https://www.clublexus.com/articles/f...usly-expected/
Everyone has seen the video of this poor wrecked Lexus LFA, but now, we’re getting a closer look at it with commentary from the owner himself.
The Lexus LFA was – not too terribly long ago – a car that the luxury brand quite literally couldn’t sell, as some new examples still populated dealer lots until just a few years ago. However, things have changed dramatically since then, and the rather rare and special supercar has finally garnered the sort of attention from collectors that it deserved all along – and as one might imagine, that means prices for this V10-powered machine have risen as fast as its rev counter. Regardless, that never stopped the owner of this wrecked Lexus LFA from driving it – even in the rain – which ultimately led to its demise – or did it?
The story of this wrecked Lexus LFA is a fascinating one, as it’s the very same example that was spotted at a cars and coffee event in Atlanta some time ago with a young child jumping up and down on the roof – to the horror of just about everyone. Turns out, the owner actually enjoys driving his one-of-500 supercar, and who are we to judge? Regardless, that desire to daily an LFA sadly came to an abrupt end early this year when the owner lost control of it in the rain, which resulted in what appeared to be significant damage – particularly on the passenger side of the car.
At that time, this wrecked Lexus LFA certainly seemed repairable, and when David Patterson of the YouTube channel That Dude in Blue got the chance to check it out in person recently, he jumped at the opportunity. After all, this car is internet famous at the moment for all of the aforementioned reasons, and more than one gearhead is likely licking their chops at the chance to perhaps buy it at a salvage auction and restore it to its former glory.
Upon further inspection, Patterson points out that the damage incurred by this wrecked Lexus LFA is far worse than it looked in the previous photos from the accident scene. The carbon fiber body suffered heavy damage, there’s shattered glass quite literally everywhere, and with the rear bumper mostly gone, we can see the cooling system as well. The undercarriage is in even worse condition, and there are quite a few parts that are either completely gone or damaged to the point where they’d have to be replaced – but this is an LFA we’re talking about, not some mass-produced commuter car, meaning those parts won’t come cheap.
Regardless, it seems as if this LFA is valuable enough to in fact rebuild, though Patterson points out that it will likely take a solid year to get that done. It’s also unclear exactly how much it will cost to repair, as the team is just starting to figure out what needs to be fixed – a list that’s obviously quite extensive. For now, at least, estimates on the repair bill for this wrecked Lexus LFA range from $125,000-$300,000, which is more than enough to total most cars – but not one that’s worth roughly a half-million, at least.
Interestingly, we also get to hear from the owner, who admits that he routinely drives this car in the rain and has never had a problem. However, he apparently hydroplaned on this last go-round, which is what resulted in him losing control and hitting a fire hydrant, followed by an embankment. After speaking with Lexus, the owner believes that it’ll cost a whopping $400-$500k to fix, which is more than enough to make most people pass – but then again, given how famous this LFA already is, we can’t imagine not giving it another chance at life, especially when the insurance adjuster is on board, too.