Like
AMG powerplants, each LFA V-10 will be handbuilt by one man. In fact,
there are two; both are employees of Yamaha (which also designed the
V-10's heads). Each man will finish an engine every two days.
As
you might expect, the six-speed transmission (a rear-mounted transaxle)
is a paddle-shift auto-clutch manual, but, likely due to manufacturing
dictates fixed long ago, it's a single-clutch unit -- not a
contemporary dual-clutch design. No slouch at spin himself, Tanahashi
says, "I wanted the more natural shifting feel of a regular manual.http://newcarsgreen.blogspot.com"
The
LFA first materialized in aluminum. But when even the light alloy
didn't meet Tanahashi's fastidious weight targets, he largely scrapped
it and opted instead for carbon-fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP). The
final LFA chassis sports a CFRP central tub with aluminum subframes
front and rear; the package is wrapped in carbon-fiber bodywork. Total
weight savings versus aluminum: about 220 pounds. All CFRP work is
performed in-house. It doesn't hurt that Toyota has a long history in
textiles, but switching from sweaters to weaving carbon fiber required
lavish expenditures in tech and tools. (Look for future Lexus CFRP as
Toyota monitizes its investment http://newcarsgreen.blogspot.com.)
The
LFA rides on an aluminum suspension, dual-control arms up front and a
multilink setup at the rear. Steering features electric power assist so
as not to deplete a dollop of engine output.
Source: http://www.motortrend.com
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