New member/owner of a 96 with 86k miles
07-07-14, 01:00 PM
#16
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Thread Starter
Hmm... I test drove a 98 LS400 with high performance Michelin Super Sport P235/40R18 Z rated tires on OEM Lexus alloy wheels (originally for another Lexus vehicle). Handling had a noticeably sportier feel with aggressive driving. The ride was more firm, but still comfortable on the highway. Road noise was slightly higher. Wheel circumference was very close to original size so the speedometer was only off by <2% at 70 mph. However, the car still had all OEM struts and springs which are tuned for 16" wheels at 60 aspect ratio. Awesome tires, but I still prefered the OEM configuration on my own LS400. My point is that if you want to change wheel size, I think it best to also change the struts and springs to something specifically tuned for the different wheels/lower aspect ratio. You may want to research OEM 17" wheel options for the LS430, OEM size P225/55R17 with identical bolt pattern. That will only throw speedometer off by +.3 mph at 70mph. More importantly, it will open the door for more availability of higher performance summer tires, i.e. higher AA temp rubber compound and stiffer tread block design, higher speed rating options with inherently stiffer sidewalls. Keep in mind, larger wheels with stiffer suspension will increase road noise and wear tires out faster.
I see you are in QC. In MN we have very harsh winters, so I purchased a second set of wheels and snow tires. Makes a vast difference. For non winter use, I am looking for a more strict summer tire than say Michelin MXV4 all season tire. They do not even make the MXM4 in this size. Sad. Unfortunately there are very few performance summer tires available in the P225/60R16 97V rate size; still waiting for the Michelin Primacy 3 to come out in the US in this size.
I see you are in QC. In MN we have very harsh winters, so I purchased a second set of wheels and snow tires. Makes a vast difference. For non winter use, I am looking for a more strict summer tire than say Michelin MXV4 all season tire. They do not even make the MXM4 in this size. Sad. Unfortunately there are very few performance summer tires available in the P225/60R16 97V rate size; still waiting for the Michelin Primacy 3 to come out in the US in this size.
The plan is that this car won't run in winter, I want to keep it clean so ill use our minivan that is already rusted and when spring comes Ill get my toy out.
This weekend I took the car to a wedding (hour drive), so installed the GPS and to my surprise the speedo displayed 3mph slower than the actual speed. My GPS speed reference is good, well it's the same as the police radar who issued me a ticket, so it's the one that matter lol. Ill look at the tires, but last I checked they were the right size for the car and pressure was ok. I've read about bad cap in the cluster but the people affected seem to had higher difference on the meter. Any other idea? can this be calibrated?
07-07-14, 05:39 PM
#18
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Thread Starter
07-10-14, 07:59 AM
#19
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Ok took my bike yesterday to go to work and when I got back I had a note in the windshield saying that sorry for the damage with his contact info. So driver fender, bumper and lights are damaged. At first I was pissed, but now I see this as an opportunity.
Do I have it fix and repaired the same color, have it all repaint a different color (pay the difference for the extra work) ? My long term goal was to change the color but still don't know which one, wrap it later then?
The repair work will be paid by the insurance company so it's also depend on how I can get the shop to work the paper on their side for the color change.
Do I have it fix and repaired the same color, have it all repaint a different color (pay the difference for the extra work) ? My long term goal was to change the color but still don't know which one, wrap it later then?
The repair work will be paid by the insurance company so it's also depend on how I can get the shop to work the paper on their side for the color change.
07-10-14, 04:01 PM
#20
Ok took my bike yesterday to go to work and when I got back I had a note in the windshield saying that sorry for the damage with his contact info. So driver fender, bumper and lights are damaged. At first I was pissed, but now I see this as an opportunity.
Do I have it fix and repaired the same color, have it all repaint a different color (pay the difference for the extra work) ? My long term goal was to change the color but still don't know which one, wrap it later then?
The repair work will be paid by the insurance company so it's also depend on how I can get the shop to work the paper on their side for the color change.
Do I have it fix and repaired the same color, have it all repaint a different color (pay the difference for the extra work) ? My long term goal was to change the color but still don't know which one, wrap it later then?
The repair work will be paid by the insurance company so it's also depend on how I can get the shop to work the paper on their side for the color change.
With wraps being the cheaper alternative and easily removable by comparison, its a nice option to have in the pocket. Problem is, the damage (depending on how talented the collision shop is) may limit, if not completely eliminate, your "wrapping" options.
Might as well get her painted since they're fixing it.
07-10-14, 07:21 PM
#21
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Thread Starter
Damaged cars are never like new again. I would pressure the insurance company into replacing everything on the front drivers side. But to answer your question:
With wraps being the cheaper alternative and easily removable by comparison, its a nice option to have in the pocket. Problem is, the damage (depending on how talented the collision shop is) may limit, if not completely eliminate, your "wrapping" options.
Might as well get her painted since they're fixing it.
With wraps being the cheaper alternative and easily removable by comparison, its a nice option to have in the pocket. Problem is, the damage (depending on how talented the collision shop is) may limit, if not completely eliminate, your "wrapping" options.
Might as well get her painted since they're fixing it.
07-10-14, 09:34 PM
#22
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Thread Starter
ok so little more work has been done tonight, replaced the 2 hood lift and changed the coolant temperature sensors.
Used a deep 19mm socket as recommended and it work like a charm. The green connector on the old sensor was broken so this wasn't for nothing.
Also got today my caps for the ECU.
Used a deep 19mm socket as recommended and it work like a charm. The green connector on the old sensor was broken so this wasn't for nothing.
Also got today my caps for the ECU.
07-11-14, 06:56 PM
#23
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Thread Starter
The other night I decided to clean the radiator
Here's what it look liked (already started to clean it)
So I needed a tool to get to shop vac in there, so I went to the dollar store to find something I could use
This is what I got
and made this
And this is the end result
Idle temp went from 94-95 deg to 83-85 so it's almost 10deg less
Here's what it look liked (already started to clean it)
So I needed a tool to get to shop vac in there, so I went to the dollar store to find something I could use
This is what I got
and made this
And this is the end result
Idle temp went from 94-95 deg to 83-85 so it's almost 10deg less
07-12-14, 10:26 AM
#24
My personal preference would be to get her painted. Not that there are more fancier looking color combos/options, its just that IMHO, a great paint job trumps anything else available. Wrap is cheaper, can look as good as any OEM paint job and even as good as custom paint jobs. If you're looking for something simple, get the wrap, looking for some complicated pearl, gold flake, 10 coat, blah blah blah job, then painting is obviously gonna look better.. For a ginormous amount of money..
Long story short, get the wrap unless you want to brag and stand out with an empty wallet.
07-27-14, 05:00 PM
#25
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Thread Starter
OK well I guess I'm bad lucked bc I got hit in the back (passenger side) coming out of the shopping center... another 1000 in damage... so at this point ill need to talk to the body shop to see how much more they will charge me for a full paint.
Today I decided to remove the back seat, Lexls only had a tuto for 1st gen, so I've spent lots of time to figure out how to get the bottom part out. Also discovered that I had water infiltration by 2 of the bolts.Now can anyone point me on how to remove the top part of the rear deck?
Today I decided to remove the back seat, Lexls only had a tuto for 1st gen, so I've spent lots of time to figure out how to get the bottom part out. Also discovered that I had water infiltration by 2 of the bolts.Now can anyone point me on how to remove the top part of the rear deck?
07-28-14, 08:23 AM
#27
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OK well I guess I'm bad lucked bc I got hit in the back (passenger side) coming out of the shopping center... another 1000 in damage... so at this point ill need to talk to the body shop to see how much more they will charge me for a full paint.
Today I decided to remove the back seat, Lexls only had a tuto for 1st gen, so I've spent lots of time to figure out how to get the bottom part out. Also discovered that I had water infiltration by 2 of the bolts.Now can anyone point me on how to remove the top part of the rear deck?
Today I decided to remove the back seat, Lexls only had a tuto for 1st gen, so I've spent lots of time to figure out how to get the bottom part out. Also discovered that I had water infiltration by 2 of the bolts.Now can anyone point me on how to remove the top part of the rear deck?
I recommend paying for a subscription to access full technical manuals at site https://techinfo.toyota.com/
Last edited by Schramm; 07-28-14 at 08:48 AM.
07-28-14, 02:24 PM
#29
Yeah, you can save and print them out. Trouble is, you have to download one file at a time and it takes hours. Then, the files are not organized and you have to spend more hours renaming and arranging them into some kind of order. Pretty much of a nightmare. At least that was my experience. I still haven't finished cleaning up the mess, and I've spent many hours on it. Why they just don't offer one file to download is a good question. I guess they make more money by making your life miserable.
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