Here's why i think the Lexus LFA is the 21st Century's Toyota 2000GT

At a first sight, the 1967 Toyota 2000GT and the 2010 Lexus LFA are two completely different cars; the first is a sports car from the 60s, the other is a supercar from the last decade; the first has a 2.0L inline-six, the other a 4.8L V10. The only thing these two cars seem to have in common is the fact that they’re both limited-production Japanese sports cars, but at a closer inspection the Toyota 2000GT and the Lexus LFA have a lot more in common than you might think, and in this post i’ll tell you why.

Let’s start off by telling you the history of these two cars.

Toyota 2000GT

The Toyota 2000GT was first displayed at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1965 and only 351 examples were built between 1967 and 1970. It was built in collaboration with Yamaha, who did most of the car’s design, and was designed by Satoru Nozaki, who took European supercars of the time like the Jaguar E-Type as an ispiration for what would’ve become one of Japan’s most iconic cars.
The 2000GT was built as an answer to the European supercars of the time and completely changed the world’s view of Japan, which until then was considered a producer of imitative and stodgily practical vehicles.
It was also very succesfull in motorsports, coming third in the 1966 Japanese Grand Prix and winning the Fuji 1000 Kilometres race in 1967. In addition, the car set several FIA world records for speed and endurance in a 72-hour test, which shortly prompted Porsche to prepare a 911R especially to beat this record.
The 2000GT also became famous for its appearance in the 1967 James Bond movie “You Only Live Twice”, for which two convertible one-offs were built.
Bond actor Daniel Craig voted the 2000GT as his favourite Bond car of all time.

Lexus LFA

Development for the Lexus LFA started way back in 2000 as a sports car project codenamed P280, which was intended to showcase the performance capabilities of Toyota Motor Corporation and its Lexus marque. In January 2005, the first LF-A concept premiered at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan as a design study with no plans for production. Following the original LF-A concept, development time was lengthened by the switch from an aluminum frame to a carbon fiber tub, the result of engineering efforts aimed at improving the LF-A’s power-to-weight ratio. The LF-A was reported to draw engineering resources from Toyota’s Formula One team. In January 2007, a restyled LF-A concept car premiered alongside the first production F marque vehicle, the IS F sports sedan. The second LF-A concept featured a more aerodynamic exterior, a near-production interior, and F marque emblems. In December 2007, Auto Express reported that the LF-A had set an unofficial 7:24 lap record at the Nürburgring. On August 5, 2009, Toyota’s new CEO, Akio Toyoda, publicly confirmed production of the LF-A in his speech at a conference held at the Center for Automotive Research in the United States. The production vehicles were expected to carry V10 engines, putting the car in market competition with the Lamborghini Gallardo, Ferrari F430, the Porsche 911 997, and the Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1. Pricing was estimated at over US$225,000, and close to US$400,000. On October 21, 2009, the production Lexus LFA was unveiled on the first press day of the 41st biennial Tokyo Motor Show. The vehicle was introduced by Akio Toyoda at a press conference, in which it was disclosed that the vehicle would be limited to 500 production copies. The LFA’s engineers selected a V10 engine built by Yamaha over an equivalent displacement V8 engine for its ability to rev higher, and over a V12 for its lower reciprocating mass, allowing for more rapid engine response.

Differences and Similarities

There are numerous differences between the LFA and the 2000GT, but there are also lots of similarities.
For example, both cars are built on an front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, which makes them very similar.
“But wait, the 2000GT has a inline-6, while the LFA has a V10! Where’s the similarity here?” The reason for the different kinds of engine is simply due to the fact that in the 60s an inline-6 was considered the best option for a performance grand-tourer like the 2000GT, and at the same time in today’s world a V10 was considered the best option for a supercar like the LFA.
“But if the 2000GT is a grand-tourer and the LFA is a supercar how can they be similar?” This is simply due to the fact that the LFA is more of a “spiritual successor” to the 2000GT, in the mean that it draws inspiration from the 2000GT, but it’s not necessairly a modern interpreation of it. Take a look at Toyota’s own AE86 and GT86; The GT86 is considered by many as the new AE86, despite the fact that it is a coupe, while the AE86 was a hatchback. What i’m trying to say is that the GT86 is built under the same philosophy of the AE86, beign a cheap RWD sports car. In the same way, the LFA can be considered the new 2000GT, simply because it’s built under the same philosophy. Don’t forget they’re both Toyotas as well.
“Are you going places?! Only the 2000GT is a Toyota, the LFA is a Lexus! How can the LFA be considered the new 2000GT if they’re not even from the same brand?!” Oh, c’mon, you can’t be serious! Did you forget that Lexus is Toyota’s luxury divison? If Lexus existed way back in the 60s i’m fairly sure the 2000GT would’ve been marketed as a Lexus, due to it beign a fairly luxurious grand tourer. With that said, they both count as Toyotas in my book.

Now let’s look at these two cars’ design. If you look closely enough, you’ll see that the LFA draws some heavy inspiration from the 2000GT, which is particularly evident by looking at things like the long hood, the large air intake at the front, the center-mounted exhaust pipes and even the position of the headlights. All these details seem to take some really heavy inspiration from the 2000GT, but at the same time none of these design features on the LF-A were directly derived from the 2000GT. Heck, if you look at both cars from a three-quarter rear view they do look kind of similar, don’t they?
The similarities don’t stop here, though! Both cars were built with Yamaha’s collaboration and they were both built in limited quantities to show the world Japanese people can build some really great cars, and they both have impressive performance stats for their time.

So, this is why i think the Lexus LFA is the 21st Century’s Toyota 2000GT. What do you think? Do you agree with what i said? Tell me in the comments!