2015 Lexus RC F has 2 more cylinders and 42 more horses than BMW M4

Lexus is launching the 2015 RC F sports coupe in late October in the US market. Media and Lexus trainers are driving the car this week across the country on road and track to gain a full understanding of Lexus rear-drive, V8 powered sports GT. Our wheel time is Wednesday. Even without the drive we already know a few things about the car that are of interest.

READ ALSO: Lexus reveals amazing V8 powered RC F coupe ahead of official release

Although this car is not intended as a direct, head-to-head competitor to the awesome BMW M4, we can draw some comparisons and contrasts to that car. BMW has moved from a V8 to a smaller, turbocharged in-line 6-cylinder engine. Lexus by contrast will use its powerful 5.0-liter V8 engine which is capable of operating on both the Otto and Atkinson combustion cycles. The Lexus engine is more powerful by 42 horsepower. It has 467. The BMW 425.

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Lexus RC F vs. BMW M4 On Track
The 2015 BMW was designed as a race car. Its designer was interviewed about the car and mentioned the word “race” every few sentences. If the best compact coupe for racing is what you are looking for this may be your car. On a race-course, with a professional driver behind the wheel, we have little doubt that the BMW M4 will be a few tics faster on the stopwatch than will the Lexus RC F. On the other hand, if a driver with limited track experience were to drive both back to back, our guess is that the driver would be faster in the Lexus. It was designed to be a GT. That means Grand Touring. A car ultimately capable on any road, and on any track. All the while providing the owner with a vehicle that is great-looking, comfortable and easy to live with.

2015 Lexus RC F vs. BMW M4 On-Road
On public roads which car is faster is a moot point since using either of these cars anywhere near their full potential is not just a ticketing offense, but a felony arrest type of no-no. The real question about the Lexus RC F will be how is it to drive on-road, at close to legal speeds? We will know shortly, but it is safe to say that it if you were to be blindfolded and led into an RC F then drove off you would assume it was an IS 350 F Sport with a little cayenne pepper added. Maybe not even since the IS F didn’t feel any different to me back to back on-road compared to the IS 350.

SEE ALSO: What's missing on the 2015 BMW M4 sports coupe?

The BMW will have settings to change its personality, but my guess (having not yet driven it) is that it would be more different than the 4351 and 428i, than the Lexus RCF is from the RC 350.

Lexus has topped the BMW on the specifications sheet, and BMW will almost certainly top the performance sheet. Two questions remain. Which will top the sales charts, and which will offer more smiles per mile?