flipside909

Gotta love camera phone pics. LOL

gengar

Hey everyone, give me a day or two to get the pics up - I haven't even had time to look at them myself yet. I also took a video of the instrument panel while I was playing around with it, which I'll try to upload this weekend.


There was nothing at the event about the actual buying process. This was a very "fluff" event in a sense - primarily just to show off the car. I was actually told by one of the Lexus marketing people that there was no one particularly important from Lexus in attendance (I guess Scott Pruett is excluded from this, haha). None of the reps or managers I have spoken to were there, although many of their assistants were, so all I did was basically talk to them and hope they relay that up to the people making the real decisions.

They did mention that they're looking to finalize the US list by the end of the month. They didn't give me any idea about my chances, and they didn't turn on the car while I was there. I did leave the event after only about an hour because I had other obligations that night in Chicago, so they may have done other things after I left.

LexFather

Thanks gengar!!

Pics of these hot chicks please j/k

S2000toIS350

Thanks for the update gengar

I would have thought the Lexus senior folk
would have attended

On the other hand they did not mention
heading to Chicago when I saw them at
Homestead

JessePS

Now thats a cool option.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

lol, for freeway speed, on "normal" lexus i think it max out at 75 or 85. i hope that's not the case on lfa

flipside909

That's standard with every Lexus with navigation.

JessePS

Ahh okay thx for the info.

LEXUSF

iTrader: (3)

i got an invite too. can we take a camera?

flipside909

I believe cameras are not allowed for the preview night/mixer but don't quote me on that. But they are allowed on the track days. I would contact the Lexus concierge and verify that.

THE_CEO

Just snag a LP640. 2 different worlds!

CEO

gengar

I'll get the Chicago pictures up later tonight or tomorrow - been busy lately so haven't had time.

They allowed cameras at the Chicago event - everyone was taking pictures. There was even a foreign film crew there doing a report.

gengar

Here are the long-delayed pics from the LFA Chicago Auto Show preview event earlier this month:



The event was held at the River East Art Center, which was a fantastic venue. As usual for Lexus, the event was well-planned. There were hors d'œuvres by Rick Tramonto (I'm still jealous the LA event got Michael Mina) along with caviar and various wines, although I didn't partake because I had a dinner obligation in Chicago later that night. I didn't pass up on the truffles from La Maison du Chocolat, though.




Party complete with DJ, but naturally the centerpiece is the LFA. As I mentioned previously in this thread, we got the matte black LFA. Of course, at the time I didn't know it's going to be a $20,000 option. Fortunately I'm not a big fan of matte black, so I think I'll stick to Metallic Silver personally... although if I get to buy an LFA, I'll probably wind up blowing around $20k on the interior color options. I mean, when stitching is a $1k option...



Another shot from the 2nd level of the River East Art Center. Note Scott Pruett by the driver's door talking with an event attendee. He was very active in talking to everyone and inadvertently shows up in a ton of my pictures from the night.



Front with hood open. Pictures really do not do this car justice. In person, it has so much more presence and just general awesomeness that it was quite frankly mind-blowing for the first couple minutes I was around it.



Close-up of the engine bay. It is really amazing how small and compact the 4.8L V10 is. Has to be seen to be believed.






Rear of the car. Gorgeous radiator exhausts, triple exhaust, and diffusers, and the spoiler in extended position. Again, pictures just don't do this car justice. Note the power cord going into the rear, which I assume is supplying power so we don't run out the battery. I'd also assume from this that the battery is in the back, possibly for weight balance purposes as with cars like the Evo.



Scott Pruett (and a blingin' gold Rolex - I think it was a GMT Master II, but don't remember exactly, because I was just surprised it wasn't a Daytona ) explaining the customizable LCD instrument panel features. Note the absolutely gorgeous rear intake behind the driver's window, which is another feature that really stood out to me more seeing the car IRL than in pictures. This picture also gives a really good perspective on how low the LFA's roof height is.



Driver's side before taking my turn inside. I didn't take any pictures while I was inside the car, but I took a video of the instrument panel that I might upload to youtube later.

G Star

iTrader: (2)

wow very cool pictures, thanks for the description. When would you know if you have been pre-selected as one of the 500?

gengar

No problem, glad to share. Hopefully we'll get some more event reports (and maybe more pics!) from those attending the Dallas and NYC events.

As far as the finalized list - at the event, I was told by one of the Lexus reps that they were "hoping" to finalize the list by the end of the month... that doesn't look like it's going to happen, unless of course they contact us tomorrow.

I noticed S2000toIS350 got his e-mail with the finalized lease information quite a few hours before I did (he posted on the Car Chat forum before I even got the e-mail), so I wonder if the e-mail timings are in any way indicative of order on the list. I wouldn't be surprised if he's higher up than I am, given he got invited to the Homestead track event (and I didn't).

I also have a friend who owns a 430 Scuderia and a DB9 who will buy an LFA if given the opportunity, but has no Lexus ownership history. In the end, it'll be interesting to see who gets on the list and try to figure out why.