lexo101

What's up guys, my 1998 GS400 was side swiped pretty bad and totaled last year, and I only had PLPD insurance so it was a total loss. I miss the car a lot, and I'm looking to get another 400 or a 430.

From reading a bunch of threads it seems most people prefer the 400 because of the steering wheel not being as tight, like on the 430, the acceleration being faster off the line because of no drive by wire, less wind noise in the cabin, steering wheel manual shift (I barely used it), Nakamichi system (only non navi) over Mark Levinson.

From the 430 Lover's the top end acceleration was better, the newer interior accents including the perforated seats (03-05), wood steering wheel, more refined feel in general, newer year car, exterior upgrades like green tinted headlights, nicer taillights, better looking grill.

I've been kinda leaning towards the 430 after reading about the PI/TC and the 3.76 LSD but can somebody point me in the right direction?

What stall do I get with the PI/TC 2600 or 2800? Some people say the 2800 didn't cause a cel and some people have gotten it, but the 01 usually doesn't get it and I'm finding more 01's for a reasonable price then any other year.

Can someone tell me what trans cooler I need because I haven't found any info on this topic?

I can't find a Supra TT Auto 3.76 LSD rear differential on eBay or car-part and I also can't find a RRM.

Do I need the whole pumpkin or can I just buy the gear?

What are my options for rear gear on this car for a reasonable price that will keep it as an everyday driver with no issues? I just want to unleash the beast like some others have said.

Would I need a tune after these upgrades?

Do I need a Blitz or Toms throttle controller also?

Should I forget all of this and get a 400 again, lol?

lexo101

Anyone chime in, I'm looking to buy a 430 this weekend. Is this stuff to much work and to much money to do to have it feeling like a 400 or fast off the line in general?

GS400V8

iTrader: (4)

The 2001s in general had a nice interior, front grill, tail lights, and a little heavier due to more sound deadening.

I put all of this on my GS400 except for the grill which I'm still planning to due.

It's funny, the only thing I don't like on the 400 is the physical size of the engine (the 430 gives a little more torque) and the way the throttle cable looks. I think the fly by wire looks a little cleaner but the 400 looks better with the engine cover off. The 430 looks funny without one because of the tall oil filler.

IIRC, the 430s, both GS and SC, had check engine lights with higher stall converters. Although it wasn't consistent, some cars got it, some didn't.

I used a Hayden 679 trans cooler. 11" x 11 5/8" There is a whole thread dedicated to trans coolers on the 2GS where people shared their various cooler brands.

Finding a Supra TT 3.769 LSD is hard. I called a random company in VA who just happened to have an Aristo TT 3.769 LSD pumpkin so I got lucky.
The pumpkin is easier to swap. The LSD unit assembly with the spider gears can be difficult to install and actually more rare than the pumpkins.

Other options for a shorter (numerically higher) rear gear would be N/A Aristo pumpkins with the same 3.769 rear end or GS300 3.92 rear but beware of gas mileage and very low top end speed.

I am someone with all the mods you've mentioned and more. No you would not need a tune. The tune really only gives the most benefit when you get headers but even then, tuning doesnt get much power. All the mods will become more fun to drive, but honestly these cars are not light, and the cams are not aggressive enough to get more than 360 crank, which is where I am at. Most modern V6 cars compete with this car and you won't see these run 12s unless you go forced induction. Then all the mods really start to make sense.

Here are all my mods: '98 Silver: Exterior/Interior mods. OEM HIDs/Yellow Fogs. Chrome IS350 Wheels/1" Eibach Drop/Steering Rack Tensioner/BV Solid Steering Bushings/Sport Designed ECU. 30/20mm SwayBars/ISF EndLinks/Poly Caster Bushings. Supra TT Brakes/4 Calipers Black w/ White Emblems. Aristo Strut Bar. Engine Bay w/ custom etched/painted “L” Logo Plate. Full Bolt-ons w/ Apexi Neo. Aristo 3.769 LSD. 3000 High Stall Torque Converter/Cooler. Valve Body Accumulator Mods/Max Line Pressure. Michelin PSS. ATI Procharger (Bought/to-be-installed)

lexo101

So I will get low top end speed with the 3.769 gears or just the 3.92? Also your saying that your getting bad gas mileage on your setup now?

I loved the pickup and power on my 98 GS400 stock, which I owned for 5 years, I just remember visiting my good friend out of state a year before I bought mine and Remember his 430 being sluggish and slower then the 400 my other buddy had years before.

i also don't want

I have brand new LED Taillights, a black wood grain steering wheel with shift buttons and airbag, leather diamond stitched seat covers, TTE front lip and a handful of other stuff I didn't put on my car sitting around, so aesthetics are not that big a deal, I could take care of them myself.

So would a TC & Trans cooler be enough for the 430 to feel like the 400? Any pumpkins around someone can point me too?

The next week and a half I'll have access to a repair facility & paint booth for my job till there closing down for good and I'm kinda scrambling now to find a car.

I found a 01 430 loaded that needs lower molding on the passenger door, maybe the door itself and the rocker panel needs to be painted and he had a bra on the front that messed up the front and it might all need paint. It also needs tires, I found out about the other stuff after I offered $3,000 for it and it has 140k on it.

I also don't want anything crazy in regards to making it compete against other cars just as fast as my old GS or slightly faster would be nice, with no reliability repercussions. I also like off the line pickup/speed, getting around traffic.

GS400V8

iTrader: (4)

Stock top end is 149mph, 3.77s get you 135mph and the 3.92s is around 120 I believe.
I don't get good gas mileage if I don't drive the speed limit, but ever since my transmission mods, I feel it has evened out, oddly enough.

I would recommend a TC/Cooler, and headers. Or, just intake and exhaust if you don't want to do headers.
Sway bars if you like handling.
I bought my diff from http://www.jdmenginevirginia.com/
They didn't have it listed on their site, so I called them, and they happened to have one. Frankly it was hard to talk to them because they are mainly foreign, and they seemed busy with no time to talk to me even though I was paying them alot of money.
I just kept asking them to send me pictures of the cover off to verify it was an LSD. They gave me an okay deal, $900 shipped

lexo101

I also own a brand new set of Supra TT front calipers. I forgot, do they fit with the 17" factory wheels? What did you do for the rears? I remember when I did research years ago there was no adapters for the rear Supra caliper. I know the fronts needed the Supra roters and I believe longer Supra brake line, it's been so long and I never installed them.

GS400V8

iTrader: (4)

They will fit but you will need 10-15mm spacers I believe.

I only have the front Supra TT calipers with OEM rears. In my sig I had limited space to write that I have "Supra TT front brakes but all 4 calipers are painted black with white painted logos"

You would need adapter brackets for TT rears. They stick out farther and have larger rotors so more leverage. But our cars have 2 piston rears so they are decent

You do not need supra brake lines, the OEM work fine. They do not have this tiny placement hook like the supra lines do, but they stay in place perfectly. Countless people and I have used the OEM

lexo101

Good to know, thanks. I might wait to put them on when I get another set of Style 95 wheels. I bought a pretty beat up set that I was going to send out to get redrilled and re powder coated but I ended up selling them because it was going to cost to much. I'm also going to take apart my calipers and buy another set of factory rears and have them powder coated purple to match the stitching of my seat covers.

Well I'm going to be seeing the 430 this weekend and I can't find a clean 400 with descent miles in either Silver or Black, (black interior is a must) for $2000-$3200. There's a lot GS400's that are clunkers now and the maintained ones are usually customized with a high ticket price. I love the white 98 on here with the black interior, very clean. If I had the money I would pick that up.

edit: I just noticed the 430 with Navagation I'm going to see doesn't have ML, it's not labeled under the tune dial. That sucks because I didn't have Nakamichi with my factory Navi on my GS400. Hopefully it still sounds good.

lexo101

What's going on guys, I went to drive the GS430 today and it was in pretty rough condition. I could of gotten him lower then 3 thousand but I didn't want it. I also notice the tight steering wheel and I'm not a big fan. I also couldn't tell if the car was slower off the line then the GS400, maybe I need to drive them back to back. I don't know now if I should be looking for another GS400, I don't like the steering and it might be a deal breaker.

ZanderZ32

iTrader: (2)

The 430 might feel a little slower and that is because the engine is not a responsive with the electronic throttle. I had a 430 and went to a 400 and I'm more than satisfied. 430 is more luxurious/smooth while the 400 is more fun/responsive in my experience.

lexo101

What's up guys, stopped my search for a 430 and now looking for a 400. One thing I've noiticed which was only an hour ago, but do they make half year GS400's in 2001? I've found a handful of 01's with the newer Taillights, Grill, newer dial overlay. I know that could all be done by yourself but these are all listed as 01's and there's a handful of them.

ZanderZ32

iTrader: (2)

Haven't heard of that. I just did a quick search on eBay and auto-trader and I can't find any 2001 GS400 or any 400s at all with the new tails.

lexo101

So after a few weeks of searching, it's hard to find a descent priced GS400 that's clean and not super modified for high dollars or a total clunker.

I might hold off on one for a year or two and look for a 03-09 FX45 instead. There's a lot of those right now in a variety of price ranges. The only thing with them is oil consumption and radom misfire due to the valve covers leaking oil which could cause low compression on single heads. Also the leathers seats tend to rip because they used cheaper leather. But it's quick like the GS in a SUV form, and I kinda need a larger trunk and something to put a bike rack on.