Lexus to go all-EV by 2035, but luxury car brand hasn’t given up the iconic V8 petrol engine
Lexus has not given up on producing soul-stirring V8 powerplants, despite investing heavily to shift its entire product range to electric vehicles.
Newly-appointed Lexus Australia chief executive John Pappas told carsales that although Lexus’ future is all-electric, the iconic V8 is not dead and buried and hasn’t yet been shelved.
He said a potential next-generation Lexus supercar, such as the spiritual successor to the V10-powered Lexus LFA previewed by the recent Lexus BEV Sport concept, could be offered with a petrol-electric hybrid V8 powerplant.
“With regards to the V8, and I can’t confirm or deny we’re bringing out a new V8, but with the high-performance electric sports car concept we’ve been showing lately, there could still be opportunities there for potential V8-electric,” he said.
“There’s nothing confirmed, but it’s not out of the question.”
It’s the closest to an official confirmation we’ve seen from within Lexus that a V8 production car engine isn’t dead, following earlier reports that a new 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 – now with hybrid augmentation – has been in development.
We first got wind that Lexus and Toyota were developing a twin-turbo V8 to replace the 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V8 (2UR-GSE) in 2017, then in late 2019 Lexus officially confirmed it was testing the engine in motorsport ahead of full commercialisation for production vehicles.
The brand has since confirmed it is repurposing its thirsty 5.0-litre V8 to run on hydrogen, but this will be a sideshow given the scarcity of hydrogen refuelling stations, with the petrol-powered V8 unit to be the main event.
Expected to be deployed in a range of Lexus and Toyota vehicles over the next decade – including the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series – the new biturbo V8 has been patented by Toyota and could pump out around 450kW and 750Nm in non-hybrid form.
This could likely power a modern-day Lexus IS F and a scorching Lexus LC F coupe, while the Lexus LFA’s replacement may get a hybrid version of the V8, with electrification potentially taking power and torque above 500kW and 1000Nm.
“There will be different powertrain options in future; we don’t want to leave anyone behind. Hybrid-electric is the dominant powertrain right now and will continue to be for a while. But we want a full menu of options. Carbon is the enemy, not the powertrain,” said Pappas.
The Lexus Australia chief dodged questions about whether an all-new V8 could work its way into a reborn Lexus IS F – which looks set to evolve into an all-electric Tesla Model 3-slaying saloon.
And despite having no viable alternatives to modern-day Audi RS, BMW M and Mercedes-Benz AMG products, Pappas insisted Lexus had not given up on giant-killing, tyre-shredding, track-ready performance cars.
“Absolutely not. Performance is a core part of our DNA. It will continue to be and the new Shimoyama facility is actually a great example of how seriously we’re taking the whole process,” he said, pointing to the Lexus’ $3.6 billion proving ground and development centre that’s designed to mimic elements of Germany’s legendary Nurburgring road course.
“I’m now getting all the stories about how we go about testing at that facility and it’s fascinating. It’s going to be a pivotal part of what Lexus does.
“I’m seriously excited about what we’ve got coming.”
While the long-term product focus will be on EVs as Lexus kills off petrol engine development to sell fully-electric vehicles exclusively by 2035, thanks to an audacious $98 billion dollars EV cash splash by parent company Toyota, stand by for at least one more V8 surprise.
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Keyword: New Lexus V8 firms up