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BMW, Toyota partnership to deliver halo supercars by 2020 – report

The ongoing technology partnership between BMW and Toyota will see a pair of top-end supercars debut by 2020, according to a new report out of the UK.


First announced in 2013, plans for the alliance are already known to include new sports models, believed to represent a next-generation BMW Z4 and a successor to Toyota’s popular Supra - although recent reports suggest Toyota won’t green-light its end of that program until later this year, if at all.

Now, a new report with the UK’s Auto Express suggests that the partnership will also spawn a pair of more exotic offerings: one a successor to the Lexus LFA supercar, above the anticipated production version of the LF-LC concept, and the other an M-badged BMW hero.

The British website claims that insiders at Lexus have confirmed an aluminium spaceframe and carbon-fibre tub for both cars, with petrol-electric hybrid systems driving each car.

In BMW’s case, that’s expected to mean a M-developed twin-turbo straight-six, matched to plug-in hybrid electric technology sourced from Toyota, rather than from the same in-house program that was responsible for the already impressive BMW i8 coupe.

For the Lexus offering, the Japanese luxury marque is said to have plans for a detuned version of the 383kW 3.7 litre V8 featured in Toyota’s TS040 hybrid Le Mans racer.

Both will see the petrol engines mounted mid-ship, directing power to the rear wheels, while the front end will be driven by electric motors.

Combined power figures are as unclear as the veracity of this latest report, although a Lexus insider is said to have confirmed an 800hp (596kW) target.

Such a figure would position the new Lexus well beyond the 373kW LFA, while bringing into the realm of the 515kW Aventador, the 652kW 918 Spyder, 673kW McLaren P1 and the 708kW LaFerrari.

It remains to be seen if either car will appear, but with a circa-2020 debut claimed, we could no more in the next couple of years.

Of course, Lexus has also said that it has no plans for an LFA successor, but that was a full year ago...

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