Lexus line-up goes electrified only as LC and RC F retired

Lexus’s vocal 5.0-litre V8 bows out of the UK along with the LC and RC F

Lexus has removed the LC and RC sports cars from sale in the UK, which means it now sells only hybrids and EVs, and no longer offers a V8.

The two-door GTs were approaching the end of their expected life cycles anyway, at seven and 10 years old respectively, but a spokesperson for the brand cited “legislative and homologation issues” as the reason for their withdrawal.

It is not clear, though, whether the decision was made in light of GSR2 safety regulations, the EU’s new cybersecurity directive or fleet emission quotas.

Autocar understands both cars are no longer available in mainland Europe, and the UK allocation for each has been sold out.

The withdrawal of the LC and RC means Lexus’s European line-up is now mainly made up of SUVs, with just the ES and LS saloons and LM MPV remaining alongside the LBX, UX, NX, RX and RZ crossovers.

It also means all Lexus models are electrified, with the firm’s naturally aspirated 5.0-litre V8 retiring along with the LC and RC. That leaves the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette as the only two series-production cars available with an atmo V8 in the UK.

The LC has been on sale since 2017 with the choice of the pure V8 or an electrified 3.5-litre V6, receiving the option of a soft-top convertible in 2020. It has sold 624 units in the UK over its lifetime.

The older RC was available with a four-cylinder hybrid from launch, but that was dropped in 2020, at which point the coupé was offered exclusively in hardcore RC F guise with a 467bhp version of the V8.

The RC was the more popular car, with 2600 units sold in the decade it was here, but Lexus sold just 15 examples last year and only 12 in 2022.