It seems like Lexus’ LF-A supercar has been in development since the Bronze Age, but despite having the most protracted prototyping phase of any automobile, there’s still no official word on a launch date for the V10-powered supercoupe.

But that doesn’t mean Lexus has forgotten about the LF-A. Quite the contrary. Toyota’s luxury arm intends to take the LF-A to the 37th ADAC Zurich Nurburgring 24-hour enduro next month, where it’ll compete against bona-fide race cars and gather important data on its at-the-limit performance.

This isn’t the first time the Lexus LF-A has competed at this event (what did we say about a long development process?), but it should be the final validation of its performance before it debuts in production form - most likely at the Tokyo Motor Show in October.

The LF-A racer will swap the ’stealth black’ colour scheme of last year for the more colourful livery of Gazoo racing, but aside from the new stickers the car itself should be mechanically similar to last year’s car.

Running in Division Two of the close-to-factory-spec SP8 class, the LF-A racer’s stat sheet should give a good idea of what to expect from the production car too. That means the LF-A should ship with a 4.8 litre V10 that boasts over 367kW (493hp), a paddle-shifted rear-mounted automated manual gearbox and a featherweight carbon-fibre body.

Don’t expect the huge front splitter, rear wing, front spotlights or lightweight racing wheels to make the cut though.

The ADAC Zurich Nurburgring 24-hour event kicks off on May 21, so keep that dial locked onto TMR for more LF-A goodness.