caliness

I'm thinking of installing a wood trim kit. The thing is, I don't know where to get it from! The price is not the biggest issue here (as long as it's under $300!), and quality is the biggest issue for me. What do you guys suggest??
Here's a pic I always see used on eBay. The wood kit looks very nice...

EDIT: I have a 96 LS400

I LOVE THE SHIFT ****!!

usermel

Checkout one or the other of these 2 sites. www.exoticwoodtrim.com or www.exoticwooddash.com. Both cost less than $300, and i have used exoticwooddash.com but not exoticwoodtrim.com. The prices on woodtrim look cool. But i know about wooddash.com's quality. Good shopping. GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME.

caliness

I've previously seen exoticwoodtrim and I really like their prices. I want to make sure their quality is high, too. Anyone have any experience with them??

lexusk8

I also have experience with exoticwooddash.com. I got the OEM trim kit from them for my '01 ES (free shipping at that time), and installed it myself in about an hour. Looks and feels great, and certainly adds some value to the car

Click here for pics of the wood trim.

caliness

I remember seeing your wood kit before and I was actually expecting a reply from you!
I love the quality of ExoticWoodDash. But after seeing ExoticWoodTrim, I noticed they offer more pieces and a great price.

I also noticed that you've mentioned ExoticWoodDash gets their wood from B&I. So, why not buy direct from B&I instead of going through a third party?

Lexkost

caliness, How well will it match the wood inside now , I would like a kit for my 96 also, but I am very picky
The pic you show is not a 96LS and my wood is not that red .

caliness

That pic looks like a 98 to me ( based on the key and the location of the clock/temperature guage).
In my opinion, I think the wood is the same color as ours (I think it is medium burlwood), but it looks reddish because that top part is in the sun. I could be wrong, though. Around the shifter looks like the same wood as I have.

EDIT: Also notice the wood around the door handle.

Hameed

With all due respect to those who have installed these aftermarket wood trim kits and like them, more power to you.

My advice to you caliness is to see it for yourself first (already installed in some one else's car) in person. Please don't go by pics you see here or anywhere else.

I always wanted to do such a mod on my GS400 and I always thought the kits commonly available as linked here by others were very good. However when I saw it in person in another members GS400, I was completely turned off. Again, this is my opinion and how I personally feel about it - no offense to anyone else. We all do what we like to do.

The kit just looked like "fat stickers" glued on to the console. Nothing else comes to mind when I saw the kit - it just shouted "fat stickers" to me.

In other words, please don't go by the pics you see. Check it out in person on someone else's car before you buy it. This has nothing to do with money - it won't be an expensive mistake if you do decide to install it and don't like it afterwards. I am assuming that it is easy to take off. I could be wrong on that, so please don't quote me.

lkirchner

I installed the wood kit from exoticwooddash last night on my '04 LS 430. The quality of the product is very good, the fit is near perfect and installation was a snap. However the color and wood grain match SUCKS. There is almost no grain in it and the color is too red or orange. When it is alone such as the rear air conditioning vent it looks great but when it is close to the factory wood it isn't even close. I plan on calling them today and I will keep you posted.

I was going to get the kit for my SC 430 but after this I am not going to waste my time or money.

lkirchner

I just got off of the phone with exoticwood dash regarding the post above. The reply was "Since you already installed , it we can't do anything about it but send us a picture". I guess that and something will buy me a cup of coffee. They were very polite but the tone of the conversation was who cares you bought it you got it. Buyer beware.

caliness

I'm sorry to hear that but thank you for informing me!
If there is any way you can show us pics of it so we can see how bad the match is, that would be great!

Thanks

lkirchner

I am going out of town for a week and will post when I return

caliness

Great! I can't wait to see it.
Thanks again.

lexusk8

Is it possible that you ordered/installed the wrong trim to match the OEM wood pieces? I know that Exotic Wood Dash has different trim kits for each Lexus model year, and it can be drastic to install the trim kit and find out later that it looks so off compared to the rest of the wood trim, but it does happen (this is why I double-checked on my kit to make sure it is the true match before ordering and installation).

One of the ES members unfortunately did that to his car and is obviously not happy about it (well it's sort of really his mistake for ordering the wrong colored trim kit):

caliness

Is it just this pic or is the color of the trim a little off? It seems a little too red in the pic.