JohnnyDrama

Well after a bit of a struggle, work is now forcing me to hand the car back to the fleet company as it's well out of warranty, and order a new one. So, these wheels are now for sale. PM expressions of interest. Sent an email today to see if I can get approval for a IS350 B)

Damn, that's some serious stretch! how's tyre wear?

Not so worried about weight, I get 96kg (3 items, up to 32kg each) both ways. More worried about stuff getting damaged, brought in a F-Sport pipe +airbox last time and the pipe was bent even though it was in the middle of my luggage padded by clothes. Will have to see how I can manage to pack it all with what I can scrounge up around the hotel/nearby shops.

If memory serves me, there's a chart in the back of the owners manual that has suggested oil viscosities for certain operating temperatures. As a base mark, it'd probably be best to go for the highest quality oil you can afford in the range that is recommended for you. As for qualities of oil, there's a wealth of info on the Bob is the Oil Guy forums including KV/shearing resistance info which may be what you're looking for.

Exactly :) Nup, will be in LA then. Looking at trying to get some F-Sport parts shipped to my hotel, but am a bit wary of bringing back swaybars/chassis brace etc as checked luggage :-/

Yes, yes, I'm aware of all that eg Toyota->Denso among others, Nissan->Calsonic Kansei among others etc.. My initial point was I didn't imagine "a lot, if any" of the parts coming from the US - While I admit this was a bit narrow sighted and neglected to take into account of the global sourcing of parts for vehicles (remember the furore over the percentage of parts for the VE Commodore that are made overseas?), my thought was on the basis that the plants would also be serving all of Europe for IS250 production. It would only really serve to be cheaper to make the part in the US if the part is a shared part across several models - I'm not familiar with the specifics of shared parts on the IS250 besides brake calipers which are a non-complex part. What I still disagree with are the blanket statements that "most of the problems are coming from the US cuz they manufacture alot of the parts from the US" and that "LHD vs RHD shell might be the same but pedals steering and brakes and electrical and hardward are manufactured in the US or canada". You don't know that for certain, and from an engineering standpoint, it's only a trivial matter to manufacture LHD and RHD variants of a part under the same roof (Up till recently, I did R&D and failure analysis for a motor manufacturer, and previously for aerospace firms), even moreso if a design like a steering rack is virtually a mirror image of its counterpart. The basis of overseas parts manufacture is usually either local expertise or radical cost savings due to mass economies of scale on non-complex parts. It's worth noting that there are compounded issues in the whole accelerator pedal recall in the US - one being locally manufactured, dealer fitted floor mats, which doesn't affect us in AU. Anyway, I'm bowing out and won't reply further on the subject - we can agree to disagree on this!

If you do decide to go ahead with this, you're welcome to borrow my 18" Sports wheels while yours are getting painted. The tyres are barely legal (camber wear, though still decent tread on the main contact area) but will at least let you get around for a couple of days.

Yeah I'm aware of all that. My point was against the vague blanket statement implying that simply because a certain vehicle was destined for the USDM, its parts are made there, and that "LHD vs RHD shell might be the same but pedals steering and brakes and electrical and hardward are manufactured in the US or canada". We'll just leave it at that I respectfully disagree. :) For what it's worth, as a whole vehicle (not taking into account globally sourced parts) while on the phone to a buddy of mine in Boston who has an ISF, and previously an IS250, he noted that the cars were produced in Japan according to the stickers with their VIN info.

I'm 99% sure all IS250s are made in Japan. I don't imagine a lot (if any) of the parts besides dealer add-ons being made in the US on a car coming out of Japan - Doesn't make sense to me? big diff is LHD vs RHD shell might be the same but pedals steering and brakes and electrical and hardward are manufactured in the US or canada Yeah I'm aware of the LHD/RHD difference, but that still doesn't make sense to me. What about all the Euro models that are also LHD? It doesn't make logistical sense for the stuff you've listed to be made in the USA, shipped over to Japan and fitted to vehicles being sent back to the US, when Japan has the manufacturing infrastructure, economies of scale, and (what I would imagine to be) cheaper production costs. I'm aware that parts for cars are sourced globally, but for a part to be sourced from the US for a Japanese produced vehicle simply because of a LHD/RHD difference doesn't seem normal. Or are you saying that the cars themselves are built IN the US? Because while Wikipedia isn't always the most credible source of information, it does suggest that there's only 3 plants the IS250 is produced in, all being in Japan - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_IS

i had that problem upping the tire pressure will help alot Thanks.. I'm running 39 front 37 rear, might bump it another pound or two and see how it feels.

I needed new tyres, so figured I may as well get some new shoes while I'm at it. Wheels are Katana GTM BM in a +45 offset front and rear, 8.5" front 9.5" rear. Tyres are Kumho KU31s - 235/35/19 up front and 275/30/19 out the back These are only interim rims till I find something I really like that's available in Aus, something along the lines of the Forgestar F14 or Axis Elite. And yes, before anyone says, I know, it needs a drop! I'm trying to decide between the Tein S.Tech or the Eibach Pro kit... Slight concave look which I don't mind :)

I've recently fitted Kumho KU31s in a 19" size, they're still wearing in but initial thoughts are that the sidewalls aren't as stiff as the OEM Dunlops, however that being said, they don't feel as nimble as the OEM kit.

I'm 99% sure all IS250s are made in Japan. I don't imagine a lot (if any) of the parts besides dealer add-ons being made in the US on a car coming out of Japan - Doesn't make sense to me?

Hi guys, Just wondering if anyone knows the difference in ride height between the sports-variant springs and the prestige springs?