American Le Mans Series

Lexus IS350 joins ALMS GT2S class

The American Le Mans Series announced today the Lexus IS350 will be joining the BMW M3 in the maiden season of the GT2S class in the series. The Lexus IS350, a four door entry-level luxury sedan marketed in the United States by Toyota’s luxury brand will be the only four-door car as well as the first car from a Japanese brand to compete in the series’ GT classes. The brand will field a two-car factory-backed entry.

© Lexus

“Much like we hope the new IS will become, we view the American Le Mans Series as an aspirational series,” said Lexus Group Vice President and General Manager Bob Carter. “It’s an ideal fit for Lexus because it celebrates the technology and performance inherent in the best cars.”

American Le Mans Series President Scott Atherton voiced a similar vision for Lexus.

“The Lexus brand coming into the American Le Mans Series is as close to a natural fit as we could ever imagine,” Atherton said. “When anyone mentions Lexus, many of the same attributes that are associated with the American Le Mans Series come to mind words like luxury, high performance, leading-edge technology, style and quality describe both brands. On behalf of the series, and its manufacturers and competitors, we are proud and honored to welcome Lexus into our competitive ranks.”

The new vehicle will make its series premier on the grid of the 54th Twelve Hours of Sebring.

© Lexus

Lexus will join with its racing partner Team Lexus, which will build, develop and campaign the new cars with technical assistance and backing from Lexus. Work already has started on preparing the IS 350s for the 2006 American Le Mans Series, and driver lineups will be announced at a later date. Team Lexus has campaigned previous versions of the IS in the Grand Am Cup Endurance Series.

“Developing and racing two brand new cars in a series new to us will be a major challenge but one that we relish,” said Team Lexus owner Chuck Goldsborough. “We’ve been building our team along with the new cars this year and are looking forward to some of the most exciting and competitive road racing in North America.”

One by one, Atherton’s promises of delivering new manufacturers and teams to the American Le Mans Series in his September “State of the Series? address at Petit Le Mans are materializing. And with an outstanding 10-race schedule that impacts nine of the top 20 markets across North America, the best television package in the series? history and 2005 season results indicating double-digit increases in sponsorship ROIs, times have never been better.

“The American Le Mans Series, with its “premium brand of motorsport? platform, is experiencing an unprecedented level of growth and expansion, and Lexus has recognized this,” Atherton said. “This represents more than the addition of another prestigious manufacturer to our ranks. Lexus will bring another wave of elite sponsors, high-end clientele and a level of activation that we expect will establish a new benchmark. Lexus? involvement in the American Le Mans Series will have a positive impact by every measure. But the best part is that there still is more good news to come.”

Cars competing in GT2S are not eligible for the 24 Hours of Le Mans at this time. However, GT2S entries will be classified in the GT2 class of the American Le Mans Series and will be eligible to score championship points. Series officials are working closely with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) to evaluate the involvement of GT2S cars in the American Le Mans Series with the possibility of making them eligible for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the future.