New Owner

[heyoceanfloor]

Hey guys,

I just picked up a 2001 black IS300 last week.

So far, I absolutely love it. Anyway, I'm just dropping by to say hey. I've been lurking this forum for a while and I'll probably pop up here and there with some questions or whatever. I'll have to... I don't know much about cars, but who could own an IS300 without playing around with it a little?

See you guys around!

[smooth1]

Hey guys,

I just picked up a 2001 black IS300 last week.

So far, I absolutely love it. Anyway, I'm just dropping by to say hey. I've been lurking this forum for a while and I'll probably pop up here and there with some questions or whatever. I'll have to... I don't know much about cars, but who could own an IS300 without playing around with it a little?

See you guys around!

welcome to the LOC. You'll have to post pics of the ride for us all to see. And if you decide to start modding it, then your definately in the right place. Have fun. Hope to see ya around the boards.

[Rya]

I don't know much about cars

I'm in the same boat, but I'm learning lots in the LOC. Welcome to the group! Enjoy your ner car!

[smooth1]

I don't know much about cars

I'm in the same boat, but I'm learning lots in the LOC. Welcome to the group! Enjoy your ner car!

Enjoy your ner car!

And if you don't have one , enjoy that new one instead.

[heyoceanfloor]

here it is, just waxed and in my backyard:

now i've just gotta save up some money

[smooth1]

Looks good man. So, are you going to leave it stock? Or do you have any ideas? Why do you have to save up some money ?

[heyoceanfloor]

Nah I don't wanna leave it stock. I've been scheming up some ideas since roaming around this forum.. and I've got sortof a list of ideas:

I need a new CD player, it's pulled the whole "ERR 3" *BLEEP* on me and disconnecting the battery didn't work. I'd love to have that navigation system/dvd player you've got smooth... maybe I can convince the previous owner to throw me some cash for a shoddy CD player. I'll probably put the subs in from my old car too.

I need to tint the back windshield, the previous owner broke the tinted one and didn't get the new one tinted.

I wanna lower it and paint the calipers like flop did, but I don't know how much cash that'll set me back, or how to do it - so that's a little more distant. Plus, winter is coming... shudder. How do these cars do in snow?

And then some cosmetic stuff etc.. halos? rear roof spoiler? or maybe intake/exhaust stuff?

Is there any DIY/nearly free work I can do on it?

My budget is kinda small, I don't make a whole lot of money :( But I dig this car too hard to not work with it

oh and i love my ner/new car.

[flop170]

i don't know about snow.... but mine has a snow button.... i'm not sure, but i think when you push it it turns your car into a snow mobile or something....

[smooth1]

i don't know about snow.... but mine has a snow button.... i'm not sure, but i think when you push it it turns your car into a snow mobile or something....

Yeah, I live in Florida,,,,I don't dare push that button. I'm afraid it might tear a hole in the universe or something.

No cash? Paint you brake calipers then. Looks great, costs like 30 bucks. You can couph that up can't ya?

And then you should buy some really good wax or paint sealant and start doing that for the winter. Whatever you do, you'll have to do again in 30 days for the best results. So the paint is protected. Then you have all winter to save save save!!!!

[heyoceanfloor]

yeah I think this is actually ford's version of lexus' snow button:

Yeah I was thinking about painting my calipers, maybe bright green? Something a little out of the ordinary =p

Where do I get the paint? What kind is good?

I s'pose this is a good first "car work" job for me to do. Any advice/suggestions? I was thinking about painting the inside of my headlights too, but you said that's a pretty tough job smooth.. so maybe I'll wait.

And another question I'm sure you've all heard before; is 91 octane gas really neccessary? So far it's what I've put in, although the previous owner said he used mid-grade instead.

Anybody have a BBQ on labor day?

[flop170]

Where do I get the paint? What kind is good?

I s'pose this is a good first "car work" job for me to do. Any advice/suggestions?

i got my caliper paint at autozone... it came in a kit by duplicolor with caliper cleaner, the paint, and a brush... you have to buy the clear separately, but i just got the high temp clear by duplicolor.... i painted mine with the calipers still on the car... and what i did was covered the rotors with newspaper and taped it on and taped the other parts you don't want to paint...

And another question I'm sure you've all heard before; is 91 octane gas really neccessary? So far it's what I've put in, although the previous owner said he used mid-grade instead.

everything i've read said use 91 octane... however an interesting fact i found out from a sewell employee is that they fill the cars up with 87 octane at the dealership.... kinda makes you wonder eh?....

Anybody have a BBQ on labor day?

and no sorry no bbq for this kid.... i used the day for recoop from the night of trash can punch that preceded it.... apparently i had a very good time!!! lol

anyways good luck with the project!!! and remember if i can do it, you can do it!!

[smooth1]

As far as the paint goes, yeah, Autozone or some auto parts store around you should have it. There is a difference between high temp paint and brake caliper paint. bc paint being more durable.The high temp clear is best, but try to use the caliper paint if you can. If they don't have that color, I would ask them to order it. But lime green or ( Kawasaki green) would be a great color. My freind has that on his black 94' Eclipse.

And another question I'm sure you've all heard before; is 91 octane gas really neccessary? So far it's what I've put in, although the previous owner said he used mid-grade instead.

The 2JZE I6 uses a 10:1 compression ratio. The lower the compression, the higher the power needs. Most cars that run on 87 have a 12:1 ratio, or more. So I would stick with 91 atleast. Here in Florida we have 93 octane. Makes for a nice combustion sounds.......

Anybody have a BBQ on labor day?

Yeah man. the entire family comes over and we have football games, softball, and the girls all put the food together, and few of us guys do the grilling, and the big screen is going with music and the whole bit. Our family has 100+ people. So when we have a real family get together, we rent a gazeebo at the state park and do it there. It's nice because we allways have enouph players for full teams.LOL!!!!

[bartkat]

I believe it's the higher compression that requires higher octane.

[smooth1]

Actually, it is for the extreme in either direction. When your running full race cams and very low compression, just to keep it started you have to run 108 or higher.

[bartkat]

Actually, it is for the extreme in either direction. When your running full race cams and very low compression, just to keep it started you have to run 108 or higher.

Were talking street driven regular IS300 here I believe.

[smooth1]

OK, well most "stock" street cars run 12:1 or as high as 14:1 and only require 87 octane to reach Manufacturer stated hp and fuel mileage. They can run 93 octane, but it's not required. On the IS300, 10:1 isn't considered real low, but on the edge of it. That and the VVTi combination, especially in the higher rev range, 93 octane becomes not absolutely neccassary, but more so than in other cars.

The big debate has allways been, low compression with high boost, or higher compression with lower boost. Which is right. I think Lexus went with a lower compression on the IS300 because it makes the car much more "workable" for a change. generally speaking, higher compression motors allways have to be torn down first before you can boost them enouph.

[bartkat]

General rule is higher compressin = higher octane fuel to prevent pre-ignitin knock, etc. This can be offset somewhat by the ECU retarding timing, but at the expense of performance and can still be a problem under heavy load conditions. This be the rule that applies.

Forget about boost and hot cams and stuff, that's all for tuners and racers which is an entirely different topic.

The octane rating of gasoline tells you how much the fuel can be compressed before it spontaneously ignites. When gas ignites by compression rather than because of the spark from the spark plug, it causes knocking in the engine. Knocking can damage an engine, so it is not something you want to have happening. Lower-octane gas (like "regular" 87-octane gasoline) can handle the least amount of compression before igniting.

The compression ratio of your engine determines the octane rating of the gas you must use in the car. One way to increase the horsepower of an engine of a given displacement is to increase its compression ratio. So a "high-performance engine" has a higher compression ratio and requires higher-octane fuel. The advantage of a high compression ratio is that it gives your engine a higher horsepower rating for a given engine weight -- that is what makes the engine "high performance." The disadvantage is that the gasoline for your engine costs more.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question90.htm

[smooth1]

This is all correct. Which is why manufacturers of let's just say mid performance vehicles for a lack of a better catagory description use 87 octane.The optimal ratio is 12.5:1 for 87 octane. ( A/F mixture also plays a big role in all this.) So for some "cheap" hp, they run a higher compression ratio, lower octane recomendation, and set the vehicle to a richer A/F mix. That is the Ford standard formula for "Built Ford Tough." And many car manufacturers use this formula because of the obvious advantages.

But when you start running leaner A/F's, lower compression and tighter valve tolerances and timings, 93 octane contains more power.Compression is directly related to power, so engines that require higher octane usually deliver more power. Engine power is a function of the fuel as well as the engine design and is related to octane ratings of the fuel... power is limited by the maximum amount of fuel-air mixture that can be forced into the combustion chamber.

[heyoceanfloor]

All that gas talk blew my mind a little bit. Just a little though :D

I think I'll stick to the 91 octane we've got here in CO. Thanks!

I bought some paint today for my calipers, but they didn't have a green in actual caliper paint... So I got green engine paint that was rated to the same temperature as the caliper paint (500°) and a clear coat of engine paint to cover it. This isn't a bad idea is it? I think I remember reading about someone who did it with no problems. Hopefully I'll get 'em painted this weekend!

What do you guys think about that Seafoam stuff?

[smooth1]

Sorry about that. I can get carried away sometimes and I don't allways find a way to describe what I mean.

Yeah, that paint will work just fine. It's gonna look good!!!!!!!!

Seafoam is a pretroleum detergent. what do you want to do?

I give this advise to all my friends, customers and so on. Don't put anything in your engine that you don't have to. It's most of the time a waste of money. Here's a good tip for ya. Fill your car up at a Chevron, Conoco, Phillips 66, or Shell gas stations only. Why? Because they are the only oil companies to achieve "Top Tier" fuel ratings. This "top tier" rating was established by BMW, GM, Honda, and Toyota. It's the "next" gen. of fuel, and they follow a much higher standard for detergent and fuel quality. Then for oil drain the commercial stuff and get Amsoil, or Royal Purple. ( Amsoil is the best in my opinion.) All synthetic oils are not alike. At the race track I have had to learn some hard lessons, even embarrasing ones. Nobody runs off the shelf oils at the tracks. So the money you would waste on additives and cleaners, you could spend on quality fluids and come out way better.

[whulu42]

Hey guys,

I just picked up a 2001 black IS300 last week.

So far, I absolutely love it. Anyway, I'm just dropping by to say hey. I've been lurking this forum for a while and I'll probably pop up here and there with some questions or whatever. I'll have to... I don't know much about cars, but who could own an IS300 without playing around with it a little?

See you guys around!

Hi there. Welcome! I bought a 04 IS 300 Sport yesterday. The folks on this board have been most helpful.

Enjoy,

Josh

[smooth1]

Hey guys,

I just picked up a 2001 black IS300 last week.

So far, I absolutely love it. Anyway, I'm just dropping by to say hey. I've been lurking this forum for a while and I'll probably pop up here and there with some questions or whatever. I'll have to... I don't know much about cars, but who could own an IS300 without playing around with it a little?

See you guys around!

Hi there. Welcome! I bought a 04 IS 300 Sport yesterday. The folks on this board have been most helpful.

Enjoy,

Josh

COOL!!!!! Welcome to the Lexus Owners Club!!

We will need pics of your new ride. So what was the final price and details of the deal?

[heyoceanfloor]

I painted all the calipers yesterday, and they look awesome, I'm stoked on it! I'll try and get a picture or two up a little later today.

I was asking about the Seafoam because the previous owner told me he used mid-grade gasoline all the time, and I heard that Seafoam can clean out some possible buildup?

I'm also gonna have to get a new stereo, my stock one has that jamming issue. I took it apart twice this weekend and took the CDs out and both times it immediately jammed again. I'm really digging that AVIC-D3.... How hard would that be to install myself? (Again I know near nothing on cars/audio.) I found this as far as upgrading audio goes: http://my.is/forums/3449557-post24.html but I definitely don't have the cash to go all the way down the tree yet haha.

EDIT:

Here are the pictures:

The lexus emblem stickers are on their way. I ordered black.

[smooth1]

Yo dude, that looks hot!!!!!! Very nice. When you put the emblems on, man your gonna flip out. I swear, when your stopped at the stop lights, look over and you'll notice people lookin and admiring. Good job!!!

The link you posted wouldn't seem to work for me. But I can answer your questions anyway. If you don't have car audio experience, forget installing the Avic by yourself. If you don't wanna do a full audio revamp then you have to use the stock amp and speakers. If you replace the speakers, then you have to replace the amp, and vice versa. But you can operate the amp with any head unit. You can also add a subwoofer and amp off the avic and still use the stock everything else if you choose to go that route also. -----And btw, the avic is aaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwsssssssssooooooooommmmmmmmmmeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

But if the avic is still out of reach, I have the stock head out of my 05 that works perfectly for sale if you want to stay stock.