LFA Faces Down Audi R8 V10 Spyder, Wins on Sound Alone
Drag race between LFA and Audi R8 may not have gone as hoped. Then again, the Lexus was at least tuned to sing by Yamaha.
The LFA, to this day, is the standard by which all of Lexus’s flagships are held to. The effort to produce this halo supercar can only be described as pure madness. From building a whole wing to weave carbon fiber, to getting Yamaha’s music department to tune the 4.8-liter V10 for sound, what more needs to be said?
A lot, apparently. Unlike most YouTube channels where pros pilot the cars, Lovecars pits owners and their rides against each other. In this instance, an LFA up against an Audi R8 V10 Spyder.
“Coming up: one of the best-sounding drag races in the history with two naturally aspirated V10 powerhouses,” said co-host Paul Woodman. “First, the Audi R8 V10 Spyder […] Brilliant-looking, brilliant-sounding, but if it was just a noise test, it’s probably game over already because it’s up against this: the Lexus LFA.”
The LFA has a bit of a challenge, though. While its V10 sounds wonderful, it doesn’t have the horses the Audi boasts. Sixty of them, to be exact: the Audi has 620, the Lexus only 560. The LFA weighs less than the Audi, however. Could it eke out a win based on power to weight?
“What a car, what a color combo,” said Woodman. “Launched in 2011, this Japanese street fighter is much lighter, giving a rather impressive power to weight ratio of 378 horsepower per ton. This really could go either way, but to be honest, we just want to hear those engines.”
Despite the Audi possessing launch control, it’s the LFA with the big launch off the line. Alas, this would not be the best day for the Lexus. Sometimes, a lightweight isn’t going to land the right punch against the heavyweight competition.
“We do love a close race,” said Woodman, “and respectful times for both, but the moral winner of this race was the sound of those V10 engines.”
The times were, indeed, close. The Audi crossed the line first in 11.68 seconds at 122.9 mph. The LFA followed in 12.21 seconds at 122.65 mph.
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