Lexus LFA vs. Nissan GT-R

[wingFeather]

How did a supra jump from 40K to 400K?

Exactly!!! It is uncalled for and just illustrates the douchey arrogance of the marque.

[Mr1der]

Factory Five GTM

That is sexy, but Ford actually fixed the aerodynamic problem of the Cobra roadster back in the 60's with the Cobra Daytona Coupe. I guess people seem more fixated on the Roadster but the Daytona coupe was a much better car for the big road courses.

Pete Brock fixed the problems by remembering some stuff GM had from the occupation of Nazi Germany.

and later got a chance to make it right

[Poyzinous]

any word on the infiniti essence???

My gathered intel points to it being only a possible project, but currently just a technical piece of candy for Infiniti's 20th anniversary and to show the world they can, which may lead to will. But nothing absolute yet...

[youngmoney]

the cobra coupe has always been sexier IMO

[ADDirishboy]

How did a supra jump from 40K to 400K? WTF was Toyota thinking? Lets make a car that's accessible only to .03% of the worlds population. Great thinking in an automotive recession. They would have been smarter to build this as a showcase piece and then build a real world model in the 8-=100K price range. Still out of reach for most car enthusiasts but much more marketable and profitable. I bet Nissan will see a profit on the GTR long before Lexus does on the LFA (If it ever does).

Not every car is meant to be profitable. VW loses money every time Bugatti sells a Veyron. It's more of a "look what we can build" car.

But I do agree that for that price, I would MUCH rather buy a Ferrari or Lambo.

[hachiroku781]

I fail to see why everyone is comparing this to a Supra. The supra Did not have a beautiful chassis composed of mostly carbon fiber, nor a very high revving engine and the Supra did not carry a high price tag nor exclusivity. The LFA is a showcase of what kind of car they can build with todays technology, the vast amount of R&D put into this car is astronomical. Lexus loses money on each one sold, but there is no doubt in my mind that each one will be sold to whomever has the money to spend on the car.

[wingFeather]

each one will be sold to whomever has the money to spend on the car.

More money than brains.

[s13drifter88]

its a cool car but for the money i could buy a gtr and a cat back from mines racing and there u go, u made up for ur 1/10 of a second and would prob pick up 1 or 2 tenths on the lfa and still be under 100k. yeah the mines exhaust costs a lot but if ur in the market for that kind of a car then it wouldnt be any different than me saving for the hks hi power i want

[Chaotic_Warlord]

What I don't understand is that Lexus is marketing the piss out of the LFA with Billboard ads and commercials, and yet they are only making like 500 LFA's, all of which are sold. So what's the point, meanwhile i've yet to see a single GTR ad or commercial and they aren't limited to 500. If lexus is using the LFA as a marketing tool for their technology and build quality then why isn't Nissan doing the same thing with the GTR?

[Watermelonwarrior]

What I don't understand is that Lexus is marketing the piss out of the LFA with Billboard ads and commercials, and yet they are only making like 500 LFA's, all of which are sold. So what's the point, meanwhile i've yet to see a single GTR ad or commercial and they aren't limited to 500. If lexus is using the LFA as a marketing tool for their technology and build quality then why isn't Nissan doing the same thing with the GTR?

seriously been thinking the same thing. I see the ads and billboards all the time. Even in GQ and rolling stones.

[s13drifter88]

people know of the gtr but when was the last time u saw a corvette or viper commercial. they have the high performance "super car" so to speak but theyre not pushing it in this economy. they have it available but theyre spending their advertising dollars on cars that pertain to the primary market

[Bubba1]

What I don't understand is that Lexus is marketing the piss out of the LFA with Billboard ads and commercials, and yet they are only making like 500 LFA's, all of which are sold. So what's the point, meanwhile i've yet to see a single GTR ad or commercial and they aren't limited to 500. If lexus is using the LFA as a marketing tool for their technology and build quality then why isn't Nissan doing the same thing with the GTR?

Warlord, it's clear Lexus designated the LFA as their "halo car".

Halo cars are designed/marketed simply to promote the brand, to generate interest in Lexus cars. Many car companies will design a special vehicle, usually a luxury or sports model, with the hope that customers will flock to dealerships to see it, but will buy other more practical vehicles instead. they are not designed to be money makers. A good example of a Halo car is the Ford GT. Ford lost their shirts on it, but the marketing value it generated was huge. Heck, people still talk about that car. The GT-R might have been a Halo car briefly when it was first introduced. Very few were available that first year. But no longer. It's been in production for a couple years, and thousands are on the road. the specialness of them has long since worn off.

Since we're discussing the LFA on a thread here, I say Toyota marketing did a pretty good job with their halo vehicle.

[Chaotic_Warlord]

I actually physically know a guy who ordered the Ford GT when they first introduced it, it sits in his garage next to his Ford Fairlane drag car. Just saying.

As far as Corvette and Viper not utilizing marketing, it's completely unnecessary, especially with the Corvette. It's history is longer than most of us on this board hae been alive, hell it has it's own museum in Bowling Green Kentucky. As far as the Viper is concerned, people know it's out there and Dodge knows that people aren't coming into their dealerships to see it. Dodge has resorted to rescuing their company through truck sales. Personally I'm not a fan of either the vette or the Viper, or the LFA for that matter, the GTR I'm still up in the air about as to whether I like it or not.

[LEMHEAD16]

I don't think there is anyone on this forum older than the Corvette. If so please raise your hand?

[PoorManQ45]

I like the front end of the LFA more then the GTR, but those tail lights kill it!

[Chaotic_Warlord]

I don't think there is anyone on this forum older than the Corvette. If so please raise your hand?

I'm pretty sure we have a couple of older members who were born before 1953, granted the number is probably very small, but I'm sure we have at least a handful.