Newbie + Is200 Sport

[Daz_72]

Hello everyone, I'm a newbie from the North East.

Always wanted to own a Lexus IS200 and after a long and patient wait, I eventually managed to get my hands on a gem of a car.

Picked up a 2001 model in black with 83000 miles, which has been cared for very well by previous owners.

Interior is outstanding and even the original mats are in good condition, obviously been washed regularly.

Only work I have done so far is cleaning, polishing and refurbished the calipers as they were in a sorry state.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

Some pics

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

More pics

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

Caliper refurbishment

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

And more pics

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[lexus loon]

Looks well darren,those wheels look like the black sparkle powdercoat from blackpool refurbishers.Hard to keep clean though black cars ,mines the same,yours looks really good ,enjoy.

[LiCkWiD]

Looks nice man! Always wanted a black is200 sport.. I wrote off my blue one :(

[Aristhrottle]

Very nice looking motor.

Good job on those calipers!

[Daz_72]

Yeah, Black is definitely a good colour, but very hard work to keep clean and tidy, calipers took me 6 hours solid non stop but I was pleased with the end result

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[andyk134]

Looks like a really good example. Have you thought of dropping it slightly to get rid of the gaps in the wheel arches? Mine has Eibach springs and spacers and looks like a different car, handles better but comfort is pretty much the same.

I am sure you will enjoy the Lexus experience, I have had mine for 5 years now and have no intention of swapping it anytime soon, despite being 10 years old, the car still gets looks as I go by. Find a good independent garage to look after it and it will last for ages.

[Daz_72]

Cheers Andy, only had the car for nearly 2 months so starting to think about modifications without destroying the original features.

How much for a set of lowering springs, How far to lower & how easy is it to fit them?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

After viewing another post on here refurbishing the exhaust, I decided to bring mine back to life

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[andyk134]

Cheers Andy, only had the car for nearly 2 months so starting to think about modifications without destroying the original features.

How much for a set of lowering springs, How far to lower & how easy is it to fit them?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

Hi Darren,

I think thats one of those hard to answer questions as we all want different things from our cars. I have never been a spoiler, loud exhaust, after market wheels sort, preferring to enhance what is already there.

I went for Eibach springs at about £150 as i have used them on other cars, and they do the job without lowering it too much or destroying the ride. I will admit I dont work on my car as that isn't my thing, but they are straightforward as far as I am aware.

If you have more money then Tein or HKS coilovers would be the way to go, but thats over a grand and will change the comfort.

Sadly to do anything meaningful to the performance you are looking at serious money for forced induction as things like exhausts and filters wont make much difference for the outlay. But for me I bought the car for its reliability, the fact it is different (I have only ever seen 1 other car in my colour and wheel combination in 5 years) and that I think it looks absolutely great.

Once you have dropped it look at spacers as I love the way mine looks now and wish i had done that years ago. For about 200 quid you can fill the arches and improve the handling too.

good luck

[1374lee]

Lovely looking car, stunning in black to, wheels really do look nice and compliment the body colour.

Thanks.Lee.

[asharb123]

Darren, lovely looking car, very nice example. You were are really fortunate to get such a clean one especially the interior as you have IS300 steering wheel, pedals and door sills. I have a 201 X reg with only 75k, but it is no where near as clean as yours. Mine suffered some damage during the storms but I have never had the spare cash or opportunity to get it repaired and to make matters worse the better half reversed into a lamp post which has cracked the paint on the bumper. One day I will get it all fixed.

How did you do your calipers as that is something I would like to do. Is it easy? What do I need to do if I wanted to have a go?

[Daz_72]

Yes, the calipers were very easy to do, I just removed one wheel at a time, I bought a set of 6 wire deburring brushes and used a standard diy drill to clean the calipers up and remove as much brake dust and rust as possible to prepare for painting.
I used a spray can of brake disc cleaner to clean.
The paint I used was a 750ml tin of hammerite smooth in gold, although a wide range of colours are available. The paint I purchased from Halfords for £15, you can apply it without any undercoat and It dries very quickly.

Once painted you can stick the high temperature decals / sticker on, which are bought as a set from eBay for £4.99, just search for them and the ones I bought are the ones with the Image of a gold caliper with black decal. The caliper decals are available in all colours, so you can choose your own combination to suit your vehicle or taste.
I gave my calipers about 4 coats of paint before applying the decal and moving on to the next wheel.

It is hard graft to prep them for painting, especially if they have never been touched before.
I done the front ones first, before moving onto the rear (easier ones).

I used hardly any of the paint in my 750ml tin, and therefore have plenty if I want to touch them up, or refurbish them completely again.

Good luck with your caliper project and be sure to take plenty of before, during and after photos and share your work on here :-)

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Lexus OC mobile app

[Daz_72]

I was a busy man yesterday, travelling for 6 hours straight in my IS200 to collect new full leather interior from a 2004 write off, and even found the energy to swap the seats straight over. Door cards will be done next.

I Still can't believe that I was able to fit another full interior and door cards into my car, the lad who sold me the seats didn't think I would fit everything in and was expecting me to arrive in a van...

[Daz_72]

More pics

[Daz_72]

Just finished another busy day with the motor. Fitted the new leather door cards to compliment the seats, and treated the whole leather interior to some Grison balm.

Also upon receipt of my new 7443 bulb holders and bridge rectifiers, I completed the rear fog / brake light conversion, which was surprisingly easy.

Finally a complete hand wash, polish, and gave the carpet mats a good clean

[Daz_72]

Pictures....

[Daz_72]

Just finished refurbishing my old set of alloys with angle grinder, before and after pics

[Daz_72]

Playing around with an app on my phone I transferred the refurbished wheel on to my car.....

This is what it should look like fitted....

[asharb123]

Hi Darren, I'm very envious of the work you've done one your car. It looks great. I've been meaning to get a newer interior for my car but never find the time or a decent interior. Wheels look good, I like what you've done to them and go great with the car. I wish I had the time and resources to get may car looking as good as yours. Keep up the good work.

[Daz_72]

Thanks for the kind words.

The wheels are a really cheap fix, I only used 2 flap discs 80 grit which cost me £2.00 each, and labour wise it took me 20 mins per wheel to refurbish, it was my first time using flap discs and they are amazing, grinding and sanding at the same time, achieving a perfect finish

[asharb123]

What made you decide to change it if it is in pristine condition? I would not be able to do what you have done with your wheels. Is there anything else you are going to do with your car?

Edited November 7, 2014 by ColinBarber