I am thinking about a set of the 17 x 8 wheels for a 2nd pair for my 3GS. I like the look and the fit is right. One thing makes me hesitate - the center caps. They are a bit different than the normal lexus ones that push in more flush, it appears.

a) will normal center caps work?
b) if not, how hard is it to find a set of these caps?
c) the set I am looking at is missing one, and otherwise appears badly faded (?)

These would require serious clean up (inside), repair, and repainting. (These two aren’t so bad, but the other two have more curb rash) But I can do that if I can solve the center cap problem. Thanks for any advice.

Hello,

The Caps for those rims are indeed unique to said rims, as they go Over the opening, unlike with most other rims that have a Counterbore for the cap to sit flush. ES has similar style caps at some point, but they have a much smaller Diameter, all the other ones that I've seen raise much higher above the surface than the originals, so they are not an option either.

The Part Number for your specific Caps is 42603-30390, but judging from the fact that there isn't a purchase link anywhere in this post, this number won't really help you much, at least I got nothing aside from the only 2 out of 4 currently listed on eBay, and a bunch of places saying that they are long since out of production.

That said, now that I look at the picture you posted, I have seen peeled caps before, but nothing even close to this extent, or at least nothing like that on a truly Genuine Cap. That does make me wonder if they made aftermarket options for those rims, while I wasn't able to find much, you may have some better luck..

Hope this helps and best of luck!

That does help some, yes. Thank you. It looked to my eye they were unique. I appreciate the p/n and I will investigate more.

It looks like maybe later there was another style cap for them? I found this picture on BAT of a mint low-mile 2004 model, and the caps are inset and less protruding. I can’t figure out when this change happened - anyone familiar with these wheels from the period? I had an earlier 1GS, then 3, and don’t know the quirky details of 2Gs wheels like i do the others. Thanks.

I have a set of 17 x 7 IS300 wheels I was going to use for this purpose, but the 17 x 8 would be better if I could find caps like this.

Well, sorry to disappoint, but those appear to be the same rims, with the same exact cap on them, they are just *that* well preserved..



Now that I looked a bit more into it, I am pretty sure that even though the Outside Diameter of the cap is around 75mm, their Center Bore Diameter is pretty much the same as any other Toyota at around 62mm. It means that just about any cap with a shoulder should fit, like the regular cap for the Facelift 16in Rims, here is a link to a set, even if it would look a little awkward.. That said, the benefit of a standard Bore Size is that you can even make your own caps, the question is only how badly do you want those rims..

P/S: Oh and almost forgot, I also stumbled across this set by accident if you are interested..

Hope this helps and best of luck!

I appreciate this. Your eyes caught what I missed. Also, I see that painted, the look of the fit of the caps is more seamless/less protruding and would be acceptable to me. I appreciate the eyes-over on this. I’ll talk to the guy on these and we’ll see where it goes!

As to that last set you linked, I had in fact seen these wheels and caps could be had in chrome like that. I ran across a car with them (photos of). Quite the statement!

Chiming in to say that caps are one thing you can reliably find at the junkyard. The engine'll probably be gone 30 seconds after it appears, the interior will probably be stripped clean by the time the forklift/crane drives away, and the taillights will probably be swiped by the time you can walk to the back of the yard to grab them, but those center caps will almost certainly be there. Along with possibly some better condition rims, too!
That is, assuming the last owner didn't swap the wheels out.