Regardless of the rumor Autoblog was circulating about the Lexus LF-A’s demise, prototype testing is still ongoing at Nürburgring, and Motor Authority has the photos to prove it. Here’s a sampling:

Nothing we haven’t seen before, though I can never pass up the chance to post matte black paint jobs. That last photo is curious, why the debadged IS-F?

Check out this photo up close along with a few more over at Motor Authority (and be sure to compliment them on their new design!).

(Thanks Jarrett!)

Autoblog trolled the Nürburgring and dug up some murky information on the Lexus LF-A:

…members of the testing and development crew who have been putting the car though its paces in Germany, as well as test drivers from rival Honda and Nissan crews, have told Autoblog that the LF-A is not destined for the showroom, and will remain only a development platform.

No reasons were given, but we can think of a couple. How many people are willing to part with nigh on a quarter of a million bucks for a Toyota/Lexus?

Actually, one ‘Ring test driver didn’t mind going on the record with his opinion. Former Nissan racer, NSX development driver and Nurburgring legend Motoharu “Gan-san” Kurosawa reckons, “Toyota are good at making money, but they’re no good at making sports cars.”

True or not, this doesn’t really push me in either direction. I’m not really swayed by anonymous sources that could just be talking out their necks. Still, with the massive upheaval of the US auto industry, there has to be some trepidation in any new car release, especially something so extravagant as the LF-A. In the three years since it was first introduced, a lot has changed, and I’m sure there’s a number of initiatives being reevaluated.

But really, “How many people are willing to part with nigh on a quarter of a million bucks for a Toyota/Lexus?” How tired is that? There may be some issues, but I doubt sales are one of them.

High Dynamic Range Imaging, or HDR Photography, is the process of layering multiple images with different exposures, which creates a vivid and otherworldly image.

It’s all the rage with digital photographers, including Flickr user NikonNikk, who applied the process to the Lexus LF-A (Be sure to click through and see it full-size):

It always amazes me just how creative people can be taking photos in such a controlled space. Fantastic.

Even if there’s nothing really new to look at, this Car Magazine video clip of the London Motor Show does feature the LF-A’s engine suspended in glass:

Looks smaller than I would expect.

According to Edmund’s Inside Line, the next generation Lexus SC has been cancelled:

Toyota had been developing a successor to the SC, based on the same rear-wheel-drive platform as the LF-A. Originally slated for production in early 2009, the next-generation SC was pushed back to mid-2011 and now has been canceled, according to Toyota insiders.

Of course, this is speculative and unconfirmed. Even should the rumor turn out correct, it can only be one half of the story, because there’s no way Lexus pulls out of the coupe/convertible market entirely. More likely, this is a temporary hiatus, which also happened in 2001 between the phasing out of the first-gen SC and the SC 430.

My current theory is this: The SC will be be shelved during the 2009 model year, which will be offset by the introduction of the IS coupe/convertible. Then, when 2010 hits, the LF-A will be released as the SC, and will be offered in a sub-$100,000 variation. This seems to be hinted at by Edmunds, and looks to me to be the most likely scenario.

More than anything, I can’t picture Lexus letting the SC name die.

My least favorite German car magazine Auto Motor Und Sport has scooped up some footage of the next-generation Lexus RX making its way around Nürburgring:

Can’t say this was something I would have ever expected to see, an RX on the ‘ring. One thing’s for sure, I don’t ever want to see an RX going that fast again. The whole time on the track, and all I was worried about were the kids in the back seat.