AlohaBob

I read the sticky about popular upgrades but I'm not familiar with what some of them do. Between this car and the Jaguar XK the Jag had a much peppier acceleration from start. Is there some way to boost that in the SC?

And the 06 suspension, did it make it stiffer and sportier or softer and cruisier?

digitatc

Try it with ECT Power on.

AlohaBob

The dealer told me that was to get better gas mileage.

GmanSC

Nope. It’s for fast acceleration. Also you may want to try the S-shift.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Pwr mode will hold gears a bit longer and obviously increases throttle response. I believe S is there only for sport shifting. In other words, when in power mode if you put your transmission over to S for sport manual shifting it's not actually a separate shifting mode. It's the manual shift mode. No change in transmission behavior. The best solution is just to put your foot into it. Don't bother with the BS devices that trick the throttle body to think you are pushing the pedal harder than you actually are.

AlohaBob

Is that ultimately really bad for the car or do they make the engines to be able to handle it?

DshngDaryl

One of the easiest ways is to disconnect your battery for 10 minutes.

This will cause the car to "re-learn" your driving style. If you "Floor it" the first few times after you re-connect the battery, your car will know you are a more aggressive driver.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Yes, the engines are designed to handle it... But are you letting the car warm up before opening it up? Are you using good quality oil? Are running premium fuel? Are you keeping your fuel system clean. How are your spark plugs? Many factors play into how well a car performs. Of course I don't recommend flooring it all the time it does put more stress on the internals.

Believe it or not the most wear in an engine happens during cold starts. When the car has been sitting overnight and longer. It's a race to get oil to all around the engine. This is why synthetic is always a better choice. It flows much more quickly under these conditions. Mobile 1 extended performance. Well worth the small investment.

AlohaBob

Wow, that's amazing. I've never heard of that before. Thanks!

AlohaBob

Thanks much everyone!

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

Not to mention probably the most reliable engine Lexus has made. Both the 400 series and 430. Epitome of reliability. It took Lexus like 6 years to get the 4.6 running good.

oldbenz1

For the first time, a few days ago I filled with 93 octane just out of curiosity. I've always used regular unleaded and never had any knocking or other signs of engine malperformance with my '07SC Also for the first time I moved to the PWR mode and was flabbergasted with the difference. The acceleration is almost scary. At age 84, it's unlikely that I'll ever face the stop-light drag race challenges that I remember from my high school days, but it's fun to know that if ever................................... (My daily driver is a Hyundai Sonata 2.0 Turbo, so I like a car that is quick) And BTW- what' with the "SNOW" setting? Are there actually folks out there who would drive an SC on anything but blue-sky/dry road days?

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

With snow tires sure. My LS did great in the snow with proper tires. I'm sure the SC is a bit lighter. Although I can't prove it I have spoke with some Lexus master techs and the use of lower octane fuel is believed to be linked to premature catalytic converter failures. Even if the engine is capable of retarding the timing to prevent knocking or pre-detonation you still have an issue with less than ideal combustion and hence fuel getting into the catalytic system. Which will ruin it over time. The higher compression is why they recommend 91+

oldbenz1

Good points, although arguable (re: 87 octane fuel). My remarks about winter driving were directed at the SC430 - a limited-edition model that is likely to be a future collectible and mostly a fair weather plaything. IMHO would be better if preserved as best as possible, hence to be protected from the ravages of winter deterioration. The sedan and SUV models are mostly intended to be daily driver all-weather drivers.

Lavrishevo

iTrader: (1)

I agree with you. The wear and tear from salt is rough. I don't think there is any aguring the car runs better on 93. More power means more efficiency. Unless you are getting in it and of course you will use more fuel. I use to get 28 to 33 mpg in my 430 often on the highway. Impressive considering the rating. That was in the Atlanta area with less rolling hills. After moving to NJ dropped 3 - 4 mpg. With my plug in hybrid I tank average in the 80's. This is nice. $28 every 3 weeks in fuel.