Lindy64

Hello,

I am an older (50-yikes!) car enthusiast who just picked up an '06 IS350 (Sport) yesterday, and am in the process of digging into it (and admittedly have a huge learning curve)! Have done several searches here and elsewhere, and have not been able to find a definitive answer to:

How are people (who don't want to wait for ever) fixing their cracked/sticky/napalm-like dashes? Called Lexus to order replacement (car is out of the special warranty) and they said it would be another year. That is not going to work. Has anyone had success with removing the entire dash, scraping off the existing problematic material and replacing with alcantara, etc.?Would be happy to document work on mine if anyone has a solution/might be interested.

Car will be going to the shop for a complete go-through. If interested I am happy to document work, updates, upgrades etc. as I have done with some of our old track cars on other forums. Open to suggestions and ideas as this car is a blank slate at this point.

Thanks!

MikeyK02

iTrader: (7)

Any age can enjoy the passion and journey of cars. So welcome to team Lexus.

Years ago, i had contemplated the alcantera dash, but didn't pursue as i sold my 350.

The biggest thing you can do is a tune. Unfortunately these cars arent exactly tuner friendly. You may find it better to sell and upgrade to an isf id youre wanting more power

Either way...welcome!!

B00M3R

iTrader: (1)

I dont know much about replacing the dash but I would be interested in seeing what you can do and how you did it.

On another note, for tuning there are a few options out now, they are pretty new but they are proving to be well worth the small investment. I curently have the Orange Virus Tune and absolutely love it.
I am planning on getting a dyno test here shortly as the weather gets better. I expect from what i have heard that it is around 20-30 HP and around the same for torque. I am getting a PPe header and JoeZ true dual exhaust (just waiting for delivery) and PPE gives a number at 16 HP from headers alone and hope the true dual exhaust will net another 10 maybe more with everything together. This with the tune I am hoping to see around 350HP at the crank. I also got the hand held tuner from OVtuning so I can swap what tune I want to use. I am still looking into datalogging now so that I can dyno it and build a better tune from my car.

HankMoody

Hey man welcome,,, This is exactly what you're looking for,, https://www.clublexus.com/forums/bui...gauge-pod.html

If you do decide to tackle this project, please document for us.. I've considered buying a dash off ebay and doing the same.

Lindy64

Thanks for the replies. The Orange Virus tune(s) are interesting, however I'm not seeing dyno results listed on their site and they seemed to have had issues delivering product in 2016? Have searched here and elsewhere and am not seeing a definitive answer.

I bought this car as more of a driver, thinking that (for once) I would not go over the top looking for more power - however the possible option of tuning is something that I will pursue if someone here could please let me know what Tuner/program has worked for them. I would be willing to do dyno before/after just for the heck of it as well.

Lindy64

I contacted Matthew at OV, and he responded immediately - and also encouraged me to share dyno results here (which is a good sign imho). I had asked for very conservative estimates, and he wrote:"Conservatively, on a bone stock 06 you're looking at about 10-20HP and 15-25 ft lbs. Depends on available fuel octane and quality."

Car is headed to shop for first major check up (under my watch) in next few days...

gs400998

Congrats and welcome to CL! 2nd Gen IS350 is pretty fast in stock form -mid to low 13s for 1/4M. A member posted his recent results for the quarter mile:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/dra...rack-runs.html

Additional stats:
http://www.zeroto60times.com/vehicle...-60-mph-times/

Lindy64

Thanks - Just came up to speed on the "black nav. screen of doom" and "transmission of death" posts and feel like I should start collecting spares just in case? Even haven't had those issues yet (insert obligatory "knock on wood").

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

How many miles on your '06 IS350? If you've got no issues to speak of regarding the NAV screen and the trans, I'd not worry about it. The NAV screen issues tend to be more in the more southern states with higher in-cabin temps over the summer. If you're right around 100k miles, I'd recommend a trans flush to maximize the trans life.

Though these cars are by no means a powerhouse, their fun factor lies in their off-the-line acceleration. 4.10 factory rear gear and most of the 277ft lbs arriving earlier in the powerband. Good rear tires are a must!

Lindy64

Car has 128K. Have built some mean S4's, ace old Porsches and 60's Corvettes - but am an absolute Lexus Rookie.

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

Well, first thing first...biggest bang for the buck handling mod is a larger rear sway bar. The next is better tires, which might be accompanied with larger wheels. Next is coilovers to drop the center of gravity and adjust the dampening to your liking. For a daily, I went with a 12k/8k setup; but for something stiffer, a 14k/12k setup would be good. Lastly, a 2011+ IS-F steering ecu that stiffens up the electronic steering wheel feel to BMW-like territory AND at the same time allowing you to be more aggressive in the corners without all the dings and buzzers going off.

For additional kick, you have your traditional suck and blow mods. PPE headers are killer AND they make a badass true dual exhaust as well. You mentioned OV Tune; so you've got that covered.

Enjoy!

Aspect

Woah I never heard of the Steering ECU upgrade having that second effect. I'll start to highly consider the upgrade if it means less traction control lights beeping at me when going sideways in the winter.

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

Call the dealer and check for the airbag recall. While they're doing that, ask them if they can do the dash Failing that, get one of those dash covers (like us folks in hot southern states used on our Fords and Chevys in the 70s and 80s) until they can swap it out.

Lindy64

Thanks for the replies - great information!

Is there a dash cover that fits tightly, and doesn't look too cheesy (for lack of a better term)? Do dash covers interfere with airbag?