Detroit show: Lexus confirms ‘F’ is a coupe

LEXUS has confirmed that its mystery ‘F’ performance car concept – set for a Detroit reveal next month – will be a coupe, as reported by GoAuto.

Announcing the coupe concept with the headline “Half the doors, twice the roar”, Lexus said the as-yet unidentified two-door promises “Uncompromising Performance and Bold Distinction”.

Lexus will rip the covers off the coupe at the Detroit motor show next month, revealing what is now widely believed to be a super-hot ‘F’ performance variant of the striking RC coupe that was unveiled at the Tokyo motor show last month.

This is the second teaser Lexus has released and follows on from the image in early December that showed a close-up of the front three-quarter of the vehicle, revealing design cues from the RC.

The new image is a shot from above revealing a prominent bonnet scoop air cooler.

What remains unclear is the engine that the Japanese luxury car-maker will shoehorn under the stylish bonnet of the RC for its first ever coupe-based F performance model.

The Lexus IS F, which is still on sale in Australia in previous generation IS guise, is powered by a 311kW/505Nm 5.0-litre V8 and some reports have suggested that the RC F could be powered by a tweaked version of this engine.

At the Tokyo show last month, the Toyota-owned marque announced its plans to produce a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine – the first turbo unit ever built by Lexus – and roll it out to a number of vehicles, including the forthcoming compact SUV based on the LF-NX concept.

It is believed that there is flexibility for the blown four-cylinder unit to be uprated for more power, meaning it could potentially find its way under the bonnet of the RC F.

The RC is slated for a local release in quarter four next year, making early 2015 a likely on-sale date for the RC F.

Lexus will confirm powertrain details and specifications at the Detroit motor show in January.