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Mike Sinclair28 Aug 2015
NEWS

Lexus motorsport decision weeks away

Aussie boss will decide on Japanese luxury brand's motorsport future with a month

Lexus Australia’s motorsport future will be decided in the next few weeks. The boss of Toyota’s luxury brand Down Under, Sean Hanley, this week confirmed the company would finalise its motorsport strategy “within four weeks”.

Speaking to motoring.com.au at the international launch of the new RX crossover, Hanley said the company was studying both GT3 and V8 Supercar categories but could still opt to shy away from an Australian commitment.

“I don’t want you to go away from here saying we are in motorsport. The decision has still not been made,” he said matter-of-factly.

At Hanley’s instigation, Lexus has been undertaking research on the merits of a local motorsport program for almost 12 months. Its findings will inform the company’s decision whether to hit the track and via what formula – V8 Supercars or GT3.

“Two things have changed since we first discussed motorsport involvement: the Gen2 [V8 Supercar] rules and the development of a [factory Lexus] GT3 racing team,” Hanley explained.

Hanley says the scope of Lexus International’s RC F coupe-based GT3 program was not clear when he first raised the potential of the brand entering the indigenous V8 Supercar series.

He told motoring.com.au that racing a turn-key factory GT3 racer was “attractive”, as was the potential of selling cars to privateer teams.

But the local boss equally described the audience strength and reach of V8 Supercars – with which Lexus parent company Toyota is substantially involved via the 2016 Toyota 86 Pro-Am series — as key to any local competition decision.

“The V8 Supercar safety and pace car program has been very successful for us”, he stated.

“We are locked and loaded [til the end of 2016],” he added.

The strength of V8s is the category’s “broad reach”, Hanley commented.

“If you look at motorsport as an arena to attract new people to your brand, V8 Supercars has much going for it… If I’m targeting that ‘step-up’ buyer, someone moving from mainstream into luxury, it works big time,” he said.

Hanley said any V8 Supercar entry would revolve around the mid-size RC F coupe and be via an existing team.

“You need to be able to sell what you race… [But] We have no intentions of owning a team,” he qualified.

Lexus International has pursued similar practices in its launch of the GT3 program. In Europe it has two single-car teams running in the German VLN GT3-based series. A third factory RC F GT3 racer has been entered via a standalone team into the GT300 category of the Japanese Super GT series.

Lexus USA has committed to a future racing the RC F GT3 and is in the process of selecting its racing partner. The RC F will almost certainly race in the Tudor-sponsored IMSA series in the USA.

Lexus USA exec Paul Williamsen told motoring.com.au: “Japan is very keen to see us on the track in the USA. We’re hopeful of having two factory RC F GT3 cars in the USA soon. One is confirmed and the other chassis will come to us as long as we don’t drag our feet.”

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