^ balot!
 
Did a quick photoshoot last night on the FD. Comments & criticism welcome on the photography as I'm on/off & looking to improve wherever possible.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

wow...very nice

Update on my daily driver. Black 08 IS250 Prestige with Enhancement Pack. Purchased new & left absolutely untouched up until about a month ago. No tough "build" here, all cheapie mods.

Sold my CL9 to a friend who didn't quite have enough to cover my asking price, so since he ran a window tinting business, I had him tint the RX7, Dad's IS350 & my IS250 to help cover my losses.

First mode, 15% tint:









Had some wheels (Trafficstar style) laying around doing nothing (from a previous car), but wasn't quite convinced whether or not to put them on the IS250 as they weren't staggered. 19x8.5 +35 all round (225/35's). Thought it'd be perfect up front, but fail in the rear since there's some pretty aggressive rears going on the 2nd Gens. There was serious gutter rash & some fading on the polished lips of the wheels so that didn't help. Not really into spacers either. Took a close look & realised 1 of the tyres was not reuseable so thought I could "fatten" then up with the widest rubber recommended for a 8.5 wide rim (Pauly & Nick style), so fitted some nice new 255/35 Falken FK452's. Machined the lips while I was at it to get rid of the rashing.

The appearance of "dish" was a concern for me as the wheels were black with a polished lip. So did some online searching whilst on the trains & discovered the whole "Plastidip"revolution.......lol Not so easy to find this stuff in Sydney, but eventually tracked it down along with a can or two of the ""glossifier". Results below:







Now onto suspension. Didn't think springs would drop it enough, so thought I'd need to fork out for coilovers. Then I spoke to another IS owner who seemed happy with his choice to go to Tein S Tech from coilovers & mentioned the ride was still good. I have a pregnant wife, so comfort is really important. Luckily, stumbled across some barely used Tein S Tech's for sale on gumtree for a bargain price. The owner went for coilovers, so couldn't be bothered seperating the springs from the shocks so he gave those too. Easiest drop since no adjustment of springs compressors were needed. Shocks turned out to be in better condition than mine Took about 3hrs to fit yesterday afternoon (Thanks to Julian & Greg) & went along without too much drama. Accidentally broke the wire for the ABS/VSC, but was able to solder. Also blew one fuse when removing the rear trim. Pretty efficient afternoon though.

Grabbed a rear ducktail wing, prepainted & secured it with the provided 3M tape too. Highly recommend it. Paint & fitment were excellent.













Excuse the picture quality. I quickly snapped those up while grabbing lunch. I already purchased a GFX front lip, which I dropped off yesterday to have prepped & painted. Will be fitting that this Thursday & hopefully have time to do a proper photoshoot this coming weekend.

Apart from the front lip, only other plans I have is to get a nice intake & delete the resonator. Bit ricey I know, but V6's sound so nice with a bit of roar.

Big thanks Greg & Julian for the help!

My ultimate daily! Looks GREAT Jay :D

Looks good
 
Gonna be tough to challenge that at Al Palmers next year with Best Lexus in Show.

Love the series of black cars, must keep you busy cleaning them!
 
Photography question for the FD - was there a reason you didn't wait until sunset for pinkish cloud reflections in the paintwork?  I could see some nice sky reflecting in Shots 1, 2, 3 & 5 and wondered if it would be too dark later in the day for similar detail with orange/pink highlights.

MRTurbo
My ultimate daily! Looks GREAT Jay :D

Cheers dude. Can't wait to install the lip on Thursday too.

darius
Looks good Gonna be tough to challenge that at Al Palmers next year with Best Lexus in Show.

Yeah, will probably lose next time since it won't be factory original.

fredhoon
Love the series of black cars, must keep you busy cleaning them!

Photography question for the FD - was there a reason you didn't wait until sunset for pinkish cloud reflections in the paintwork? I could see some nice sky reflecting in Shots 1, 2, 3 & 5 and wondered if it would be too dark later in the day for similar detail with orange/pink highlights.

Doesn't take that long as they're both garaged. MR2 & RX7 don't see much rain, so are cleaned once every 3weeks or so, even then they're still clean (usually covered during the week). The Lexus is once a week, but since it's a daily, I'm not as fussy as I am with the others so it's a pretty quick job.

Photography - I honestly didn't have the luxury of picking the exact time during that shoot (was after work & a quick golf round). For a black car, I always aim to start the hour before the sun sets or on a cloudy/overcast day. It would've been nice to get a pinkish reflection, however it's also a rush/challenge as it can take a few minutes to get the car's position right, all while the sun is setting & the light's fading. Low light & black cars aren't as easy to get right as you lose contrast. Maybe perfect on white concrete though, but not tarmac. The biggest issue with my car shoots is having all the stars align; clean car, nice weather, time on my hands & a feasible location ready.

Finally had the GFX lip painted & installed. Not as easy as expected, but the result speaks for itself. I'm now content with the exterior. Quick pics from this afternoon.
 

 

 

 

 
Can't wait to do a nice shoot with the Deuce & Lex together. One happy black Lexus/Toyota family.

Quick addition to the line-up. Have a baby on the way & needed an additional car with greater family versatility than my IS250, MR2 & FD that the wife can drive. Also have 2 dogs which we like to bring along most weekends for family outings, so a wagon or SUV was a must. Naturally, thought of an ST246 Caldina to keep in line with my Toyota/Lexus loving, but after test driving a few, found them to be more like a hatch & the 4spd auto was a disappointment (too tall gearing). Since I've been admiring Mitsubishi's a lot lately........Enter the Legnum. 4WD turbo, AYC similar to an Evo....Sounded great. 2.5L twin turbo with a 5sp auto.....sounded even better.......Could fit my golf clubs, dogs, baby & be used on fishing/snowing trips........perfect!

After 2 disappointing inspections (Thanks Trav!) & toying with the idea of purchasing interstate or importing, I was about to throw in the towel & buy a Honduh CRV. Had a few spare minutes one Friday afternoon & found a newly listed 2000 FL Legnum in Pearl White & Sydney/local. Needless to say, I was on the phone with the seller within seconds & out to inspect it myself the following morning.

I'll be honest, it wasn't love at first sight. The car was in quite the sorry state. The owner had been in Europe for the past year & the car had been sitting around unwashed for even longer. Cobwebs, spiders & a layer of dirt is what awaited me. Luckily, there was more than meets the eye & the stars had aligned in my favour. The car was imported in 2010 (sourced not landed/sold) & apparently only had one single owner in Japan before the seller picked it up. The seller had neglected it over the past 2.5 years & it had only had one service (20,000km ago) since it arrived. Slightly overdue for it's major service too. Enough for most to turn away.

Spent a decent amount of time going over it with a fine toothed comb & getting underneath it. It had just had a brand new alternator & belt fitted, which was about the only service-related positive. Thankfully, no underbody rust, but only a bit of surface rust at the bottom drain on one of the doors (seems to be a fundamental problem with these) & a bit on the radiator support too. The body was very straight, showing no signs of accident history, the paint beneath the dirt was in great condition to with the only exterior imperfection being a very 15mm long scuff on the front bar & 2 tiny pin dents. The interior was immaculate with the exception of a layer of dust & dirt on the carpets. Massive bonus points for having factory recaros (in mint condition), momo steering wheel & flip out screen. Seems the original owner ticked quite a few of the options when purchasing new.

Mechanically, the car sounded great (very quiet motor esp the head), but it was obviously in immediate need of a major service. The transmission shifted okay, except from 2nd-3rd which is a bit rough. Given the service neglect, I'm certain the transmission fluid hasn't been changed in many years. The AYC was clearly functioning, but in need of a service/bleed too I'm sure. All interior electrics worked as intended, including the large moonroof. A/C was working well too. Car idled/drove well. Brakes, however need attention as they vibrate from the front warped rotors.

Petrol guzzler :)