Lexus LFA could return with twin-turbo V8 hybrid

A revival of the Lexus LFA is allegedly underway, but it won’t be the big, brawny V10-powered supercar it was before.

We’ve known for some time that Toyota has been planning a ballistic new road racer for Lexus in parallel with its motorsport program, underpinned by a twin-turbo hybrid powertrain.

That was initially believed to be based around a V6, however Toyota’s recent patenting of a new biturbo V8 – believed to be a DOHC petrol engine displacing 4.0 litres – is now considered the natural fit for a Lexus LFA successor.

And according to the latest intel out of Japan, a plug-in hybrid version of this all-new bent-eight is being readied for a resurrected LFA.

Best Car Web reports that an all-new carbon-bodied Lexus supercar will arrive by 2025 with the new twin-turbo V8 on board – and with the electric boost it should be capable of producing around 700kW of power.

That’s up from the expected 450kW without the plug-in component, and well ahead of the 412kW mustered by the previous Yamaha-sourced naturally-aspirated 4.8-litre V10 in the original LFA.

It also looks as though the next LFA will stick with a rear-drive layout (using a single electric motor), rather than move to all-wheel drive as previously anticipated.

Lexus hasn’t produced an LFA since 2012. Only 500 were built and 10 made it to Australia, priced at a cool $750,000 plus on-road costs.

There’s still no official word from Lexus regarding an LFA successor, but a 2025 launch would tie in well with the luxury marque’s plan to bring 10 new electrified models to market by mid-decade.