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Toyota has been working on a Lexus V8 halo car based on the upcoming GR GT3 race car, which will reportedly enter the World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2026. New YouTube videos from Rich with Cars and Aries show the GR GT3-based Lexus (often dubbed LF-R) lapping the Motegi circuit in Japan. More importantly, it can be heard lapping the Motegi circuit—and it sounds absolutely incredible.
It shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that Lexus has a great-sounding V8. After all, the 5.0-liter V8 used in the LC 500 and IS 500 is one of the best-sounding V8s out there. However, the one heard in this video sounds much different. It has a deeper, more thunderous noise, with a hint of Big Race Car Whine.
It’s still unclear what this new Lexus will officially be called, though the LF-R moniker has been making rounds on the internet. Toyota WEC team director Rob Leupen told Motorsport it will be a “motorsport-bred car on the road.” It’s not exactly a lot of information. Leupen also said that, at the moment, it’s going to be badged a Lexus.
Last year there were rumors that a new LFA successor—referred to as “LFA2″—would be based on the GR GT3 race car and pack supercar performance. Those rumors also claimed that the supposed LFA2 would be powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 with hybrid assistance, making upwards of 700 horsepower. Those rumors do line up with the car we see in this video, which sounds like it has a turbocharged V8, looks long and low like an LFA successor, and has a massive fixed wing.
As for a production date, expect it to line up with the GT3 car’s 2026 debut, according to Leupen, who told Motorsport that the race car’s debut “is in alignment with the road car side.” So, unfortunately, we’ll have to wait a few more years to finally hear this glorious-sounding V8 in public.
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