What Have I Been Up To With The Aristo?

[Anees]

Hi guys,

I know that since I have had the Aristo over a year now I haven't really posted much about it. Well I am about to change that.

This is how the car looked when I first bought it.

Well since I have had it, I have spent an absolute fortune on it! I will break down what has been done:

FIX EXISTING FAULTS:

Fix Yellowed headlights

Replace Tie-Rods

Replace rear suspension arms with genuine new parts (cost £1000! :( :o)

Replace crap standard brakes

BRAKES

TRD Basic Big Brake Kit (4-pot Supra calipers)

3G/Brembo 20-R Supra sized brake discs all round

Hawk 'brembo Spec' brake pads imported from the US

Custom-made Goodridge Stainless Steel Brake hoses

Motul Dot 5.1 Brake Fluid

Red paint :P

SUSPENSION

TRD AntiRoll Bars

TOMS ARS Cancellor Bar

TOMS 6-links Uprated suspension links

Tein Flex Coilovers with car lowered all round.

Tein Spring sleeves

Tein EDFC Controller fitted neatly below drivers side vent

Tein Front Strut Brace

Rear Strut Brace

Front Underchasis Brace

EXTERIOR

18" TTE Sport wheels (8.5J front and 10J wide rear)

Verdestein Ultrac Sessanta tyres (brilliant!)

TTE Front Lip

TTE Sports Grill

Roof spoiler (brick)

Rear LED lights (provided by Prolex)

LED Sidelight bulbs (ones that AztecBandit recommended)

Personal Plate with Lexus design

Square Rear Plate

Clear Side Repeaters with silver bulbs

POWER AND PERFORMANCE

Greddy FCD Defender

HKS EVC 5 Boost Controller with two settings (1 bar, 1.2 bar and 30sec 1.25 scramble mod setting)

Decat

Stainless Steel 3" Exhaust system, with two 4.5" mufflers

3bar Racing Hybrid Manual Boost Controller

HKS CAMP 2

HKS Boost Sensor

Denso IK24 Spark Plugs

Silkolene 10W-50W Performance Oil

SMIC condition check up (works great)

Motul Diff Fluds

Approx around the 400bhp mark.

INCAR ENTERTAINMENT

Digital TV

Phone powered entertainment system with Sat Nav, Internet, videos and music from Nokia phone

INTERIOR

Hard wired phone charger

Leather phone holder

Genuine TRD Gearkob

Chrome shifter suround

Lexus Sports Pedals

HKS Camp 2

Tein EDFC Controller fitted below drivers vent

HKS EVC 5 Boost Controller fitted into modified ashtray

As you can see a HELL of a lot of work has gone into my car over the past year. It pulls like an absolute monster now. I would go as far as saying it is scary fast top end. I have done a mod (which I reseached on the US Supra forums) that increases low down power substantially so the car is quick off the line too and then when it reaches higher RPM it just flies!

I was with a mate in his Evo 8 FQ400 a few weeks back and off the line you have no chance of beating him, but we tried on a quiet private road with a rolling start from 50mph and his car just could not pull away! The Evo FEELS so much quicker, but the Aristo really now is stupidly quick at motorway speeds - only trouble is you don't realise that you are tearing up the tarmac because it doesn't shout about it!! BALLISTIC CAR!

Also because my car has a SMIC in very good condtion, it operates more efficently then a poorly ducted FMIC and my in-take temps are very good.

The HKS Camp 2 I decided to use instead of sticking guages etc on the car because the Aristo I don't think looks right with bits stuck all over the dash! I wanted the car to retain a stock like look so the boost controller can be hidden by closing the ash tray and the EDFC is neatly installed and easy to adjust in its location under the drivers vent - it looks like it belongs! The HKS Camp 2 does give the car a skyline GT-R kind of feel to it - its really cool and links direct to the ODB2 port on the car so I can view loads of diagnostic info and also connects to additional HKS sensors I bought to monitor boost, temps etc.

I am pleased with the Nokia Powered entertainment system I have installed too - it works well and is so much more reliable then the Car PC I did back in 2005 on my IS200. I do get the occasional alternator whine coming from it sometimes, but nothing that can't be sorted. :)

I have done as much of the work myself that I have been able to and learnt a hell of a lot (now an Aristo/Supra boost controller installing expert :P), but special thanks also to Auto-Serve and Charlesworth Motors for all their mechanical work and to Gord, Imran (Vazoosh) and Mitul (skeet94) for all their advice too and help.

My car is apparently one of the fastest ones they have worked on at Charlesworth Motors with Simon (who doesn't mince his words!) saying after he last drove it "f**king hell, that things grown a set of b*ll*cks!! f**king quick!" which I think really says it all.

Got a lot of pictures to follow and got some youtube vidoes of my car too exhaust and the phone-powered system.

[Anees]

A few mod specific pictures :)

EDFC Controller

Expertly placed after a discussion with Steve from Charlesworth Motors in what I think is the perfect place for it!

I have the following settings

P1 = Front 14 Rear 14 (Soft)

P2 = Front 10 Rear 12 (Medium Hard)

p3 = Front 03 Rear 04 (Hard)

The Tein suspension totally transforms the beast!

Exhaust Sytem

T304 Full 3" Stainless Steel system and decat with Dual 4.5" Tailpipes. Sounds wonderful outside the car, yet really quiet inside. Also has some baffles that can be used to quieten it down further so it sounds almost exactly like stock (but I have never felt the need!)

You tube Video:

Please wait a few seconds for Video to Load!

Boost Controller

Very good boost controller that holds a strong and constant 1.2bar. Can be hidden by closing the ashtray too :)

HKS Camp 2

Full car monitoring system. Looks wonderful on factory screen.

[Anees]

Nokia N95/N96 Powered Car Entertainment System and Sat Nav

Used the TV feature of my handset and Garmin Mobile XT to provide Sat Nav. The Sat Nav works well and I can change music tracks too while it is on.

Made a very quick Youtube video too:

Please wait a few seconds for Video to Load!

Please wait a few seconds for Video to Load!

Interior

[Anees]

and the funny thing is I think the car will be up for sale very shortly................I personally think its one of the nicest examples of a clean mk2 Aristo that I have seen with a folder full of history

[redz_UK]

N95 into the screen is a great idea!! i have mine wired into the stock nav screen on the is200.. shame the internet browser is so poor!! hopefully the n97 will fix that (it also has the tv out unlike the iphone)..

looking good!!

[Anees]

N95 into the screen is a great idea!! i have mine wired into the stock nav screen on the is200.. shame the internet browser is so poor!! hopefully the n97 will fix that (it also has the tv out unlike the iphone)..

looking good!!

Thanks mate.

I tried the N96 too, but the TV didn't seem as good to be honest. The Nokia TV out cable also works with the Samsung Innovate i850?? phone that my mate had- that really was very clear!

I use Opera for the Web, but I agree its still not great!

[aido]

Now that is immense :D Been looking forward to seeing this for ages!

Looks fantastic mate, those TTEs really fill those rear arches mate!

Simon was making me laugh when he was telling me about it when you were setting up the boost controller coming past Dysons in Charlesworth

Don't sell it now fella, that's a finished car now :)

It must handle immensely now, can't be far off feeling what your IS was like?

I notice you've also had the Jap buttons on the nav changed to English too!

I really wanted a black numberplate on the backof mine like yours looks in one of the pics, they're so much better than yellow!

As for that mod that speeds it up lower down, is that where it spools the turbos up earlier? I noticed mine always seems to see positive boost lower down than I'd expect so assumed Pete had tinkered but never knew what!

Do you still have the manual boost controller on then or have you taken that off now you've got the HKS? I noticed the car seems much smoother with an EBC as opposed to an MBC, going to have another tinker today though, see what you mean about it being a different animal, with the EBC turned off it's the first time I've ever tried one running at less than 1 bar, it's an amazing difference!

I like what you've done with the airbag cover too, noticed that on Imran's car, I'm keeping my eye out for the Toyota one like that, they look very nice :) Does it take long to swap them over?

[Steviewevie]

Wow, great stuff ! :D

Why are you selling now though, after having done all that great work ?

[Adie]

Very nice work there mate, well done. Love the camp system on the sat nav screen. :D

[Steve]

very nice!!!!

[aaronabbott]

cracking work anees,i love it

[MacRS200]

Lovely motor mate and a real sleeper. Top job :D

[jsj24uk]

That is an awsome car you got there. That is everything I wanted my old GS300 to be. Why on earth Lexus never sold that car in the UK is beyond me. Very impressed.

Jim.

[aido]

Just seen a pic of those tyres - they look awesome!

[Y2Kanjar]

Looks Lovely mate love the work you done to it.

P.S Don't Sell, enjoy the work you've done to it

[Parthiban]

That looks lovely mate, yeah as others have said why sell after just bringing the car to such a fantastic state?

Love the fact that it just looks like a GS300 Sport from the outside but can keep up with an evo!

[sparkystav]

Looks great mate.

Well done, but def dont sell it!!

Stav

[Fargo]

hmmm the more and more i see these, the more i deffo think the risto is the next one for me.

[iceman67]

looks great anees dont sell it m8 have some fun with it

plus i have not had a ride in it yet m8 ;)

all best with it neil

[Gord]

Very nice mate :D just wait till you here how much he selling it for :o you going to get alot of car for the money, thats for sure :D

[aaronabbott]

ill start the bidding off with a bag of chocolate coins and 3 perarly marbles :P

[Anees]

Thanks guys. :)

@Aido - the car actually uses two boost controllers. The EBC to control overall boost (1.2bar) and then the MBC to increase boost on the first turbo only to make pick up much quicker. I am going to do it to Imran's car in when he gets it back from Steves, so if you are free at the time (and you get the same MBC I'll do it to yours too). I have some spare bits of silicone hoses etc you can have so all you will need is the MBC.

This is the one to get:

http://www.3barracing.com/product_6.htm

It is a mod recommended by Stu Hogan (he is a US Supra guru - you might have heard of him) ;)

@Aido -yep the thread pattern on the tyres is lovely and they are rated better in the wet then the Goodyear Eagle 1 GSD3 by Evo magazine! ::D

Right selling the car..............

You are right, I shouldn't really be thinking about selling BUT I do fancy something else and I will be selling both the Aristo and my BMW 330D. Had the Aristo over a year and the BMW over 3 years so I now want a change.

If you remember the car was up to sale about 6 months ago too, but I didn't really push for a sale because I discovered it needed the suspension arms replacing at the back to pass the MOT and I couldn't have (in good conscence) sold it to anyone until it was fixed, so I decided to *** it, spend the £1000 it cost in parts and then get all my mods put on it and do it up properly. Now the car is right I can sell because I have a clear conscence.

What I do love is that its a talking point the car. Only last week someone pulled their window down some lights and asked me if it was a twin turbo, I said yes and they gave me the thumbs up :D Its nice that only a few people really know what it is too ;) :D

Whatever I replace it with I'm sure won't be as fast, it is probably one of the cheapest ways to get a 400bhp (ish) car ever.

If I had the space I would keep it because I know its a MINT example of a Aristo. I just want something abit more raw, with a manual box that really feels fast! Something where you can have fun at legalish speeds :D

[aido]

Sounds cool mate, such a shame you're getting rid as you've probably spent in mods there what you'll get for selling it!

What have you got in mind for the next one then mate?

What about keeping the BMW and maybe getting a kitcar, as they are the ultimate in raw power and feel fast on 4 wheels really! One of the lads has one and it's totally insane!!! Incredible value for money too! I'm just too fat to get in one!

That sounds an interesting mod you've got there fella, I'll have a nosey at that, I stumbled across what I was thinking of ages ago, and it seemed it only lowered the interval at which it opened the valve to start spinning the turbos up, I'm trying to find it but can't for the life of me now!

This is the one I'm thinking of I think:

http://www.toymods.net/forums/showthread.php?t=32758

It actually references the thread bu Stu Hagen which is done slightly differently but same sort of outcome?

..:: Edit ::..

Actually it's this one I'm thinking of:

http://www.max-boost.co.uk/max-boost/supra...g_the_beast.htm

[Anees]

Sounds cool mate, such a shame you're getting rid as you've probably spent in mods there what you'll get for selling it!

What have you got in mind for the next one then mate?

What about keeping the BMW and maybe getting a kitcar, as they are the ultimate in raw power and feel fast on 4 wheels really! One of the lads has one and it's totally insane!!! Incredible value for money too! I'm just too fat to get in one!

That sounds an interesting mod you've got there fella, I'll have a nosey at that, I stumbled across what I was thinking of ages ago, and it seemed it only lowered the interval at which it opened the valve to start spinning the turbos up, I'm trying to find it but can't for the life of me now!

This is the one I'm thinking of I think:

http://www.toymods.net/forums/showthread.php?t=32758

It actually references the thread bu Stu Hagen which is done slightly differently but same sort of outcome?

..:: Edit ::..

Actually it's this one I'm thinking of:

http://www.max-boost.co.uk/max-boost/supra...g_the_beast.htm

You are right............ probably spent more on mods then I have buying the car! :o

Take a look at this :

http://www.max-boost.co.uk/max-boost/supra...g_the_beast.htm (EBV Mod bit)

We ONLY want the MBC to control boost on the first turbo and then want the EBC to control overall boost.

Like I said get the boost controller and try and meet up with us and I'll do it for you and explain better. ;)

As for a replacement? Erm.....probably something totally different, maybe a hair dressers car? Always liked the Honda S2000 (yes I know you have to rev the nuts off it!) or maybe just look into a Evo (a car I think you need to own once!).......... not sure yet mate. I just want something that offers fantastic driveability and fun............

[Anees]

Oops, didn't see your edit, you linked to the same link as I did.