DETROIT MOTOR SHOW: Lexus RC F teased again

Lexus has released a second teaser image of its worst-kept secret in recent times: the new RC F Coupe.

Due to make its world debut at the Detroit motor show on January 13, the “all-new F performance coupe” marks the first coupe-based F model from Lexus.

The Japanese luxury brand says it will confirm the car’s name and reveal further details and specifications at the show, where BMW’s new M4 Coupe will also be unveilled.

However, the latest teaser shot shows the RC F will feature a bonnet scoop as well as the 19-inch BBS alloy wheels, as revealed in the first teaser earlier this month.

Lexus has said the model was "engineered from scratch" and "promises to deliver performance synonymous with Lexus' heritage of F-designated performance vehicles”.

It will be based on the new RC coupe, which was revealed in RC 300h hybrid and RC 350 form at last month’s Tokyo show and confirmed for release in Australia later next year.

While the RC 300h combines an electric motor with a 2.5-litre engine and the RC 350 is predictably powered by a 3.5-litre V6, there will also be a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol RC 200t.

However, Lexus’ first direct rival for mid-size German coupes like the BMW 4 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A5 will also include a rival for the RS 5, C63 AMG Coupe and new BMW M4.

As we’ve reported, the RC F – a brand name for which Lexus has also filed US and European patents -- should up the ante with a 339kW/544Nm 5.0-litre V8 that introduces the Toyota group’s first fuel-saving cylinder deactivation system.

Those performance outputs are up from 311kW and 505Nm in the 5.0-litre V8 that powers the previous-generation IS F, a replacement for which is yet to be revealed.

Riding on a rear-wheel drive platform with a shorter wheelbase than the IS sedan, the RC F will come standard with a three-mode eight-speed ‘Sports Direct Shift’ automatic transmission with shift paddles.

Like the M4, the RC F will employ carbon-fibre body parts including its bonnet, roof and boot lid, plus other light-weighting measures learned from racing at the Nurburgring with the race-spec Lexus IS F CCS-R, which undercuts the production IS F’s kerb weight by 300kg.

There will also be a speed-sensitive automatic rear spoiler and other aerodynamic elements also seen on the LFA, which will allow the RC F to hit 300km/h.

Riding on 15mm lower suspension, the RC F will feature a unique reinforced suspension sub-frame, Sachs monotube shock absorbers, specially tuned control-arm rear suspension, uprated coil springs and anti-roll bars, and slotted Brembo brake discs with six-piston front and four-piston rear callipers.

Inside the RC F, which rolls on unique 19-inch BBS wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 rubber, will be sports bucket seats co-developed with Recaro and loads of carbon and polished aluminium trim.

Race versions of the production RC F will be seen on racetracks from Suzuka to Nurburgring and Laguna Seca as new internationally standardised DTM-class race regulations come into play in Japan, Europe and the US by 2017.

The RC is based on a derivative of the same architecture as IS and GS. It rolls on a wheelbase 70mm shorter than the compact IS sedan at 2730mm, sits on a track the same 1840mm width as the GS and has an overall body length 30mm shorter than the IS at 4695mm. The RC is also 30mm wider and 35mm lower than the IS.

 While mainstream RC coupe pricing is expected to start somewhere between the new IS sedan ($55,900) and BMW’s 4 Series ($73,200), the RC F is likely to carry a pricetag similar to the old IS F sedan ($126,300).

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