I couldn't really get comfortable in my IS500, no matter how much I messed with the seat/steering position either my head was bumping against the ceiling, my legs cramped or my arms stretched out. So I asked spacershop.com if they could make a spacer for the steering wheel. It took a while but they eventually sent me one. It doesn't mount perfectly straight(I'm sure they can get that fixed if they make more of them) so it took some experimentation to get the steering wheel alignment but I did get it close enough.





The cover it came with is a generic cylinder shape that doesn't fit the IS at all, so I made a 3d printable one that matches the curve of the steering column cover. I've attached a printable STL file. .



It's a gigantic improvement in comfort. Highly recommended if you're on the taller side.

One other issue I had was that it didn't come with an extension cable for the lower clockspring cable so I had to figure out what kind it was and make one. It's a Sumitomo TS series 4P040-TS. I'm sure they'll bundle one in the future.

 

Congratulations on making the car fit you. Quite ingenious, never heard of a steering column extension before (other than the built in extend/retract available on some cars).

 

I don’t mean to be a party pooper, but this kinda screams insurance liability and a nasty injury waiting to happen.

 

You feel like it’s going to fall off?

 

No, I think that bringing an airbag closer to your body/face beyond manufacturer spec is dangerous.

 

That's alright, it's still quite far away(Way way further than the NHTSA recommended minimum safe distance of 10 inches). The whole point is to be able to put the seat further back.
I also talked with a mechanic at Lexus and he had no concerns, even helped me figure out what connector I needed for the extension cable.

 

If the steering wheel isn’t straight it’s not really based on the spacer especially if it looks even. Just readjust the clockspring and center the steering wheel via techstream. That’s what you’re supposed to do after removing the steering wheel or doing an alignment. Most likely didn’t have the steering wheel locked before removing the center nut or a spline is off.

 

As far as I can tell the female splines in the spacer are cut at a slightly wrong orientation, male ones are correct. It's only about a degree. If I reattach the steering wheel without the spacer it is dead straight (I scratched in witness marks before removing it).

When you say center the steering wheel using techstream, what are you referring to? The repair manual only said to check codes and do a calibration by driving straight ahead for a few hundred meters.

 

This

 

Thanks for the PDFs. That should work, but if I do that I won’t be able to return to stock without recalibrating the whole thing again. I’d rather find a way to mount the spacer in the same orientation as the steering wheel without one. I’ll remember it as a last resort if I can’t fix that remaining degree.

 

There isn’t a permanent “factory center” to lose. From the factory, the ECU simply stores the steering angle sensor’s zero point as a reference. Lexus explicitly requires this to be reset anytime the steering wheel, column, or actuator is touched.



From the Power Steering System manual:



“Perform rotation angle sensor initialization and torque sensor zero point calibration if any of the following conditions occur: the power steering ECU assembly has been replaced, the power steering link assembly has been replaced, or there is a difference in steering effort between turning left and right.”



And from the Variable Gear Ratio Steering (VGRS) manual:



“If parts between the steering wheel and tires have been removed/installed, replaced or adjusted, perform actuator angle neutral point calibration and initialization for the VGRS system, otherwise the steering wheel may become off-center.”



So when you added the extension, you changed that relationship. The ECU still thinks the old position is center, which is why the wheel now sits a degree off even though the car drives straight.



Calibration doesn’t erase or change anything permanent — it just re-syncs the ECU with the actual straight-ahead position. That’s why the factory procedure requires it after steering wheel removal, alignment, or column work.