Amidst a sea of worthy but ultimately quite dull hybrids, Lexus has long been quietly flying the flag for the big, naturally-aspirated V8 engine with its pair of rare and slightly esoteric sports cars, the RC and LC. We knew for one reason or another that they wouldn’t be around forever, but it doesn’t make this news any easier: in Europe, at least, Lexus’ sports cars are dead.
The company confirmed to Autocar that the pairing was being dropped due to “legislative and homologation issues”. These ‘issues’ could be one of several things – emissions, the EU cybersecurity rules that have seen the Porsche Cayman and Boxster dropped in mainland Europe, or non-compliance with GSR2 safety regulations. At any rate, both cars were close to the end of their lifespans anyway, with the RC entering production in 2014 and the LC in 2017.
The RC is a mid-sized coupe, competing with the likes of the BMW 4-series, Audi A5 and Mercedes C-Class Coupe. At launch in the UK, it was available in two guises: RC300h, a 2.5-litre four-cylinder hybrid; and the high-performance RC F, which featured the 5.0-litre, 467bhp 2UR V8. The hybrid was dropped in Europe in 2020, leaving the RC F as the only option.
The LC, meanwhile, is a larger GT car, and like the RC, came as either a hybrid – the 3.5-litre V6-equipped LC500h – or the non-hybrid, V8 LC500. Initially available as a coupe, a convertible was launched in 2019. At one stage, a range-topping LC F was in development and was to feature a new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8, but it never made production.
Lexus LC500 Convertible – rear
While neither car was a particularly big seller in Europe, each offered a distinctive take on the performance coupe formula and were one of a tiny handful of new cars left with naturally-aspirated V8s. Their death in Europe means that, to our reckoning, there are only two cars left with such a setup: the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette.
It’s not clear yet whether sales will continue in other markets. Both have already been removed from the lineup on Lexus’s UK website, but continue to be listed on its US and Japanese sites.
It leaves Lexus selling a 100 per cent electrified range in Europe, but it’s likely not the end of Lexus performance cars. Recently, we heard that the Toyota GR Yaris-powered LBX Morizo RR was ‘highly likely’ for production, although it’s unknown if it’ll be offered in Europe. There are also multiple rumours floating around of new Lexus flagships, including an all-electric LFA successor and a Lexus-badged roadgoing version of Toyota’s upcoming GT3 racer.