Lexus introduced this nameplate as its long-awaited halo supercar after years of development and concept-teasing. The production car was launched for the 2012 model year, with hand assembly beginning in late 2010 and customer deliveries following in 2011. Built in very limited numbers, it was positioned as the brand’s most exotic performance statement and helped define Lexus F performance at the top of the lineup.
The car became known for its carbon-fiber construction, high-revving V10 powertrain, and race-bred engineering wrapped in a distinctly Lexus design. It was developed to show that the brand could build not just a luxury grand tourer, but a focused, uncompromising supercar with serious enthusiast credibility. Its Nürburgring development work and small-production philosophy made it especially significant among modern Japanese performance cars.
Production was short and definitive: the final example was completed on December 14, 2012, ending the 500-unit global run. That closed the book on the original production nameplate, which has remained a celebrated one-generation, one-run flagship in Lexus history.