Lexus could race RC F and GS F

Luxury brand Lexus could race both the RC F coupe and GS F sedan if it approves a V8 Supercars program.

And Lexus Australia chief Sean Hanley has also strongly backed the concept of racing a 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 because it is the engine traditionally used in the category - as well as powering both the recently launched RC F and forthcoming GS F high-performance road cars.

Under the Gen2 technical rules being developed for introduction in 2017, coupes will be eligible to race in the category as well as sedans. Engines other than V8s, such as turbocharged sixes and fours, will also be allowed.

Lexus Australia is taking this year to decide whether it wants to get into motorsport in either V8 Supercars or GT3. If it goes down the V8 path it will have to then form a team alliance, determine investment levels, resolve its technology choices and figure out how to leverage the program.

The target, if a green light comes, is to be on the grid as soon as 2017.

"The RC F is the logical car [to race] as we sit here right now, but it is not impossible to envisage the GS F sedan in the future," Hanley told motoring.com.au at the Clipsal 500 V8 Supercars championship opener last weekend.

"Imagine for a moment if you had two cars, an RC F and a GS F. You could do that. It's all new stuff.

"Not that I am saying that's what you would do, because there's a cost involved and it could be prohibitive. But the worlds open up."

Hanley was officially in Adelaide with Lexus Australia corporate manager Adrian Weimers to oversee the debut of the Toyota-owned brand's two-year safety, medical and course car supply deal with V8 Supercars.

But Hanley, who admits he knows little about motorsport, also spent a fair amount of time in the garages of leading teams including Prodrive Racing Australia, which is in its final year as a factory Ford squad and would be one of the leading, logical candidates to align with Lexus.

Others potentially could include Roger Penske's new DJR Team Penske outfit, privateer Holden team Brad Jones Racing and Erebus Motorsport V8. Pitlane rumours insist some other teams with current manufacturer ties are also sniffing around the potential Lexus deal.

"The truth is we have had no formal discussion with any team," Hanley insisted. "We have had some teams reach out and make themselves known to us, but we have had no formal discussions.

"And the reason for that is simply this; we are nowhere near ready to have that discussion. It would be a hypothetical discussion at best.

"This [safety car] partnership allows us to get involved with the sport, to understand the business of the sport and to determine whether it's the right direction for our brand. It's a kind of risk-free association is the way we look at it."

Hanley and Weimers made it clear a green light for motorsport and then V8 Supercars (or Supercars as it is expected to become known) would only be based on the right business case being formulated. In other words, that going racing would elevate the brand's somewhat conservative image and generate interest from motoring-enthusiast car buyers.

"It's about showing to all motorsport fans that Lexus is a brand that we would like you to know, introduce to you and most of all if you want to go up a bit in the luxury market then we are a credible brand for you to consider," Hanley said.

"We have cars that are available for sale now that are achievable for people who are moving up from mainstream to luxury, or people in luxury who want to move to a sports performance car. Lexus now has a solution and we have an offering, a credible offering."

Lexus runs a distant fourth amongst prestige and luxury buyers behind Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi in Australia. It has set itself the target of 5-10 per cent annual sales growth out to 2020.

For all the dispassionate rationale underpinning the decision-making process, Hanley sounded like his Clipsal 500 visit – on a day when a near record crowd packed into the Adelaide parkland circuit – and the V8 Supercars category had made a positive, personal impact.

"I dare to dream of seeing a Lexus V8 on the grid one day. I dare to dream that, because you just never know. Anything is possible," he said.

"What I love the most is beyond Lexus having great cars, great quality and the best customer service; we also have right now a 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 which resonates very well culturally in my opinion with Australian motorsport fans.

"Watching here today a 5.0-litre naturally aspirated V8 is what these fans want ... and the market is never wrong and I have a 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 that could be there."