Infrared

Took my 2015 USB RCF to an open lapping event today; first time I've had this particular car at the track.

Lots of cars there today (was customer appreciation day, so free for most of us), and the RC-F really surprised me with its abilities.

Some won't believe this, but on the first turn out onto the main straightaway, I pulled past a Mustang GT350 (still had his temp tags) who was clearly WOT--just as I was. Maybe I had a hair more speed coming out of the turn, maybe he was slow to shift gears, I don't know--but I do know I passed him up and that was a good feeling!

My brother was in the car with me, so that's probably another 170lbs of weight plus my 190lbs.

The rest of the laps I did impressed me just the same. The car has great handling and hides it's weight very well. If it were in the NFL it would be a linebacker. There were only a couple tight turns where I could really feel the weight pushing the limits of the stock Super Sport tires.

I've tracked a few cars: 2011 BMW z4 sDrive35i, 2013 FR-S, 2015 Subaru STi Launch Edition, 2015 Lexus RC350 F-Sport and now this 2015 Lexus RC-F. Of the cars I've had the good fortune of owning and tracking, this RCF is definitely the real-deal.

I have a video of me passing a late model C63 AMG, but I have to figure out how to upload it. I passed countless vehicles, mostly with the RC-F's incredible ability to just put the power down and pull all the way down the back straight. I hit just under (maybe right at) 125mph on my local track (High Plains Raceway) and surely could have hit 130 if I was really going 10/10ths.

For reference, I hit probably 110mph in my FRS, 116mph in the STi, I think about 118mph in the Z4. The STi and Z4 were both turbo engines that pulled very hard and I was definitely pushing them to 10/10ths. Obviously very different cars, but my only point is that the RC-F is FAST.

Brakes never experienced any fade. Temp gauges never went but a hair above the middle (it was a nice day--about 55 and sunny)

Just wanted to put this out there for anyone considering buying an RC-F or tracking their RC-F. If you're considering buying an M4 or other car in the RC-F's class, don't do it because you think the RC-F is "slow". You'd have to pick a different reason unless you're a very good driver (I mean, like pro-level). The RC-F is quite fast, and in the right hands an incredible car. In fact, if I see you at any track in a different car in the same class of luxury/sport/coupe, I will almost certainly be faster than you.

corradoMR2

Glad you provided a real-world comparison to other cars you tracked and had really favourable impressions of the RC F. Upload your videos to YouTube and link back here. Looking forward to them.

keithS

Great recap. Thanks for sharing.

Infrared

corradoMR2

Besides the VVS, nice videos! And yes, President Business was hanging on for dear life. Thanks for posting.

Phinatic

Nice!! I can't wait to get mine on the track. Do you have TVD? If so, what are your thoughts with TVD activated on the track?

Infrared

I don't have the TVD, but I was curious about it when I was out there. The back end was all sorts of loose; I had to barely "breath" on the accelerator to avoid losing it or having stability control kill my speed. I will say that I was not nearly confident in my abilities with his car to go higher than sport +.

I think if I get good with this car it has a lot of potential.

FR500GT

iTrader: (7)

Good to see the RCF performing on the track. Shocked to hear that you didn't experience any brake fade! How are the rotors looking?

Infrared

Brakes did fine, no fade noted. I did about 4-5 laps at a time and then gave a few minutes to cool down, then back out again. Temp on the front rotors topped out at about 430 Fahrenheit per my Portable thermal reader.

I'm sure pushing it harder and for more laps at a time would test the limits, but I believe the OEM equipment does very well for an open-lapping day. The car is setup very well in terms of tires, brakes and suspension and cooling.

da mayor

iTrader: (2)

Great vids