This photo, taken by Car-Parazzi, shows the Lexus LFA Roadster concept at Pebble Beach, a much more natural setting than usual:

Gives the impression of what the car would look like on the street — and what I wouldn’t give to be sitting in that driver’s seat!

Been a while since I featured an image from Flickr, and this photo of the Lexus LF-A by j.hietter is a perfect way to get back on track:

The colors are great in this picture, the LF-A just seems to photograph so well, from any angle.

Last week, when Edmund’s Inside Line blog printed a rumor that the production version of the Lexus LF-A could cost upwards of $225,000 USD, the backlash was instant and ruthless. Auto enthusiasts everywhere bristled at the idea that Lexus would be pitting their new supercar against the likes of Ferrari and Lamborghini.

To be quite honest, it’s not difficult to see some merit to the criticism. After all, the competition in this price range are truly aspirational cars, the kind of machines that fuel childhood dreams. Up against that, the LF-A is a hard sell. What’s more, it’s impossible to ignore the appeal of exclusivity, and having to share a badge with a $30,000 entry class model doesn’t really mesh with that.

Looking at the uphill battle facing Lexus selling a supercar, maybe it’s time to wonder about other motives. It could be that the brand wants to simply wants a halo car, but what if it’s something else entirely? What if that wasn’t the plan at all?

Over the past few months, I’ve had a growing suspicion that the LF-A is actually the next SC sports coupe, and that the only way it would come close to $225,000 is with a fully loaded V10 SC-F.

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The first indication was a small detail on the LF-A Roadster concept shown at this year’s Detroit auto show, an F badge:

If the F-Performance line is to follow the path set by BMW’s M Series and Mercedes’ AMG division, it stands to reason that the LF-A concept is actually a performance modified version of a regular vehicle, rather than something that stands on its own. With that in mind (and barring the possibility of a new, non-F coupe), there’s only one car in the lineup that has two doors, is offered as a convertible, and most importantly, in serious need of an extensive revamp. That vehicle, of course, is the SC.

To mark the European debut of the Lexus LF-A Roadster Concept at the Frankfurt Auto Show, Lexus put together a truly spectacular video, albeit with no actual in-motion footage. Click the photo below to be taken to the mini-site:

I imagine this would have been used as a video introduction to the vehicle’s unveiling at Frankfurt, and it’s hard not to get excited about this concept all over again. I can’t wait for the production announcement.

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Also included in this small LF-A Roadster mini-site is a PDF brochure, which is jam-packed with interesting information, including this blurb about the F-Logo:

The Lexus LF-A Roadster is the latest car to be unveiled by our high-performance F-Marque division. Developed at Fuji Speedway and the Higashi Fuji Technical Centre, our two-seat supercar concept combines technological sophistication, leading-edge engineering and unparalleled refinement. To recognise the special role of Fuji in the project, the new “F” logo design integrates some of the most demanding corners of the Mount Fuji track.

This is the first time I’ve seen it mentioned that the F-Logo actually incorporates elements of the Mount Fuji track right in the actual design. Top-notch.

There may not be anything new to see from the Lexus presence at the 2008 Geneva Auto Show, but this video gives a nice and funky recap of the booth, including a very neat LS 600h information display:

Really, this just makes me even more disappointed that the LF-A Roadster Concept didn’t make its way to the Toronto Auto Show I attended a couple weeks back.

After a while, auto show photos of a specific model tend to blend in to one another, but Flickr user Luc Bernard managed to bring something new to the table with his photo of the Lexus LF-A Roadster, all stark contrast and saturated color:

There’s been a lot of disappointment that a production model of the LF-A wasn’t shown at the Detroit Auto Show, but it shouldn’t take away from this roadster version. It manages to maintain Lexus’ gift for subtlety (at least by supercar standards), I just can’t get enough of it.