Cmart530

Hey guys, I am new to Club Lexus, and new to Lexus for that matter. I'm about to turn 19 and as a birthday present my step-dad is going to sell me his 2008 lexus IS250 it has the X/sport package. He's selling it to me for 18k, and it only has 9000mi on it. Thats a good deal right?!? It's been garage kept and never driven in the weather. It was his aunts until she just let her DL go because she is elderly and doesn't want to drive anymore. Now, I was wondering if I could get some help and opinions from you guys. I intend to keep the car for a long time and eventually do a full build once I'm done with school but right now I just want to do a couple basic changes such as intake, exhaust, trunk spoiler, and possibly something to the front bumper/grille. If any of you guys could help out it would be greatly appreciated. 😁

Meguerra

iTrader: (8)

Welcome to the club Cmart530. First thing you want to do is go to Lexus Drivers website and join. You will need the Vin# to see all Lexus recorded maintenance history of the vehicle and any recalls that need to be done. Then check out the 2IS FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) and DIY Thread. Whole bunch of info there. Sounds like a good deal to me for a very low miles IS250 and is probable still very new looking.

https://secure.drivers.lexus.com/lexusdrivers/home.do

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...iy-thread.html

Cmart530

Thank you Meguerra, I appreciate the help.

Cmart530

I found some parts i want to use if any one has input or anything it would be greatly appreciated.
Fsport intake (ebay?)
ppe headers (buy from enjuku racing)
Fsport exhaust (ebay as well?)
invidia mid pipe (would i need an aftermarket mid pipe with that set up?) and could i use stock cats???
Fsport sway bar (ebay)
oem fsport rear spoiler (ebay) DIY or is that something to be professional installed?
could any of these parts be bought used or is that not a good idea?
feel like i might be forgetting something but oh well, LOL.

Initial G

iTrader: (38)

You should check the classifieds for the parts you listed, they usually pop up. No problem with buying used parts as long as they are in good condition. I myself picked up a used FSport exhaust. Saved me a ton of money from buying new.

good luck

laobo979

iTrader: (5)

Welcome and for the mileage it's like a brand new car until you drive it lol.

Cmart530

Thank you G

Cmart530

Yea I'm stoked about that, but the fact that its basically new is making me second guess if i want to do anything to it at all.

LucianoLee

iTrader: (1)

Congrat on the new ride. Only 9000 miles is pretty much brand new isn't it?

If you can wait and look for the used parts, you will save a lot of money.

The Nvidia midpipe actually has a cat on it. It will replace the whole midpipe section between the downpipe and axleback. I would search youtube to hear the sound first, its pretty loud and there will be drone in the cabin as well

Cmart530

Yeah it basically is new, the paint and interior is untouched, only down side is that the guages are in KM but ill get used to that LOL. Thanks LucianoLee, I'll keep my eye out for those used parts, and I'll start watching more videos, I would hate to end up with a sound I don't like. It's just difficult when you're buying all parts online and don't really get to hear it or anything until you've already installed it. Thanks for all your guys's help I really appreciate it.

Cmart530

Thought I was going to go for an F sport air intake, and exhaust but now I'm thinking of going down a different route and getting an AEM intake and an HKS exhaust. That route seems a little less costly and I think with aem intake, PPE headers, mid pipe(undecided) and the axle back hks it would be a good combo. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

LucianoLee

iTrader: (1)

I have Takeda intake (loud as hell), HKS hipower exhaust with NVIDIA midpipe. Love the sound, but the drone is pretty noisy. I'm thinking how bad the drone will be if you add headers on that setup.
This is how mine sounds like

Cmart530

That sound in that video is the sound I'm going for, but the headers should give it a gain in power so I'll bite the bullet with the drone. I've read good stuff about takeda intakes but I'm just a fan of aem lol, but I'll be looking more into intakes since I can't buy/ship an aem into California. On that exhaust system though I could run the headers to the mid pipe and then to the hks setup? Like I shouldn't need any other parts right? Oh and thank you for your response man, really appreciate it.

Cmart530

Did some research on sway bars and I read that I should only do a rear because the front doesn't really do much at all. Now, this may be a dumb question but I personally don't know much about sway bars, just the basics of how they work, and as far as cars go I can just do the basics (change oil, tires, etc.) . But will an aftermarket exhaust get in the way of a rear sway bar? And also should I just go for the Fsport sway bar or are there any other good companies?

LucianoLee

iTrader: (1)

I went straight to get both front and rear sway bars, so I can't tell you how getting only the rear feels like. But with them on, the car feels a lot more solid. Understeering is still there, but way better.

About the aftermarket exhaust, sway bars will not get in the way. Just the NVIDIA midpipe might hit another bar crossing under body panel (or whatever its called) you can easily get a muffler shop take care of that, so don't worry about it too much. And if you can do oil change, you can install the rear sway bar yourself. 4 nuts for bushing, 2 more for endlinks. Especially your car's condition is like brand new (probably no rushing problem yet). It should be a cake.

I didn't get the headers, so I'm not sure what to tell you. It should be both on, I think. Don't forget to get new gaskets if you buy used exhaust.