setup used in the Prius makes just 134-hp, but we’re hoping for something closer to the HS250’s 187-hp. Lexus claims a fully electric range of 1.2 miles in EV mode at speeds up to 28 mph, while driver’s can also select Normal or Sport driving modes. The CT200h is a front-wheel drive model and runs 17-inch wheels.

The interior is certainly of a reasonably premium level, with some typical Toyota hybrid touches like the small gear shifter and push button ignition. The dash is divided into two “zones” with a Display Zone for vehicle information (which includes an 8-inch LCD screen) and an Operation Zone, which includes the Lexus Remote Touch mouse control. As a hatchback, Lexus rates the car’s storage capacity at roughly 12 cubic feet behind the rear seats and a total of 25 cubic feet with those seats folded flat.

Originally designed for Europe, Lexus has announced this new model will be offered world-wide, with sales expected to start late this year.

GALLERY: Lexus CT200h Debut in Geneva

The main attraction at the Lexus booth at the Geneva Auto Show is the CT200h, a hybrid hatchback from Toyota’s luxury division, aimed squarely at the European marketplace. It aims to compete against vehicles like the Volvo C30, BMW 1 Series and Audi A3, but will be the first full hybrid in the premium compact segment.

Power comes from a version of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive system using a 1.8-liter VVT-i 4-cylinder, however, Toyota has yet to announce any engine output numbers. A similar setup used in the Prius makes just 134-hp, but we’re hoping for something closer to the HS250’s 187-hp. Lexus claims a fully electric range of 1.2 miles in EV mode at speeds up to 28 mph, while driver’s can also select Normal or Sport driving modes. The CT200h is a front-wheel drive model and runs 17-inch wheels.

The interior is certainly of a reasonably premium level, with some typical Toyota hybrid touches like the small gear shifter and push button ignition. The dash is divided into two “zones” with a Display Zone for vehicle information (which includes an 8-inch LCD screen) and an Operation Zone, which includes the Lexus Remote Touch mouse control.

As a hatchback, Lexus rates the car’s storage capacity at roughly 12 cubic feet behind the rear seats and a total of 25 cubic feet with those seats folded flat.

Designed specifically for Europe, Lexus has announced this new model will be offered world-wide.

GALLERY: Lexus CT200h

After a leaked brochure earlier this week, Lexus has has now officially revealed the CT200h hybrid hatchback with news of “worldwide sales.” Set to debut next week at the Geneva Auto Show, the car was initially designed for Europe, but according to the Lexus press release Toyota’s luxury arm will offer the car in other markets – including the U.S.

Power comes from a version of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive system using a 1.8-liter VVT-i 4-cylinder. A similar setup used in the Prius makes just 134-hp, but we’re hoping for something closer to the HS250’s 187-hp. Lexus claims a fully electric range of 1.2 miles in EV mode at speeds up to 28 mph, while driver’s can also select Normal or Sport driving modes. The CT200h is the first full hybrid in the premium C-Class segment and is front-wheel drive, running on 17-inch wheels.

The interior is certainly of a premium level, with some typical Toyota hybrid touches like the small gear shifter and push button ignition. The dash is divided into two “zones” with a Display Zone for vehicle information (which includes an 8-inch LCD screen) and an Operation Zone, which includes the Lexus Remote Touch mouse control.

As a hatchback, Lexus rates the car’s storage capacity at roughly 12 cubic feet behind the rear seats and a total of 25 cubic feet with those seats folded flat.

We’ll bring you more on the CT200h and the rest of the cars at the Geneva Auto Show with live coverage starting Monday, March 1st.

Click here for AutoGuide’s live 2010 Geneva Auto Show coverage starting Monday, March 1st.

GALLERY: 2011 Lexus CT200h

Official release after the jump:

With a debut set for next week, a brochure of the European Lexus CT200h hybrid hatchback has leaked out online, although details are still hard to come by. The car is powered by a 1.8-liter VVT-i 4-cylinder engine, an electric motor and a nickel-metal hydride battery, although no output numbers are available yet. Power does go to the front 17-inch wheels using a CVT transmission and Lexus has designed the car with three driving modes: Eco, Normal and Sport. As a full hybrid it will be able to run completely on electric power for short periods of time.

As for the rest of the car, it measured 170-inches in length, is 69.5-inches wide and 56-inches tall, with a 102-inch wheelbase. The interior looks like a genuine premium vehicle, as the Europeans would expect, with a few typical Toyota/Lexus hybrid cues, like the strange transmission shift mechanism. Cargo space is rated at 12 cubic feet behind the rear seats and a total of 25 cubic feet with the rear seats folded flat.

Outside, the car isn’t nearly as dramatic as the concept, which first debuted at the Frankfurt Auto Show last year. To help spice it up a bit and to grow the Lexus brand with younger buyers in Europe, the CT200h will be offered in two new exciting colors: Flare Yellow and Fire Agate. Plus, it has LED lighting.

The car is set to debut at the Geneva Auto Show next week and we imagine we’ll find out both engine output numbers and the more importat fuel economy numbers at that time. Lexus is also eager to point out that this hybrid setup produces far fewer emissions than a similar diesel engine.

Click here for AutoGuide’s live 2010 Geneva Auto Show coverage starting Monday, March 1st.

GALLERY: Lexus CT200h Brochure

[Source: WorldCarFans]