Lexus LF-A Roadster

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What is it?
Lexus LF-A Roadster

What's special about it?
The Lexus LF-A is threatening to give Nissan's GT-R a run for its money. Not on the track, but in the all-important hype department. You see, we first saw the LF-A in concept form at the 2005 Detroit Auto Show. Then two years later, Lexus showed up with yet another LF-A concept, that one looking very much ready for production.

Now here we are at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show and Lexus shows up with yet another version of the LF-A. This time it's the LF-A Roadster, and although it's still technically a concept, all the details say it's pretty close to the production car that's expected to show up in the next 12 months.

Like last year's coupe, the LF-A Roadster is built from aluminum and carbon fiber. It measures 175.6 inches long and 74.6 inches wide, and this makes it about 2 inches shorter and an inch narrower than a Ferrari F430. It rides on a wheelbase of 102.6 inches versus the Ferrari's 102.4-inch stretch.

The exterior shape remains the same, although the roadster gets what Lexus calls a "speed adaptive" spoiler. The 20-inch wheels are new, too, although they don't look all that different from the coupe's double-spoke design. The tires measure 265/35R20 up front and 305/30R20 in back, while the front brakes use six-piston calipers to clamp 14.2-inch rotors.

There's been no mention so far as to what kind of top the LF-A Roadster might have, but anything less than a fully retractable hardtop would seem a little lowbrow for the six-figure price tag Lexus is expecting to command.

The mechanical parts underneath the skin of the LF-A Roadster are the same as the coupe. A nearly 5.0-liter V10 making more than 500 horsepower resides in the nose, while a transaxle is placed out back, and shift paddles on the steering wheel help you control the connection between the two. Lexus says the combination is good for a top speed over 200 mph. We hear Lexus is shooting for a final number well past that mark.

What's Edmunds' take?
The closer this supercar gets to production, the less we like the way it looks. Hard to argue with its 200-plus mph top speed, though. — Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor