THE engineers and designers at Lexus continue to use their groundbreaking LF-A premium sports car concept as a medium for expressing their ideas about what a high-performance sporting vehicle not only can be, but should be.

Now at the Detroit show, they have removed the car's top to create a high-performance roadster.

The LF-A Roadster is based on the sturdy yet lightweight carbon-fibre and aluminium body used for the LF-A coupe, which helps maintain the structure's strength even without a top.

Like its coupe counterpart, the LF-A Roadster is powered by a V10 engine that approaches 5.0 litres in displacement. The V10 is capable of more than 500 horsepower and test-track speeds greater than 200mph.

The engine is connected via a torque tube and propeller shaft to a transaxle that is controlled by paddle shifters. The torque tube is a structural member that adds rigidity to the drivetrain and chassis while reducing vibration.

Styling is rooted in the Lexus L-Finesse design philosophy, conferring the LF-A Roadster's front end with a compact, low-profile, aerodynamic shape. Like its coupe counterpart, the LF-A Roadster stands just 48 inches tall, but the Roadster configuration adds a speed adaptive rear wing.

The rear is marked by a pair of wrap-around, arrowhead-shaped taillights that bracket a pair of large grilles.

Helping to provide balance and scale to the design, which features an overall length of 175.6 inches and a wheelbase of 102.6 inches, are high-performance tyres on turbine-styled alloy wheels.