2012 Lexus LFA purchasing process: Lease it for $12,398 a month… kind of

March 18, 2010November 11, 2011 Omar Rana

If you thought going to the dealer and negotiating a finance or lease was a hassling task, wait until you hear what you’ll have to go through to purchase the 2012 Lexus LFA. As announced last month, the flagship of the F portfolio will start at a wallet draining $375,000 – and that price tag does not include options, delivery, processing and handling fee.

Customers will be able to choose from three different configurations included in the base MSRP including:

Configuration 1 ““ Leather or Alcantara-trimmed seats.
Configuration 2 ““ Leather or Alcantara-trimmed seats, Lexus Navigation System and Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound system.
Configuration 3 ““ Leather or Alcantara-trimmed seats, Lexus Navigation System, Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound system, and Lexus Enform with Safety Connect.

Sounds simple enough right? Wrong. With only 500 units of the LFA being produced globally, only 150 will make it to the United States. Toyota says that customer response has exceeded the number of available cars and it is possible that not all customers who originally expressed interest will have the pleasure of owning Lexus’ first supercar.

If you’ve already shown interest in the new LFA, Lexus might (and we stress might) contact you sometime between March and June. Once you’ve been notified of your opportunity to order, you’ll have 10 days to submit a $10,000 deposit. Provided you pass the credit check at that time, you’ll then have to deposit another $50,000 before your LFA gets built, which will be sometime next year. Once your car is built and delivered to you, you’ll have to make lease payments, which according to Lexus comes out to $12,398.44 a month for 24 months. However, under the company’s 1PAY lease plan, you’ll have to make the full 24 month payment up front – meaning you’ll have to write Lexus a check for $297,562.56 before you can take your LFA out for a spin. After 24 months, provided you absolutely love your LFA, you can keep it for a final payment of $93,750.

Yes, it’s a lot of work and a lot of payments – or you can just wait for the McLaren MP4-12C.

Click here for more news on the Lexus LFA.

Click here to watch the Lexus LFA in action.

Refresher: Power for the Lexus LFA comes from a 4.8L V10 that makes 552-hp with a maximum torque of 354 lb-ft. Mated to a 6-speed Automated Sequential Gearbox, the LFA goes from 0-60 mph with a time of just 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 202 mph.