Lexus not to compete in DTM
This Friday at the Tokyo Auto Salon Lexus will pull the covers off their latest IS race car. The IS 350 GT2 is powered by a 470+ hp V6 engine and will compete in the American GT2 LeMans Series and not in the German DTM series as many had hoped here in Europe.
The Lexus IS 350 GT2 will make its first appearance at the Twelve Hours of Sebring in Sebring, Fl this March 15-18. Competition will be stiff with the likes of the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, Panoz Esperante, Ferrari F430 GT, Dodge Viper Competition Coupe and BMW M3.
“Developing and racing two brand-new cars in a new category will be a major challenge, but one that we relish,” said Team Lexus owner/driver Chuck Goldsborough back in 2005. Originally Lexus was planning on entering the GT2 ALMS class back in 2006.
We hope to have more accurate information by the end of the week.
[Update] After some further research, we have come to the conclusion that this is indeed not the IS-F Racer Concept which will be on show at the Tokyo Auto Salon. This is the IS 350 GT2, a project which was started in 2005 and canceled in 2006. It still stands to reason that the IS-F Racer Concept will head to the States rather than Europe, but the Japanese GT Series is of course still an option too.
