A Lexus that is designed to excel on the track as well as the street. That’s the mission of the 467-horsepower RC F. Featuring the most powerful Lexus V8 to date (51 more horses than the now-discontinued IS F) the RC F also claims to come with track-engineered chassis, drivetrain and brakes. In other words, if the press release is accurate, Lexus is offering a full combo platter of enthusiast driving pleasure.

Lower, longer and wider than the standard RC, all the flourishes and fancy bodywork on the RC F serve a purpose: from providing improved aerodynamics, to increasing airflow through the oil cooler.

We’ve given Lexus some guff for sticking the “F” badge on cars willy-nilly, but considering the RC F has been tuned on both Fuji Speedway (namesake of all “F” branded cars) and the Nürburgring Nordschleife, it seems this one may have earned its badge.

Because even sports cars need to be economical these days, the RC F engineers employed some witchcraft to make the V8 under its bulging hood even better than it was in the IS F. Redline has been increased 300 RPM to 7100, compression ratio is up to 12.3:1 (from 11.8:1 in the IS F). The engine also employs an Atkinson Cycle at cruising speed to improve fuel economy (TBD). Cooling of both the engine and the transmission has also improved, to increase longevity during trackdays.

The only transmission is the 8-speed Sports Direct Shift system. In other words, an automatic. But not just any automatic. This one has a bevy of options including a, you guessed it, trackday mode called S+. In this mode it will shift harder, faster, blip the throttle on aggressive downshifts and even hold or select gears based on G-sensor inputs.

We look forward to driving this one soon. Maybe a BMW vs. Lexus shootout is in order?