I’ve been a fan of the LF-A since seeing a concept back in 2005. Since the car has finally been released in production form, I’ve been reading reviews and comments about the car. One criticism I seem to hear over and over is that the car has no heritage. Others seem to feel that the Supra is the spiritual ancestor of the LF-A.
2000gt rear 3/4
I have to disagree with both of these camps. There has been an extended break in the bloodline, but I think the true ancestor to the LF-A is the Toyota 2000GT. At the time it competed with the best from Germany and Italy. Interestingly, the production run was extremely limited, the interior was appointed very well for such a sporty car and the car was priced relatively high. Despite being conceived entirely as a street car, the 2000GT was also raced extensively in endurance racing just like the LF-A. It is also interesting to note the Nissan GT-R of its day competed with the 2000GT on the track and actually was actually slightly more powerful in stock form.
2000gt front
Fast forward 30 years and both cars have aged very well and are now classics. That said the 2000GT occupied an entirely different realm than the GT-R in the late ’60’s and it continues to do so today. It’s nice to see Toyota and Nissan getting back to their roots with two very different cars that each represent the heritage of their respective makers very well.