Yahoo Autos Lexus Will Sell an LC 500 With Dive Planes in Japan
We have all been there. You want a stellar grand tourer with a memorable look and rumbly V-8, but you also want dive planes on the front bumper to generate optimal downforce. Sure, you could look to the aftermarket and affix some canards to the front of your Lexus LC 500 yourself, but you and I both know it would never be the same. Finally, finally, Lexus has the solution: the LC 500 Edge, a Japanese market exclusive LC variant that adds unique aerodynamic elements and a few other performance changes.
The Edge is a 1-of-60 limited edition, highlighted by those canards on the front bumper. They are molded into the front bumper directly, creating a unique look that is subtle enough to fit on the stately LC but aggressive enough to pair with the otherwise-optional rear wing that can look ridiculous on a more conservative spec of the car. The suspension members in the rear are now hollow aluminum, and Lexus also claims that the rear differential has been adjusted for backlash. These changes, together with some components changed in all LCs for the 2024 model year, are said to keep the LC building towards its original concept of "sharper and more graceful."
In addition to the performance changes, the LC 500 Edge also gets the refreshed-for-2024 touchscreen infotainment system announced by Lexus here in the U.S. last month. While that may not seem like a major improvement in a car sold in the 2020s, the brand had previously saddled the otherwise-exceptional LC with an outdated touchpad system we once called "the one problem" with the car. That change was sorely needed.
As Lexus told Road & Track last year, the company ultimately chose not to make a full-throated, performance-first LC F after an evaluation process showed that an F variant would not fit the goals of the platform. While the LC F would have taken away the "graceful" component in favor of "sharp," the Edge adds a little bit more of that aggression while retaining the car's more subtle grand touring bona fides. If you want more hardcore Lexus performance, keep waiting for the unnamed sports car Lexus and Toyota are cooking up to take GT3 racing in the near future.
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