The base engine for the Lexus RC 200t is now the 2.0 liter four-cylinder turbocharged four-cylinder with 241 horsepower at 5,800 rpm. Its 258 pound-feet of torque that comes on low from 1600 to 4400 rpm.
Designated by Toyota as the 8AR-FTS, it’s the same engine found in the Lexus IS 200t sedan and even the larger Lexus GS 200t. The engine is also much to the one in the NX 200t compact crossover though that engine is designed for transverse placement.
Making it unique for the RC is its plumbing which starts with the air-intake just above the grille that leads the an air filter box on the passenger side. The air then leads around front to a twin-scroll turbocharger down low on the driver side.
Each scroll of the turbocharger is fed separately by cylinders 1 and 4, and 2 and 3 respectively. This is accomplished with a water cooled two-plane exhaust manifold integrated into the cylinder head. One half is managed with a bypass, the other a waste gate.
The air-charge then routes around the back of the engine and through an air to water inter-cooler that’s tough to see because it’s low on the side like the turbocharger, but it’s there. Air then routes through a drive-by wire throttle body and into a composite intake manifold.
Fuel is managed with both direct and port fuel-injection, a system Toyota calls D-4ST. It allows for continuous cycling of either or both fuel-injection modes depending on load, speed and boost. Adding to the variable nature of this engines tune is its unique wide-band variable valve timing.
Called VVTi-W, its timing advance and retard range allows allows the engine to operate in both an Atkinson or Otto combustion cycle. What this all boils down to is an engine that can tap into two modes of combustion, two modes of fuel-injection, and two modes of boost control for the best of all worlds.
Servicing the RC 200t yourself can be pretty straight forward given the engine compartment is not nearly as crowded as it is with the 3.5-liter V6 or the 5.0 liter V8.
The air filter box is partially obscured by shrouding that will make replacing the element some bit of labor but the coolant is easily reached next to it. One of two fuse blocks and the 12-volt battery also easily accessed just ahead of the passenger fire wall.
On the driver side you will find the windshield washer fluid up front followed by a well enclosed engine ECU and second fuse bock. The brake fluid reservoir and ABS control unit are up on the firewall just ahead of the driver. The oil dipstick and filler cap are right up front on top of the engine where you would expect them.
Because this car has the F-Sport Package, a notable item is the electrical feed for the adjustable dampers seen on top of the strut towers. Under the hood is also a significant heat shield embedded into the sound deadening that resides over the turbocharger location.
