RecursiveLoop

I'm going for my first timed track day in the ISF this Sunday at Holden Performance Driving centre in Norwell Park near the Gold Coast.

Just found out I'm in the same group as a Ferrari 360 Spider, 2 x BMW M3s and a Porsche 996 Turbo. Oh boy.

I'm fully prepared to come last as I'm just a rookie, but does anyone have any tips for me? Also, anything I should do to prepare the car apart from oil change and checking tyre pressure?

My Borla catback had some drone when I first got it. I'm very sensitive to it and that's why I didn't go with a louder setup like JoeZ or ISS.

I sent an email to Borla who sent me some venturis for free. Basically they work by creating a slight constriction just before the mufflers. Butt dyno says no difference in performance. The drone has gone down to negligible levels, so I'm happy :-)

It seems like keeping the stock mufflers are key to eliminating drone. If you want to see a creative way of eliminating drone but keeping your aftermarket exhaust, see what this guy did: http://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-f/602047-this-is-how-i-got-rid-of-the-drone-on-my-joe-z-exhuast.html Very good setup because he can swap them out as needed.

Would be nice to meet up finally!

I'm on the west side, near Mt Ommaney.

OK so are we all game for a mini ISF meet somewhere in Brisbane? Last time I tried to organise one no one showed up.

I have a Borla catback, Brisman has the JoeZ, BULLIT has the ISS Forged, I think between us we have most of the aftermarket exhausts covered! Would be a great opportunity to compare.

It's the home of a gigantic spider....

I know Brisman, but no one else, really....we should organise an ISF meet

Went back on the skid pan yesterday. Had a blast! I have newfound respect for the car. I now realise that my previous attempts ended up in multiple spins because I was way to aggressive with the accelerator, rather than feathering it, I just threw power down.

Once I got the hang of it, it was amazing. The chassis is incredibly balanced. Towards the end of the day, I was even able to chain 2 drifts together by using the snapping motion. It was an incredible feeling. Lexus has done an amazing job with this car, I think their suspension tweaks on the 2012 model has made it on par with the M3 for handling now!

Question: is the red interior an Australian-only thing? I'm active on the ClubLexus forums and the red interior seems to be a source of interest there.

Saw your thread on JDMST :-) I love the car, but I think you are the biggest ISF fan I have ever come across ;-)

Enjoy the new ride!

Some photos from the day

The back stepping out

This photo sums up people's feeling about the ISF. They have NO IDEA what it is, and are just wondering how a IS250/350 is sounding like a V8.

Ahh the ISF, the ultimate sleeper car. :-)

Since I got my car back on Friday, I decided to bring it to Brisbane Powercruise on Saturday. A mate of mine bet that I wouldn't dare "drift that boat". I decided to take him up on it and entered my car in the drift competition. It was quite intimidating because there was a massive crowd there and it was my first time drifting a car of any sort. I also did not have drift tyres on, but had the normal Bridgestones which are very grippy and I found it very hard to hold a slide properly.

However, it was so much fun and the ISF is indeed the luxury car that you can drive like a madman in. It was my first time drifting, but now that I did it, I find it so much fun and I hope to do it again soon. Here's a video of the day - any tips & pointers would be much appreciated!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFeaDBTeT4M

Got a call from Lexus this arvo to tell me the car is ready to be picked up, 1 week ahead of schedule! It's all fixed now, they gave her a full detail and wash, and she looks and feels brand new.

So happy to be back in the ISF! :)

im actually flying up the QLD today to pick up my new F

Post photos when you get it! So happy for you

I was looking at that a few months ago too, I was told it was a press car so decided not to. Went with another demo for about $5k more.

I've got one! Wasn't a big fan when I saw it in photos, but the salesman said "trust me it suits the character of the car", when I saw it in person I agreed, so I got it!

Quick update: Lexus Indooroopilly has told me that car will be ready first week of February. Can't come soon enough, I can't even break traction in the rain with the IS250. Diagnosis: severe torque withdrawal, cure: getting my baby back. :D

Another update. Apparently I should go and buy Gold Lotto because I have the first ISF in Australia that has ever suffered a gearbox malfunction. I have been told there are multiple error codes being thrown by the TCU, the TCU is requesting for a certain ratio and the transmission is unable to provide it. They are shipping a whole new transmission from Japan to put into the car. They are equally brewildered by the situation as there are many ISF owners out there that drive the car hard and track the car (which is reasonable, no one buys a ISF to not drive hard), and this is the first time they've seen such an issue.

In the meantime, I've been given a IS250 loaner car for as long as it takes to fix. They were quite apologetic about what I went through (as if it were their fault!). Gotta love Lexus. As far as I'm concerned, they have a customer for life as long as they keep building "F" models.

Update: Lexus said a few error codes were reported when running their diagnosis on the vehicle. Looks like it might be a complicated one. They will need to get their "expert" mechanic to look at it, and his schedule is quite busy, so no ETA. But I will get a loan car while the car is being fixed.

Very sad, only had the car for 3 months. Hope they fix it soon.

Hi guys

Something weird and worrying happened to me today, I was driving along in manual mode, quite spiritedly as an ISF driver should. Suddenly, I realised the car felt a bit sluggish and I couldn't get to 4th gear. The car refused to go more than 40km/h. I got worried because it is a public road with 80km/h marked and someone could run into me if I was going that slow. I turned on the hazard lights and went for another kilometre before I found a safe place to pull over.

I then realised I couldn't get reverse gear, and the car got very jerky. I thought it might the transmission overheating due to the crazy hot weather at the moment, so I turned off the engine for 20 minutes. After turning it back on again, the check engine light came on, I couldn't go into reverse and the car refused to go faster than 40km/h. It was then that I realised I was in trouble.

I called Lexus DriveCare and they were brilliant in organising a free tow to the dealership. The dealership only opens tomorrow so I'll have to wait to find out what is going on.

My car is a 2012 ISF with only 11k kms on the clock. I bought it as an ex-demo from Brisbane Lexus with 7k kms on the clock.

It is really strange how I'm getting this problem so early in the car's life. I'll update when I get more information. I hope it is a simple issue that will be covered by warranty.

My advice is to try it in person if you can, everyone has a different level of tolerance and what they consider drone. I was told that the Borla doesn't have any drone but I can still feel it at 2000rpm, and I had to dynamat the trunk to get it down to an acceptable level. And that's already what is considered a relatively "quiet" exhaust.

Keen to know if the Michelins help with the understeer, the stock 225s at the front are not really adequate for track work.

That sounds like a perfect compromise - great post. When I get an exhaust it'll definitely be a Borla... I wonder how much headers will impact the noise?

Video comparison of Borla catback vs Borla catback with Sikky headers

That sounds like a perfect compromise - great post. When I get an exhaust it'll definitely be a Borla... I wonder how much headers will impact the noise?

Does the Borla remove the secondary cats?

I believe so, this is the photo of the parts as they came out of the box. Note that the parts are not laid out in correct order - the X pipe should be first. That rectangular box is a resonator, I think? Also, the mufflers actually line up with the stock tips, which is another thing I like about it.