The World’s Most Underrated V8 Will Get a New Lease on Life in Lexus’s New Sports Car

But sadly, the current high-performance V8’s natural aspiration gives way to forced induction.

Front view of a sleek gray Lexus sports car with distinctive angular headlights and a large black grille.

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Published October 31, 2025

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Updated October 31, 2025

The 2025 Japan Mobility Show is in full swing and Toyota just dropped some exciting news for V8 lovers: The configuration is not going anywhere. Additionally, an eight-cylinder engine could find its way into a new Lexus sports car.

Speaking with Yota’s and Lexus’s chief powertrain engineer, Takashi Uehara, CarExpert confirmed that the Japanese auto giant is brewing up a new eight-pot.

This exciting update comes after skepticism arose around the viability of the V8’s future in the face of increasingly stringent fuel economy and emissions compliance regulations. Many thought the V8 was on its deathbed.

Matte light blue Lexus sports car with black roof and large black alloy wheels parked on concrete. — Lexus revealed its gorgeous Sports Coupe Concept in Tokyo this week.

But after major rollbacks on the regulatory side in the US, on top of a generally lukewarm reception to EVs, automakers are turning back to such powertrains.

But there’s a caveat…

Sleek silver sports car with black accents speeding on a racetrack with blue and black markings. — The Lexus Sports Coupe Concept hints at a potential new LC 500 successor.

Although the continuation of eight-cylinder power is exciting, the next mill sadly says goodbye to the current V8’s signature high-revving, naturally-aspiration. According to CarExpert’s interview, the next-gen V8 will instead utilize twin turbos.

Toyota’s/Lexus’ current high-performance V8 is the legendary 2UR-GSE. It’s better known as the 5.0-liter naturally-aspirated eight-cylinder. It powers the current IS 500 F Sport Performance, the LC 500, and formerly, the IS F, GS F and RC F.

The Toyota 2UR-GSE V8 from the Lexus F models is one of the most underrated V8s of all time.

It’s the V8 that truly helped tighten Lexus’ competition against BMW M, Mercedes-AMG and Audi S. Despite launching with the IS F over a decade ago in 2007, it remains as one of the best V8s ever made.

2024 Lexus LC 500 — Toyota’s epic rev-happy and naturally-aspirated 5.0-liter V8 powers the LC 500.

Since its debut, the V8 has remained largely unchanged (aside from tuning upgrades). It’s an absolute testament to how good it continues to be and how ahead of its time it was at launch. While not the most powerful, it still produces a respectable 472 ponies and 395 pound-feet of twist in its latest guise.

But what makes the 2UR-GSE an absolute peach is its Yamaha-tuned valvetrain, intake and head assembly.

Japan’s Cosworth isn’t a part of the equation this time

Black engine cover with silver intake manifold and "F Sport" badge in a red engine bay. — The 2UR-GSE is peak V8, from its sonorous engine note, to its lofty 7,300 RPM and its lightning-quick responses.

Yamaha might be known for making musical instruments, stellar audio equipment, recreational vehicles and motorcycles. However, they’re also a renowned name in motorsports.

Although they don’t make any actual cars, they certainly know a thing or two about performance engineering and internal combustion engines. In the context of four-wheeled machines, they’re basically Japan’s equivalent to Britain’s Cosworth.

We wish more people appreciated how good the 2UR-GSE is.

As such, Lexus engineers teamed up with Yamaha to co-develop the 2UR-GSE. More specifically, Yamaha specially tuned the entire top-end of the 2UR-GSE. Its engineers added more aggressive camshafts, a two-stage intake manifold, ultra-lightweight titanium valves and lower tensions valve springs.

Toyota 2UR-GSE Technical Rendering - Valvetrain — Yamaha co-engineered the 2UR-GSE’s top end.

Yamaha engineers also boosted the V8’s compression ratio from 11.8:1 on the standard 1UR-GSE to 12.3:1. The result is a high-revving, high-output performance V8 with a screaming 7,300 RPM redline, lightning-quick throttle and rev-happy responses, and a sensational audible experience that rivals V8s from any of the other proverbial automotive greats.

It’ll be extraordinarily sad to see it go.

Sporting appeal, V8 power

Sleek silver Lexus sports car with futuristic rear design and illuminated taillights in a dark garage. — Lexus’ new sports car will sadly say goodbye to natural aspiration and supposedly include twin-turbocharging for its new V8.

In addition to the V8’s continuation, Lexus teased its potential production application in the Sports Concept that debuted in Tokyo. The Japanese automaker introduced the concept, which may potentially reach production as the successor to the current LC 500.

Sleek light gray Lexus sports car with black roof, rear spoiler, and distinctive red taillights angled on a smooth surface. — There could be at least two or three versions of Toyota’s/Lexus’ new V8 when it launches.

Other speculation suggests the engine could also power the automaker’s new supercar. The latter would succeed the iconic V10-powered LFA.

Previously, it was already know that Toyota’s GR performance division was working on its own V8-powered sports car. Now, the application will extend beyond that specific model and power Lexus’ own sports cars, as hinted by the Sports Coupe Concept.

Matte green Lexus sports car with sharp LED headlights on a tiled floor in low light. — The Lexus Sports Coupe Concept could get a 4.0-liter version of the new V8.

Although Lexus didn’t spare any technical details, rumors suggest the new V8 is a part of Toyota’s new modular range of internal combustion engines. In the Sports Concept, it supposedly displaces 4.0-liters and with its twin-turbochargers, is supposedly good for well over 500 horsepower.

During CarExpert’s interview Uehara also suggested there could be two variants of the new V8. One would go in the supposed LC 500 successor while the most powerful version could power the supposed LFA successor.

Futuristic Lexus steering wheel with integrated controls and digital dashboard displays in a car interior. — The Lexus Sports Coupe Concepts envisions a very driver-focused cockpit.

It also apparently shares a lot of engineering and tech from the high-performance 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder Toyota’s developing for future GR sports cars.

“We have several partitions with the engines. For example, I don’t say for the 1.5-litre we have only a sporty one… so for both sizes of engines, we have several partitions if necessary,” Uehara told CarExpert. “So maybe we could have a V8 with a more gentle [character] or we could have a more muscular, heavy-duty version.”

Sleek light green sports car with black roof and black alloy wheels parked on tiled ground. — A plug-in hybrid version of the new V8 is also a possibility.

Uehara also further elaborated, saying the new V8 is so technologically advanced, it might not even need to be a part of a plug-in hybrid powertrain to pass emissions compliance. But the pairing might still happen with Lexus’ incoming sports coupe as an option and to align with corporate strategy.

About the Author: Chris Chin is an associate editor at Gear Patrol, covering cars, trucks and anything else with four wheels. He has over a decade of experience writing news and reviews but considers himself an enthusiast first, with a passion for classics and European cars. His daily driver is a 1987 Mercedes-Benz 560SEL with nearly 250,000 miles (87,000 are his).

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