project // RICE BOAT
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Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
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From: nevada
project // RICE BOAT
Background: I've always loved the 2GS but during high school I just couldn't afford one. Fast forward 10 years and I wanted to cross one of my favorite Japanese cars off my bucket list so I decided to pick one up. I'm asian and everyone calls me a ricer and this is a boat of a car so I'm calling it project Rice Boat. lol. I promise to keep it tasteful and because this is my daily I'm planning on keeping it functional as well.
The Car: It took months of searching but I finally tracked down a rare Spectra Mica Blue GS300 with a relatively low 120k miles on. Clean title, clean carfax, no accidents, interior is absolutely mint and the exterior while straight needs some paint. The multistage pearl paint is one of the most beautiful blues out there and I'm happy to put on a fresh coat to bring this car back to its previous glory.
Images: Please excuse the crappy cellphone shots during my build progress. I'm actually a professional photographer and will do the car some justice once its done
Here's some of my work and what you can expect to see once the build is complete.
The Car: It took months of searching but I finally tracked down a rare Spectra Mica Blue GS300 with a relatively low 120k miles on. Clean title, clean carfax, no accidents, interior is absolutely mint and the exterior while straight needs some paint. The multistage pearl paint is one of the most beautiful blues out there and I'm happy to put on a fresh coat to bring this car back to its previous glory.
Images: Please excuse the crappy cellphone shots during my build progress. I'm actually a professional photographer and will do the car some justice once its done
Here's some of my work and what you can expect to see once the build is complete.
Last edited by shiraki; Nov 30, 2016 at 02:27 AM.
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 35
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From: nevada
The exterior will need some loving. Body is great but in desperate need of some fresh paint. I feel like I'm doing a good deed in restoring this rare SMB GS
Interior is absolutely incredible for a 17 year old!
The rear seats look like they've never been sat in!
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 35
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From: nevada
Depo LED lights just got in! I opted for the red + smoked bottoms as I thought it would go great with the blue exterior and the sporty look I'm aiming for with this car.
The Depo reviews were great but had a weak point. The outer/inner lights don't both come on while braking. There were a few threads on this to fix this issue. You basically tap the white/green wire from the inner bulb and connect the black wire from the outer bulb.
Last edited by shiraki; Apr 27, 2016 at 02:03 PM.
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
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From: nevada
Stock vs LED
LED's Installed. This is with the brake pedal depressed. Notice the two bulbs in the outer housing both light up evenly. This was the wiring mod performed in the post above.
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Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 35
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From: nevada
Despite it being called "Rice Boat" I really like to keep my cars as cleanly modded as possible.
So next was the audio system. The stock Nakamichi system is incredible for a 17 year old car. It sounds better than the vast majority of car stereos today. I really didn't want to add an aftermarket stereo that would disrupt and take away from the classy look and feel of the interior.
I first tried every tape deck/fm modulators out there and they were all TERRIBLE. I only listen to steaming music so I desperately needed a solution.
I took my car into the best custom stereo shop in town and they added bluetooth while keeping the factory unit! It works amazing, sounds incredible, and best of all my interior is left looking stock and classy -- the way it was meant to look
So next was the audio system. The stock Nakamichi system is incredible for a 17 year old car. It sounds better than the vast majority of car stereos today. I really didn't want to add an aftermarket stereo that would disrupt and take away from the classy look and feel of the interior.
I first tried every tape deck/fm modulators out there and they were all TERRIBLE. I only listen to steaming music so I desperately needed a solution.
I took my car into the best custom stereo shop in town and they added bluetooth while keeping the factory unit! It works amazing, sounds incredible, and best of all my interior is left looking stock and classy -- the way it was meant to look
Last edited by shiraki; Apr 19, 2016 at 04:57 PM.
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 35
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From: nevada
Brand New Paint! She looks 1000x's better now.
The paint was hammered so I got the car repainted in the factory color by the best in the area. They work almost exclusively with exotics (lambos, ferraris, etc) so it was pretty funny to see my old humble GS in the mix. Added a TTE style lip and left it black to match the grille as I think it looks more sporty this way.
New exhaust tips and I removed the resonators but kept the factory muffler. The stock GS300 is so slow that its almost laughable to have a loud aggressive sounding exhaust when the car is barely moving. These aren't honda civics after all. Let's have some class. haha
Roof was painted black to give it a sportier look that goes really well with the sunroof.
The worst part of car was the hood. Now its better than new. I absolutely love the multistage pearl.
New bumper chrome and you can also really see the pearl here as well
The paint was hammered so I got the car repainted in the factory color by the best in the area. They work almost exclusively with exotics (lambos, ferraris, etc) so it was pretty funny to see my old humble GS in the mix. Added a TTE style lip and left it black to match the grille as I think it looks more sporty this way.
New exhaust tips and I removed the resonators but kept the factory muffler. The stock GS300 is so slow that its almost laughable to have a loud aggressive sounding exhaust when the car is barely moving. These aren't honda civics after all. Let's have some class. haha
Roof was painted black to give it a sportier look that goes really well with the sunroof.
The worst part of car was the hood. Now its better than new. I absolutely love the multistage pearl.
New bumper chrome and you can also really see the pearl here as well
Last edited by shiraki; Apr 27, 2016 at 02:04 PM.
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 35
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From: nevada
I decided on getting the Megan EZ Street Coilovers.
Quick take after driving on them for the past 150 miles:
-LOVE the ride comfort. Great for daily driving and it feels stock. Super happy there.
-Build Quality is superb just look at these beauties.
-Height adjustment is huge. Look how much more room I still have at my current height. I could lay the body on the ground. (although I wouldn't recommend that lol)
-People complain about the spring rates, but it honestly handles much better over stock and never bottoms out. Why would people want aggressive harsh race springs on a slow luxury sedan? Low and slow for this luxo barge.
Wheels and tires are on!
All the work done by a Lamborghini tech and BMW master tech. Only the best for the GS.
Sitting pretty after dialing in the suspension.
Last edited by shiraki; Jun 1, 2016 at 12:06 AM.
