Lexus rolls out the last LFA - AllCarIndex

lexus has issued the following press release:

500th and last lfa leaving the plant

- last lfa produced on december 14, 2012

- learning from lfa engineering and production influencing new lexus products

- in-house production of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (cfrp) components for know-how gain to be used in future products

brussels, belgium - on december 14, a white lfa nürburgring package, the last of the 500 planned lfa supercars, left tmc’s dedicated production facility at the motomachi plant, aichi prefecture.

 this marks the end of a key chapter for lexus, one in which people's perceptions and understanding of the brand have been challenged, and perhaps changed forever.

 the learning and passion gained from engineering and producing a world-class supercar can already be seen in the products recently launched by lexus - across the whole range, not just those carrying the f sport badge.

 in that sense, the spirit of the lfa will live on; it will be fondly remembered for being the car that marked the start of significant change for the lexus brand.

the development of the supercar started from a blank sheet of paper. cfrp was used for a significant percentage of the vehicle’s components, taking benefit of the material’s exceptional strength, rigidity and light weight to achieve a breakthrough in supercar manufacturing. cfrp production took place in-house in order to gain valuable know-how to be used in future products.

 ‘i’ve lived and breathed supercars for the past decade. – remembers haruhiko tanahashi, the lfa’s chief engineer. – specifically one supercar. the lfa. very few people have the opportunity we had: to create a world-class supercar from a blank sheet of paper.’

 production at lfa works started exactly two years ago, on december 15, 2010, and included a team of around 170 hand-picked takumi workers involved in parts manufacturing, vehicle assembly and painting. the high performance lfa was produced at the rate of just one unit per day.