New Isf Owner - Suspension Question

SilverISF · August 31, 2013

I’m hoping to get some advice regarding my 2011 ISF that I’ve owned for about a fortnight.

I’d read reviews of the ISF that said the ride was a little harsh. The dealer I purchased from told me the previous owner wanted the ride ‘softened’ so they had fitted a BC coilover kit for him. I ‘googled’ the BC kit and this seems to be a common modification (at least on older ISFs). So, this was music to my ears as the car is my daily driver (it’s never going near a track). Test drive was good so deal done.

Anyhow, 2 weeks in and I’ve had a few tyre scraping sounds when coming off of my drive on full lock, over bumps and at speed on Motorways when hitting
a ‘dip’. Not all the time, but enough to prompt a call to the dealer. As I purchased from a dealer miles away, they suggested I take to a local Lexus garage for them to inspect.

I’ve done this and the first thing they said was ‘low isn’t it’. Given the rarity of these cars I thought the low slung look was standard. As luck would have it they had an 08 ISF in the workshop and we put mine next to it, by eye mine looked about 2” lower.

My questions...

Given my ‘daily driver’ requirement and the previous owners requirement for 'softer' suspension, was a BC coilover kit necessary?
If it is an improvement, surely it would be ‘softer’ at standard ride height, why lower?
Does anyone have any experience of a Lexus dealer fitting a kit to their car?

They may have fitted the kit with the best intentions to help their previous customer but don’t have the expertise to set up non standard components correctly?

I’m going to have a polite chat with the dealer on Monday but wanted some views first as I’m no expert!

Thanks in advance.

stevet · August 31, 2013

The 2011's had the softer suspension anyway. Why didn't the previous owner get a Jag :)

Mines the 2008 with the so called harder suspension but I find it perfect and certainly wouldn't want it any softer. And mines a daily 20k miles a year drive.

I'd ask the dealer to put it back to standard.

Lexus dealers usually have a 30 day no quibble return policy so I'm sure they would change it back without any fuss.

Mouser · September 1, 2013

2" lower than standard is likely to mess up the handling. Have a read of this to understand why.

Exdee · September 1, 2013

I’m hoping to get some advice regarding my 2011 ISF that I’ve owned for about a fortnight.

I’d read reviews of the ISF that said the ride was a little harsh. The dealer I purchased from told me the previous owner wanted the ride ‘softened’ so they had fitted a BC coilover kit for him. I ‘googled’ the BC kit and this seems to be a common modification (at least on older ISFs). So, this was music to my ears as the car is my daily driver (it’s never going near a track). Test drive was good so deal done.

Anyhow, 2 weeks in and I’ve had a few tyre scraping sounds when coming off of my drive on full lock, over bumps and at speed on Motorways when hitting

a ‘dip’. Not all the time, but enough to prompt a call to the dealer. As I purchased from a dealer miles away, they suggested I take to a local Lexus garage for them to inspect.

I’ve done this and the first thing they said was ‘low isn’t it’. Given the rarity of these cars I thought the low slung look was standard. As luck would have it they had an 08 ISF in the workshop and we put mine next to it, by eye mine looked about 2” lower.

My questions...

Given my ‘daily driver’ requirement and the previous owners requirement for 'softer' suspension, was a BC coilover kit necessary?

If it is an improvement, surely it would be ‘softer’ at standard ride height, why lower?

Does anyone have any experience of a Lexus dealer fitting a kit to their car?

They may have fitted the kit with the best intentions to help their previous customer but don’t have the expertise to set up non standard components correctly?

I’m going to have a polite chat with the dealer on Monday but wanted some views first as I’m no expert!

Thanks in advance.

Coilovers are height and comfort adjustable. That is the whole point of installing them.

If there is rubbing or scrapping, just raise them a notch or two. It's no big deal.

lotusdave · September 2, 2013

My limited knowledge of these things says a lower ride height means less wheel travel means harder ride else car will hit bump stops. drive a standard car back to back. Also check tyre pressure as some compliance comes from the tyre. Lastly if its lower how is it with traffic calming?

MrW · September 2, 2013

I had a 2008 and found the standard set up whilst a little harsh was perfectly acceptable in everyday use. Get it back to standard or return it as Stevet suggests.