Dear Kahn BB6,
You will never know how much your guidance, experience and working knowledge is helping me to get back on track. This snag with discontinued brake rotors has been going on for months and now consumed with getting it done and getting it done right. Absorbing all you have said like a sponge so don't think you are spinning wheels here.
I did as suggested, ordered stock on Amayama but after reading your reply, expecting the Discontinued response. They may have changed their order process system, now you place the order in advance with "Other" as shipping method no up front payment required. Then they check inventory, if available proceed with payment and shipping method.
In anticipation of no inventory, receptive to your suggestion of SC400 upgrade. You did a great job explaining this would not be ultra performance modification and I LOVE the idea of keeping Lexus SC specific. Once understood not necessary to change rims/tires, now seems like perfect time to invest time and money for "mild" upgrade and to be done and content with this. If you knew how much time spent it is bordering insanity.
I use mylparts and if I have already ordered/sent the other brake components to my dealer, they are boxed so maybe mylparts would allow me to exchange. One question: Part # 43512-50100 is for front left rotor only, not finding front right rotor. If understanding correctly would only need to get pads and calipers to fit these upgraded rotors? Hoses would be the same as existing? Clearly I know nothing mechanically.
So many thanks!
Vicky

 

Right caliper for 1998 SC400 discontinued. The snags continue:
https://www.mylparts.com/v-1998-lexu...--front-brakes

 

Dear KahnBB6,
Amayama just confirmed not able to supply 1998 SC300 stock rotors so moving forward with your suggestion to upgrade to SC400 brake system. Beyond appreciative of this suggestion. Without Club Lexus Forum no way would I have known this option. And want you to know when I was calling several Lexus dealers to gather information on parts for 1998 SC400 brake system upgrade, many of them spoke highly of Club Lexus and referred me back to the forum (they know the members have direct hands on experience knowledge above and beyond their own dealership). Not to mention mylParts gave a discount code for Club Lexus that saved $50.00 on parts.
I will get used set of calipers (right front new discontinued) and OEM/factory caliper refurbish kit.
Can you please confirm all I need for the conversion upgrade are rotors, calipers, pads?
With so much gratitude receiving this level of help from complete stranger. I will pay it forward but not with automotive service, of no value add in this field.
Sincerely,
Vicky

 

Vicky, you are most welcome! And believe me, I know all too well this insanity that you describe when trying to get things "right" on these cars (or any car) when servicing and upgrading my own Lexus SC with extreme attention to keeping my modifications, regardless of how extensive they are, as "OEM like" as possible. Believe me I understand!

Yes, I feel that since *most* 1998 SC300's and all SC400's used the slightly larger sliding caliper braking system that will be a very easy and "keeping it OEM" upgrade for you. Note that the SC400 and mid-98+ SC300 rear brakes are also a little larger... but you can always upgrade those at a later time. Most of your car's braking force is applied at the front and really this upgrade you will be doing evens out the braking balance of your car *better* than it came from the factory. The 1992-1997 SC300 front brake calipers and rotors are actually *smaller* in the front than they are in the rear... which never made sense to me. The SC400 specification front calipers and rotors are more appropriately sized for the car and its curb weight.

You will notice some mild overall improvement in your braking system's capability but it will not be as night and day different as the other much larger caliper upgrades would be. All that being said... even the 95-00 LS400 caliper and rotor upgrade isn't at all a "race" upgrade at all on these cars but the braking capability with those is vastly improved over stock calipers.

However the SC400 caliper and rotor upgrade is an excellent mild change that both mildly improves capability and also keeps things simple and SC-specific OEM.

...

From what I can tell in their system the 43512-50100 front rotor P/N is for both right and left sides.


I am not surprised sadly but it was worth a try! Usually when a needed part is listed as discontinued in the U.S. you have a 50/50 chance of a few examples still being in stock in Japan before ALL worldwide availability is gone.

The two 43512-50100 front rotors will be needed.

Then, yes, buy a set of used OEM SC400 front calipers and have them rebuilt (and repainted in new gray color if desired) with the OEM seal rebuild kit. This will give you a set good as new.

Your original brake lines can carry over for the SC400 calipers or you can order a new set of them to get everything new and fresh. Or alternatively you can order a set of Goodridge stainless steel brake lines specifically made for the Lexus SC300/400 and Toyota Supra MKIV (both cars have a ridiculous number of mechanical similarities if you weren't already aware... which makes sharing not all but a great many parts between them possible and very advantageous).

I believe the brake caliper mounting bolt lengths should be the same between the smaller earlier SC300 size calipers and SC400 style calipers. It is onlly when you do an LS400 caliper upgrade that different length bolts are needed from the OEM Toyota parts bin... and since that isn't what you'll be doing you can just re-use the caliper mounting bolts on your car.

Brake fluid is exactly the same as stock of course.

Brake pads can be OEM or aftermarket. The OEM SC400 brake pad set is P/N 04465-24021 and is still available. Make sure the shim kit is included. It seems to be and should be.

Now to make it all *perfect* you would also need the "splash shields" / "dust shields" for the SC400 & late 98+ SC300 size rotors since they are a little larger.

P/N 47781-14150 Right Front Splash Shield -- still available in the U.S.
P/N 47782-14150 Left Front Splash Shield -- discontinued in the U.S. but is still listed on Amayama's site as being available in Japan. Give them a try and see if they can get it for you.

Barring that you should be able to find a set of SC400 front brake dust/splash shield set used on eBay.

A tip for your mechanic-- to install larger splash shields without having to totally dismantle the wheel hub that is underneath your brake rotor you can do a shortcut which is perfectly safe: Using a Dremel tool with a cutoff wheel and avoiding the screw mounting points you can notch the donor (or new) dust shields JUST enough to slide them on without dismantling the entire wheel hub to get them on. There are well enough bolt mounting points for them to stay on securely for the life of the vehicle even when having done that.

Note that in order to do it this way the original too-small dust shields also have to be notched carefully in order to get them off the wheel hubs without removing the wheel hubs first.

I used that installation method for my Supra TT caliper upgrade and had no issues. Since I did all the work in my garage at the time I wanted to go for the most practical installation method possible which is why I chose to do it that way. However since a dealer will be doing the work with a full shop area and lift to help them out you can also opt to have them install the SC400 side front dust shields the official way in which the factory Lexus service manual dictates. It's just a bit more work to factor in for them to do but it would be the most "correct" installation possible. It is your choice as both methods will give you the same real world results. For me, over a decade later I have had no issues using that method... but if getting it done at a dealer with all the resources they have at hand you can probably have them do it for you using the full "by the book" method.

Now... alternative options are to use a cutoff wheel tool to trim the metal edges of your original front dust shields to create enough clearance room for the larger diameter brake rotors... or to bend those original smaller size dust shields back to permanently distort them enough to create clearance for the larger diameter rotors.

Personally I felt more comfortable acquiring the appropriate size front dust shields for my larger front brake upgrade.

....

Other than those things you should be set with your plan!

You said your SC300 has factory 16" rims. Those will clear SC400 calipers and rotors. You would only need 17" (or larger) wheels if you were to upgrade to the LS400, MKIV TT calipers. 18" or larger wheels with the correct offset for any MUCH larger 4-piston, 6-piston or 8-piston calipers.

....

Certainly just pay it forward in any way that you can in any context! It need not be limited to things regarding Lexus SC's

We're happy to help here and you're always welcome for support and advice! In all the years these cars have been around there are quite a number of common issues and repair strategies that the SC community has discovered and which some speciality companies even help us with outside of what Toyota/Lexus will officially do for us (Computer capacitor service repair and instrument cluster repairs for instance as just a couple of examples).

And those are some kind words from the folks at MyLParts (Lexus of Roseville parts dept) to the ClubLexus forum! They are always kind and helpful to the owner community here!

I hope this will all help you resolve your issue and get your SC back on the road again soon Vicky! Please keep us updated!

 

Dear KahnBB6,

I sent my Lexus Service Advisor note today informing him decision to convert brake system to SC400. His response:
"Stop buying upgrades, turns this into a lot of money. Please allow aftermarket rotors to get installed as there is no guarantee on what you order from Japan.".
So I went to the Service Department, told him in person I do not want after market parts on my car so how can we meet in the middle. Also retrieved SC300 still in box brake pads to exchange for SC400, all brand new that were shipped to his office.
Brake calipers: He advises against pre-owned. He also said their shop does not rebuild and he doesn't know anyone who does. There is only (1) rebuild kit in inventory on U.S. side. That would be added expense to have them rebuilt even if I find a shop to do it.
At this point strongly considering getting the right front caliper from Japan, confirmed availability but expensive ($700. w/shipping). Still would need to purchase (2) rotors, left front caliper, pads could be exchanged. He previously asked me to get brake hoses and gaskets that was done, confirmed those will fit SC300 or SC400.
But he wants me to check w/you would I also need:
Caliper brackets
Spindles
Caliper bolts (you answered that in previous response)
Backing plates
I hope I am not going over the top. Just want to get to the other side of this. You are uber experienced and understand what you are talking about. I am in unchartered territory so very much trust your opinion. My Service Advisor as well... have been going to him for years if not decades.
It is VERY comforting to know you are on the same page, sometimes bordering insanity about "relentless pursuit of perfection". I feel after market would deviate from that and then it's downhill from there.
SO MANY THANKS! Getting there!
Sincerely,
Vicky

 

P.S. If that is your SC300 in the picture it is really pristine, flawless and beautiful. Is it black or dark green? Mine is burgundy with chrome rims. I bought it pre-owned but low mileage off the internet many years ago from a luxury dealer in Scottsdale, AZ before it was trendy to do that and drove it back through Sedona. I had a dark green 1994 SC300 before this one.
Again... so very grateful for your expertise and advice. That you have been down this road before means a lot and builds trust.

 

Sorry KahnBB6,
Have just been researching caliper rebuild shops. There does appear to be some outstanding time tested places still in existence.
So going to defer to you... purchase pre-owned brake calipers (found 2 OEM options on eBay) + OEM rebuild kit and send them off for professional rebuild or buy front right from Amayama and front left from MyLParts. I think I know your answer and thinking the same. I love and appreciate well done restoration. Anything not just car parts. Especially dogs.
Many thanks, obviously I trust and have faith in your opinion.
Sincerely,
Vicky

 

Vicky,

$700 USD for just ONE brand new SC400 front brake caliper is, to put it mildly, horrendous. I'm also not very surprised either given that it's a shared new OEM caliper for the Lexus SC, Toyota Supra MKIV and JDM Toyota Soarer (right hand drive version fo the SC with different and better options for Japan).

I would not at all recommend buying the $700 caliper although I appreciate that Amayama *could* get it for you if you wanted it.

Your service advisor understandably isn't familiar or comfortable with deviating from a stock configuration of any vehicle he is servicing. I do understand because if you do not know which parts to cross-reference which will bolt right in and work correctly it is generally not a good idea. But here on this forum we're very used to the 1992-2000 SC platform and what works and doesn't on it. The change to the larger size SC400 brake caliper (which by the way DID come standard on *most* 1998 model year SC300's and standard on all 1999-2000 SC300 models in addition to all 1992-2000 SC400's) is in a certain way not really a modification. The only reason you seem to have the smaller/earlier brake calipers from the factory is that *your* 1998 SC300 is a very early build date just before the revision change at the factory took hold for 1998+ model SC300's.


--Yes, I'd still recommend getting a used OEM set of calipers fully rebuilt/remanufactured (basically this means totally dismantled, cleaned and rebuilt with a new re-seal kit). This is the most cost effective solution.

---Rotors. Again, I don't feel there is anything to worry about or that will "go downhill" at all by using a quality set of plain aftermarket rotors (Centric or Brembo being the best) but those of course will be the SC400 OEM part number that you identified.

--Bolts for the calipers. Your existing SC300 bolts *should* swap right over. I have never heard of those being needed to be changed to switch from the small SC300 calipers to the slightly larger SC400 calipers. Worst case you would just order the same location bolts for a any model year SC400.

--Spindles. These do not need to be changed. They are the same for all 1992-2000 SC models.

--"Backing plates". These I assume are the "dust shields" aka "splash shields". And yes they are different for the larger calipers and rotors. See my above previous post which covered your options for either replacing these or modifying your small size 92-97 style SC300 backing plates to allow for enough clearance of the larger diameter SC400 rotors. Either method will work. If you want the most perfect of perfect methods then you will need to find a set of SC400 front brake rotor backing plates and have those installed the way the Lexus TSRM factory service manual dictates. Please review my earlier post above for full info and part numbers regarding that aspect of this.

--Brake pads. the OEM SC400 brake pad kit with shims is still available so you will be able to use OEM.


No, I don't think you are going over the top Vicky. While a swap to different/better parts within the same vehicle model line or from another model which has superior factory parts that perfectly fit a car they never came with may be daunting for someone inexperienced... it is very common for us to do in this SC300/400/Soarer community. The vehicle was designed with greater capabilities than it was originally sold with in the U.S. and as such it is a very easy car to upgrade parts on and see easy performance improvements.

The only area where I feel you may be going overkill in this is with your insistence that any aftermarket rotors will be a "downhill" road with your car. On that I do agree with your service advisor's advice. Good brand *plain surface* aftermarket brake rotors (ie: no drilled holes or slotted areas on the rotor surface) will perform and last just as long as OEM given the same driving care and maintenance as before from the owner.

You will find over time that there will be several instances where aftermarket help will be needed and perfectly fine to maintain and keep up your vintage Lexus SC. Your service advisor will do his best for you but please understand that where Lexus Motor Corp occasionally discontinued something there are often alternatives available in the form of a rebuilt/remanufactured/restored OEM part or in the form of an aftermarket equivalent part.

....

And normally I would say that if a brake upgrade is to be done that it should be a jump to 1995-2000 LS400 style calipers and rotors with 17" or 18" wheels... but in your case as long as the costs can be kept reasonable I see no reason why not to update your 1998 SC300 with the brakes that it *should* have come with from the factory... since most other 1998 SC300's already had the larger SC400 sized calipers and rotors right off the assembly line.

Your next search should be for a pair of clean used (and not bent) SC400 backing plates (aka "dust shields" aka "splash shields") which go behind the rotors. These bolt to the wheel hub/spindle section.


Very nice color and wheel combination!! And nice previous SC300 as well! These really are fantastic grand tourers. As they age some special attention is needed but that goes with any older vehicle. 1990's design Lexus vehicles just tend to last VERY well over time so long as you address regular and preventative maintenance and do a minor overhaul of this or that in the long run.

Thank you for your compliment! Mine is a 1993 SC300 original 5-speed manual model in black currently with 265k or so miles on it. The paint is still in decent shape with some touch up corrections by me but a full three stage repaint is my plan when I can swing it. I swapped on a winged trunk lid from a black 1996 SC400 and a front bumper from a 1999 SC several years ago which is my personal favorite visual combination on these cars with the early style rounded side and rear skirts.

The engine, transmission, rear differential, braking system, wheels, suspension configuration, seats, steering wheel, etc. are a mix of OEM parts from other Toyota/Lexus models and some aftermarket parts but with an extreme emphasis on "OEM+" and "OEM-like". And there are so many other little touches as well. It has been a 13 year process to date doing a bit at a time. The end result is a car that sort of appears as if it might have come that way from the factory... if the observer isn't already familiar with Lexus SC's.

If you take a look at other build threads on our forum you'll see that this sort of approach is very common among many SC owners on our forum with so many great examples of people's work and dedication to their SC's. I have learned from *so many* others here over the years. The beauty of these cars is that they are greatly enjoyable just as they are in stock for or when mildly or heavily modified. Just an excellent vehicle design

...

I and many other members here have been down many rabbit holes with these cars solving common issues, providing common upgrade insights and passing the knowledge and details forward for other SC owners to learn and benefit from.

At the end of the day we love these cars and always want to help fellow owners have the best experience with their own Lexus SC300/400's (and Toyota Soarer sibling models).

 

It's your car so obviously you can do what you want with it, but I really don't understand the desire to avoid aftermarket brake components for this car. For years I ran aftermarket LS400 calipers and rotors on my endurance racing set up SC3 and never had an issue. Most often I got the calipers and rotors from Advance Auto just because they always offered 20% off. A street car will never see the level of abuse to the brakes that this car has seen for hours and hours with the performance beating almost any car we ran against in the braking zones when using a proper race pad like Raybestos. There is just nothing the factory caliper and rotor (and pad for that matter), if available, can offer that would warrant even worrying with trying to find them, which as you have noted is limited.

I get the desire is to keep everything stock, I buy most engine and drivetrain items from Toyota, but brakes just is a no brainer to put the big box store brakes on it and forget about it. Your search for the parts has been interesting however.

Anyway, just my 2 cents. Good luck on your pursuit of the parts.

 

^^ Ultimately I agree with RXRodger. It certainly will be a benefit to change your very early '98 build date car's brakes to line up with the slightly larger (SC400 size) factory brakes that the rest of the 1998-2000 SC300's came with... but in regards to the rotors themselves... no matter which braking setup is on your car it won't give you any noticeable difference to use aftermarket ones.

Whatever your decision came to I hope you've had good progress getting your SC300 sorted out since you last updated us Vicky!

 

RXRodger,
Thank you very much for trusted input. Not only do I believe you, also agree with you. Have been told repeatedly by long term Service Advisor, Parts Manager at my dealership, KahnBB6 Forum Moderator and even Carlos, the renowned SC300/SC400 Specialist at Lexus Auto Tek to give it up and go after market. Far too many who are expertise above and beyond my 1998 Lexus SC300 ownership.
So I have to admit on public forum the issue is my OCD with keeping car factory OEM, not really due to performance/function rather personal preference to maintain OEM. It probably has to do with love of restoration and vintage. I am usually very level headed and reasonable so what you say I comprehend and it makes sense.
But... following KahnBB6 suggestion and converting to SC400. In contact with premium auto salvage I think finally located a set of pre-owned SC400 calipers. Rebuild kit, brake rotors, pads ordered about to order caliper hardware to make rebuild as close to new as possible then will outsource to caliper rebuild shop in SoCal.
There is some level of pride knowing I am keeping this car that has almost 260k miles original as possible. I love history so that probably plays in to this. But without hesitation, you are right.

 

THANK YOU so much KahnBB6. I did not respond to but read fully your last post. Actually reading and following everything you have instructed like a sponge or Lexus Mentee. Fell behind on work/personal responsibilities so dropped off but please know the wheels are in motion for Lexus SC400 brake system upgrade. No expectation of major difference but whatever it is look forward to experiencing it.
ALMOST splurged on the $500. + $200. shipping front right caliper to get it new from Amayama but then found out Amayama is actually a Russian company (led by Russian CEO) so not to bring politics in the discussion but personal choice is no way. Would make sense for Japan distributor based in Japan to have Japanese ownership/management. Not running the risk of buying well done counterfeit parts and even if legit, not supporting this company. Very happy and comfortable with decision to get pre-owned OEM calipers. Have been very selective on condition of pre-owned core component then complimenting w/new OEM caliper rebuild kit and hardware. Kind of excited about this project and looking forward to final results, will of course keep you in the loop. Very, very grateful for the knowledge shared. I think my Service Advisor at Dealership is going to be surprised by the results.

 

Vicky,

You're most welcome! And you will notice *some* slight difference in braking capability by updating to the SC400 & later 98+ SC300 size brakes up front. It will be a mild change but it will be there. For such a heavy coupe the brake size in the front will be more appropriate as compared to the size of the rears. To get it all done as right as possible you will need a set of the SC400 backing plates (aka dust shields). As mentioned above there is one side still available brand new from Lexus while the other is discontinued... so you would have to find a used set of dust shields or buy one new and the other used from a wrecking yard. Or... modify the ones on your car as I explained in further detail above.

.....

To address Amayama.... I have been aware that they are a Russian based company for years but until recently with the awful war the country is waging in Ukraine did using them become a moral concern. I 100% support Ukraine's success and fending off invasion of their lands. And as such that puts using Amayama as an OEM parts service (to be clear, they do NOT sell counterfeit parts... only brand new OEM bought from overseas dealers) into a very difficult situation....

....Because they are one of the ONLY reliable sellers of genuine OEM parts that sometimes cannot even be ordered from U.S. Toyota and Lexus dealers. And the prices they sell them for are just a standard profit amount on top of the part prices set by the original Japanese dealers they buy the parts from.

For instance I recently had a breakdown with my SC300 and needed a factory brand new ignition module. I had bought one just prior from elsewhere which DID turn out to be either bad DOA used example... or a cheap counterfiet. Either way it did not work at all and my money was totally wasted.

I just bought a brand new OEM module from them for $345 where in the U.S. is list price $1,028!!!! McGeorge Toyota in will sell it to you at a discount for a mere $680 USD but having already been cleaned out with other expenses recently and needing a factory brand new part to get my car up and running reliably again I have had little choice but to go with the least expensive route to obtain the SAME factory brand new part within what budget I can afford.

Amayama only sells you brand new OEM parts and if any part number you asked for has been discontinued within Japan.... they don't list it for sale any longer. Acquisition and shipping pretty much begins in Japan, goes to their warehouse in Japan and then ships directly to you in the U.S. They have never let me down in this regard... ever. No funny business.

Yet... their being a Russian based company while Russia is waging a war on Ukraine makes using them under even these circumstances not sit well with me either.

The problem is that so far I haven't found any other reliable middleman companies that can import brand new genuine OEM parts directly from Japan when typing in *any* Toyota/Lexus part number regardless of what market that car it is for was originally sold in. You cannot do that with a U.S. dealer.

This is especially made more painful when Toyota and Lexus maintain extremely high prices for some critical parts in the U.S. and further no U.S. or Canadian dealers will order a new in-stock OEM Toyota part that never came from the factory on a car they sold in their own markets.

I don't like this rock and hard place situation with parts affordability and availability with our old classic cars especially considering the reasons you stated for avoiding Amayama as to the country where they are legally and financially based. Yet if there is no alternative and you become desperate as a classic car owner to get the new factory part that you need when Toyota/Lexus is not being helpful or reasonable to you in your own country... well...

None of that sits well with me either Vicky. I ordered the part that I desperately needed from them begrudgingly... and I spent money in the U.S. on many other expensive parts that had to go with it as I repaired my SC300. But with few to no reasonable alternatives I needed what I needed to get my car running again as fast as possible.... without a single part being $1,000 list price in the U.S.

For you with something as simple as brake rotors when there are many fine aftermarket alternatives available in the U.S. for less cost with shipping and less wait time? No brainer to just get the aftermarket parts locally for your car for both the repair needs and peace of mind.

At this point I only use them when I absolutely must (usually when a new U.S. OEM Toyota/Lexus part is priced so outrageously high compared to the same exact factory OEM part from a Japanese dealer that you can see plumes of volcanic smoke shoot from my ears in anger).

Again... none of this specific situation with older cars is ideal and I agree with you your position on this as well.

I would like to know of an alternative company that is just as reliable and reasonable as they are as to our ability to buy OEM new parts when options in the U.S. are not reasonable at all (thank you Toyota and Lexus for that!). I have been looking and will continue to.

 

I have used RHD Japan's OEM parts as an alternative to Amayama. They do not offer everything Amayama does but when they can get the same part I've found them to be priced better. I've used them for nearly 3 years nd RHDJapan's customer service has been really good. Biggest item I've bought was a new JZX110 R154 transmission and the whole transaction was excellent.
https://www.rhdjapan.com/search/cate...ling_oem-parts

 

I have used them before to purchase aftermarket parts (for me, an OS Giken clutch kit) but I wasn't aware that they also sell OEM Toyota parts. I will try several part numbers through them and see what happens-- thank you for the heads up!