ThomasGS4

iTrader: (19)

Good morning, fellow CL'ers.

I recently (10/03) had the opportunity to drive my '97 SC300 5spd from my home in Dallas, all the way to Las Vegas for a business trip, and figured I'd share some pictures from my journey. Enjoy!




Here we are the next day just west of Amarillo, TX and fueling up for the drive ahead.



An hour or so later, we've reached the Texas/New Mexico border:




As it was on the way, I decided to visit Walter White's house from Breaking Bad. Even though I was parked in this spot for <30 seconds, I was immediately heckled by the owner of the house - a fair warning to anyone else that tries to stop by!




After nearly a full day out on the open road, I decided to spend the night in Flagstaff, AZ. With an Old-Fashioned or two under my belt from the hotel's bar, I was off to bed.

Here we are bright and early the next morning:




Just west of Lake Mead, I pulled off for quite an epic shot:




You're probably wondering why I would want to drive this ol' gal halfway across the country - to attend Supras in Vegas, of course!





And yes, she even won an award!



After the show, my journey continued westward:




Later that evening, I reached my destination - Laguna Hills, CA. The car would remain parked in the in-law's driveway until returning a few months later for Christmas, where the journey continues.



But hey, since I was already in the neighborhood, why not swing by the birthplace of the 1SC? For those that are unfamiliar, Toyota/Lexus's design studio in Newport Beach, CA, is where designer Erwin Lui crafted this beautiful design merely out of elongated plaster-filled balloons and clay:






And thus, the journey ends here - for now!

ThomasGS4

iTrader: (19)

As mentioned before, I left the car parked for 2.5 months at my mother-in-law's house as I had to return back to Dallas and unfortunately didn't have the time to drive all the way back.

Fortunately, that meant more sightseeing in the SC once I returned in mid-December.

Here she is, quite dirty from her slumber, but alas, she started right up:






That's a bit better...



The following morning, I took the SC over to South County Lexus in Mission Viejo, CA for an oil change. The technicians loved the car!




After visiting the dealership, my wife and I left in search of lunch. Off we went to PCH:




Later that afternoon, we headed north on the 405 to DTLA, where we'd spend the night and do some sightseeing the following day:




Griffith Observatory:



Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills:




The following morning, we were off to Temecula, CA for wine tasting. But to get there, we needed to take Ortega Highway - a two-lane highway that twists and turns through the mountains:




The trip is unfortunately coming to a close at this point, however I was able to meet up for coffee with some fellow long time 1SC owners. It was a pleasure meeting with Lee @ISFFUN , who owns the one and only RSP/Black '97 5spd produced, as well as another gentleman who is not on the forum:






I do not have any photos of the return trip as it was a bit of a cannonball, however here we are safe and sound back at home:



All in all, the trip was a phenomenal experience and the car performed flawlessly - not a drop of oil was consumed, nor did it ever give me any issues.

I hope this inspires some of you to take your Grand Touring coupe out on the open road!

Duck05

Thanks for sharing. We actually acquired the wife’s 2014 LS460 from South County Lexus back in 2015; nice people.

Barbary

My thoughts exactly^^^
I get back from one and I'm thinking about my next. The car wants to go as much as I do. For around 20 yrs its been flawless and a pure JOY

Enjoyed your Grand Touring trip, thanks for all the pic's. Stopping at the SC birthplace is Big, Really Big, almost a pilgrimage. Congrats on getting a Supra award with your SCYour SC looks like it came off a showroom floor, nice.

I hope you got a good ride on the PCH, it's probably my favorite road, and I've been on many roads. I was so fortunate when I lived in San Francisco to unwind and get a ton of peace and serenity on that road. Probably my favorite thing was driving my purple V8 SC on it.
So if you don't mind here's one of my pictures of the road. I think many don't realize what it really is


Up north in my neck of the woods, SF to Big Sur, "I've been south of Big Sur only one time because the road gets pretty squirrelly" there are some real nice long straight stretches with the ocean on one side, the continent the other. Up here its a surprisingly low traffic road, almost like its undiscovered, making driving a pure delight
Thanks

ThomasGS4

iTrader: (19)

And just like that, the road trip grime is gone and we're back to normal.

texan_176

iTrader: (5)

Amazing car and trip. What yellow bulbs are you running in your fog lamps? I have had bad luck with multiple reputable brands where they burn out in less than a few months.

ThomasGS4

iTrader: (19)

Thank you! The bulbs in the foglights are simply standard clear.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Such a clean SC, thanks for sharing! Looks like a long but fun trip.

RudysSC

I can't believe I never commented on this... such a cool trip! What a beautiful car to get out on the road and enjoy. Thanks for sharing!