Car Throttle

Since 2000, Lexus has reigned as the top-selling luxury brand in the United States. That has been entirely off of crafting an image of unrelenting quality - you know, the Passionate Pursuit of Perfection. For the most part, performance didn't play a part of the equation until the IS-F arrived. With the LFA, Lexus is aiming to show a different side of itself. And that it definitely does, and Motor Trend displayed that well in a new video showing them testing the car. Drifting is a uniquely Japanese sport, and is primarily done with lower cost cars like Nissans, Toyotas, Mazdas, Mitsubishis, Subarus and the like (we know we missed some in there). But what about a $375,000 Lexus LFA supercar? Is it the king of

Last we heard about the Lexus LFA, it all had to do with sales. Last month we reported that Lexus opened a dedicated sales center for the car in Europe and prior to that, it had to do with the allotment of LFAs to the United States and more details about the car's speculator-thwarting leasing scheme. Now, news has to do with sales again - the Lexus LFA has sold out its run in Japan. 165 Lexus LFAs were allotted to Lexus' home market of Japan, and all 165 have been reserved in the months since the car's official introduction. In Japan, as well as in Europe, the leasing (oddly) isn't in effect - only in North America are the LFAs leased. The fact that

Like it, hate it, or somewhere in between, the Lexus LFA has no doubt caused a big stir since arriving on the automotive scene. It has been expected for a long time, with multiple concepts heralding the arrival of the production vehicle. It is nice, but $375,000 nice? No - I think self-imposed 500 unit run by Lexus had more to do with the limited amount of people interested - we'll see how quickly the 500 unit run sells out. Regardless, with an anticipated vehicle like the LFA there is bound to be some speculators looking to make a profit. The way Lexus is planning the launch, no LFA will be built unless it is ordered specifically. Brian Smith, vice president of sales and dealer development

The Tokyo Auto Show begins in just a few hours, but the production Lexus LF-A is already being shown across the internet. Earlier this month the an appearance for the LF-A was confirmed. What wasn't clear is whether or not it was the production vehicle, after being shown a total of three concepts, the first in 2005 and the last in 2008. As far as a production vehicle, this is as good of proof as any! httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fTfRh0_RQ4 As far as leaks go, this is pretty good! A video YouTube of the car doing time around the Nurburgring GP course has appeared on YouTube as well as spy shots of the  car being prepped for it's introduction. There have been a few modifications on the front end, but a lot

While many automakers are putting a particular emphasis on alternative fuel vehicles at this year's Tokyo Motor Show, Toyota is taking a bit different tack. Been there done that; Hybrid Synergy Drive and the Prius have been around for years. For Toyota, it is time to bring some excitement to the company by focusing on performance. Doing that includes the introduction of the Toyota FT-86 Concept at the show and something from Lexus. It just has been confirmed by Lexus that it's long-awaited supercar - the LF-A, will be making an appearance at the show. The LF-A has been rumored to be coming for years, with the first concept shown by Lexus in 2005. The V-10 powered LF-A will be the most expensive and powerful Lexus ever,

Acura is definitely in a difficult place right now. It's struggling to have a true identity in the competitive luxury field. Honda has set high goals for it but is apparently not following through on giving the brand the tools it needs to succeed. I don't see FWD vehicles cutting it if it wants to really compete with Mercedes and BMW (and that goes for Cadillac). If it doesn't want to, that's fine - but then go after Lexus or something. The NSX was an amazing (and out of character) vehicle for Acura. It put Acura's name up there with true supercars, V6 power and all - a car befitting of the higher aspirations that Acura had. What happened? It was left to die with no replacement. Audi