P.Lindblom

Can't wait to see it all done mate, will be very nice indeed :)

Thanks :) I'll keep updating this topic with a lot of pics.

I've never liked that TRD rear lip personally, but with the middle section painted black it looks a lot better IMHO.

I agree. I actually wanted to get the TTE rear skirt, but when I got this idea about two colors I changed my mind. Now it's decorated, as well

Everything spot on as usual mate,

hope you can make a meet in the UK, what about JAE?

Be good to finally see the car in the flesh.

JAE sounds great! I've read a bit about it and it seems really nice. When is it, and where?

what is the base like on the sub as thinking of getting one or maybe 2 of these to maximise space etc or maybe buy the subs and manufacture my own box to hold 2 hmmm

I have never had a car sub before, but in my opinion It's really nice. As mentioned before, this speaker is designed to be fitted in a small box and Rockford Fosgate seem to know how to make a sub sound nicely :)

Yesterday my Legana replica arrived from UK

I wasn't quite as happy when I had unpacked it. It fitted so badly that it wasn't even possible to let it "hang" in its proper position. I had never worked on fibreglass bumpers before, but I fetched the machines and tools I though were the right ones for this kind of job. After a few hours I was actually quite proud of myself.

Now the bumper fits rather nicely. I will leave it at the paint shop on monday and hopefully my fog lights will arrive before it's time to fit the bumper. They left Tokyo yesterday :)

However, I won't quit searching for a second hand genuine one. This fibreglass replica is just a temporary solution.

I don't fancy it as much as the V1 Legana, but it's really nice. Especially since it is a Toyota bumper. Speaking of Japanparts, I ordered the original Legana fog lights from them a few days ago and they left Tokyo yesterday :)

sounds and looks great patrik!! a real work of art mate.

would love to see this car in the flesh one day - real attention to detail and high workmanship all round. credit to you mate!!

the seibon c/f bonnet will be interesting - you going to have some other carbon fibre touches around the car to compliment it?? may i ask where in the US you got it from?? i take it its an IS300 bonnet and that it should fit the IS200 without any problems??

the PIAA interior light is pretty bright!! looks great.

keep up the good work mate.

rob

Thank you, mate :) This summer I believe I will be able to come to one of your meets in UK. My girlfriend and I are probably going on a long road trip through Europe.

I've wanted to buy the AAC Carbon fiber A-B-D pillars for a while now and I probably will, but apart from that I don't think there will be more CF details. However, I think I will be able to make the CF bonnet blend in quite nicely. Firsly, it will be painted like this (without the air vents):

That dark shape will match my black headlight clusters and my new front bumper, as the lower middle part will be painted black

I just picked up my rear TRD skirt. I had it painted to follow the theme of silver/black

It should look like this when fitted

Looks great! How does it sound?

Thanks mate, it sounds lovely. It's a shallow mount sub, straigt from Rockford Fosgate and it actually sounds great for its size.

like what you did with the sub there may do the same with mine,only not sure about removing the rear seats,or how easy or hard it is,or even where to start.

Thank you :) Removing the rear seats is a piece of cake. I've probably done it ten times by now. There are only four screws holding the back. Apart from that you won't even need any tools.

Looking good what sub is that??

how far into theboot space does it come doesnt look like much space from the pictures

Thanks :)

The sub is a 12" Rockford Fosgate Punch Stage 3 Shallow and it's powered by a Rockford Fosgate T400-2 amp

I'm not sure how far it reaches into the boot, but less than 6"

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My new PIAA interior light arrived this morning, along with the mirror closure unit and a TRD 8" antenna. Thank you, Steve_D :)

Concerning the Legana bumper, I discovered a fibreglass replica is so cheap I decided to buy one to use until I've found a genuine one. I did however order the genuine fog lights from Toyota, Japan, so that I have them if I come across a PU Legana bumper.

Here's a status list I just assembled to keep track of what's on it's way and from where.

Oh yes, I have decided to replace my rear lights again. This time with another LED version. "Lexus lights" are so played out I've decided to move on to red lights, as the ones SMJ7 recently sold :)

More audio!! :D

so if i buy the toyota one, its a straight swap? no modification needed at all and my trac n snow fit ok? and its double din??

Where can i get one?

Yes, yes, yes and yes mate :)

You can get it from the nearest Toyota or Lexus dealer.

Trouble with the Toyota fascia is that you lose the heated seat switches, don't you ?

Not if you modify it a bit, which is easy :)

i dont have heated seats but do you lose traction contron and snow mode?

There is already an empty hole where the TRC/snow buttons are supposed to be placed. That means you don't have to modify the facia at all.

Or you can use the Toyota facia

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/ind...mp;#entry604104

have i just brought your satnav? thats the same one i just brought off eBay

No, you didn't buy mine, but after I made mine quite a few people got inspired and did the same :)

Or you can use the Toyota facia

http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/ind...mp;#entry604104

I'll keep an eye on TradeMe cheers dude :)

If you do come over it would be an excuse for some LOC beers!!

Thanks :) Absolutely, mate! I'lll let you know how it all goes.

Great Info i had no idea they ever rallyed an is200 how cool.

Thank you. Neither did I until I found out about this bumper.

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2008-01-13 - My quest continues...

I got in touch with a really helpful chap in Australia. He managed to track down two bumpers, but unfortunately the first one was the wrong model and the other one was a replica. He told me that he's going to keep looking for another one in Australia and NZ.

Meanwhile I've started trying a different approach. There are a lot of Altezzas for sale, with the Legana bumper fitted. I figured it might be possible to convince one of the owners to replace the bumper with an original one and sell me the Legana. I therefore started going through British and Irish used car websites and found two Altezzas with my favorite bumper. I e-mailed both and one of them answered.

You cannot imagine my pulse raise when I read that he’s actually thinking about replacing the bumper before selling the car. However, after a bit of correspondence I found both pros and cons of buying this one. The downside is that it turned out to be a replica and that it has no fog lights. On the other hand, it obviously fits nicely and better yet, it’s platinum ice. I’m currently awaiting a bit more info and some closeup pics of it.

This morning I spent two hours searching for used cars in Japan. I found four platinum ice Legana Altezzas and e-mailed all the dealers. Two of them (Suzuka trading co., ltd. and Global harmony trading) replied quickly. The first one kindly informed my that they can’t accept my request. The other answer was pretty much the same, but they also told me that they sell replicas for ¥30,000 (£230) that look like this

The best source for used Altezzas with the bumper I want seems to be NZ, but as I don’t live there I can’t register a TradeMe account which means I can’t contact the sellers.

I won’t give up, though :)

Reminds me of Legana

Good move. I did mine just before Christmas and it looks a lot better. Before when walking to the car I always noticed the horns through the grill and it bugged me.

..yep, me too...not sure about the 6 light version peeping out from behind the grille...sometimes les is more....

They are not there to look good, but to let me see the moose before I hit them :)

where has everyone moved them to

I placed mine here:

Good move. I did mine just before Christmas and it looks a lot better. Before when walking to the car I always noticed the horns through the grill and it bugged me.

I also moved mine, but I put something else there instead

mate that bumper is £1000 in the uk from a toyota dealer. pre painted, may be worth flying over buying it then taking it back.

That's a really good price I've flown to London and back the same day, quite a few times to document the Gumball 3000 rally starts. In 2005 the flight ticket was £35. This is definitely worth considering.

I don't know if it's any help but I found a website yesterday called Import Monster - you may have heard of it?

It's an Australian site but the best bit is that they have a gateway between them and Yahoo Japan auctions so you can bid on the auctions there. That may be another way of trying to get one at a decent price?

http://www.importmonster.com.au/

I haven't heard of it before, but it might be worth keeping an eye on. However, our fellow Australians and New Zealanders seem to agree that TradeMe is the place to look.

Ah nice one mate, you won't be let down by it - definitely a good result!

In fact that just made me think - are you really going to pay full Toyota price for the bumper then? As daft as it sounds for a similar price you may be able to get an entire Altezza that goes with it?! Might be worth seeing if Mr Clawley has an idea as then you'd have the power you're looking for as well as the bumper without having to go down the supercharger route!

Well, I will certainly not pay the full Swedish Toyota price, but I might go for the japanparts price. My main goal, though, is to find a second hand one. It's quite annoying, there are a lot of Altezzas with Legana fronts fitted for sale in NZ, but I don't think they want to remove their bumpers to sell them seperately.

Classy work as usual Patrik :D

I just called my local Toyota/Lexus Parts dept, part number not recognised

(wanted to see if UK and cheaper for you)

Thanks mate :) That's strange, though. If the Swedish Toyota dealers can get hold of it UK ones should also be able to.

Nice info Patrik.

Must admit i do love that bumper but i'm more than happy with my modified tte on at the moment, good luck in the quest.

Thank you :) I haven't seen your TTE bumper, but I really like your camera solution.

nice info matey

Thanks. I hope it's all correct :P

Yeah the Legana bumper is one of the best looking bumpers for the IS / Altezza in my opinion :)

Just thinking though Patrik - have you been quoted with the headlights fitted as they can add a bit of cost if not?

I'll never forget the tear in Zee's eye when he realised the Carbon Fibre bit had been cut out to fit his FMIC - but then that was all forgotten about as soon as he realised how quick it now was with that turbo fitted :D

I haven't got a quote for the fog lights, but I know they are around £250 from japanparts.com

That's the first time I've seen an exhaust that clean since Chris Shipley had his!!!!

@ Stevie - do it

I daren't even thing about how big the ones are on mine - going to measure them for a grin tomorrow as I know they are bigger than the Hipers I had and it's crazy!

The stainless steel exhausts are suprisingly easy to keep clean. The next time I wash it I'll take some before/after pics :)

Welcome to the club of CD sized exhaust pipes :)

For the last few months I’ve been desperately looking for one and through silly amounts of research I believe I’ve found out pretty much all there is to know about this sought after and almost mythical piece of plastic.

Please let me share with you what I’ve learned during my long travels throughout the cyber space.

It all started when I first saw a picture of an L-tuned IS300. I immediately fell in love with the rims, but I didn’t quite fancy the front. After a couple of weeks I had found my set of rims and brought them home to Sweden. However, although they were a bargain I wasn’t really satisfied. Something inside me told me I had to find out a bit more about the front bumper worn by the L-tuned IS in the picture.

I joined several US IS forums (my.is, LOC US, Isfanatics) and began my research. Apparently the L-tuned was a hotted up version of the IS300. I read a review where they compared it to BMWs M division, but that is an overstatement. The L-tuned bodykit was also sold separately and apparently sold out when the kit was discontinued a few years ago. L-tuned quickly replaced it with the Carson tuned bodykit which looks the same but is made from some typical aftermarket material. This kit is still being sold and the front bumper is $700.

I was just about to order the Carson tuned front bumper when another name came up… someone told me I should track down a JDM TRD NEO I bumper, as it’s supposed to fit the non-US spec IS better. At that time I had never heard of the NEO I, but I followed the advice given to me. If you google “TRD NEO I” nothing useful at all comes up, unless you’re like me and go through all the links until page xx. There you find an argument on whether or not L-tuned came up with the design. Suddenly a fourth name was mentioned… Legana.

I finally had a name that took me somewhere, to Australasia. To be able to read everything I wanted I joined two more forums, The Altezza club of NZ and LOC Australia. Once again I had to start all over, searching for a new name, but it paid off. I stumbled upon a great lead, the actual Toyota item number (08164-53010-B0). I later found out that TRD have nothing to do with the bumper, that NEO I is just a name the yanks came up with as they don’t seem to have heard of the bumper’s real name.

The Legana bumper was developed for the IS200 that took part in the Targa Tasmania rally in 1999 and it got name from a small township the first leg passes through. That year, the IS finished first in its class and also won in 2000 and 2001. This obviously shows that the Legana bumper is the original, since the IS300 didn’t even exist back in 1999.

My quest continued and I must say I’m fairly close to buying this bumper now. I’m currently awaiting quotations from Toyota in Japan, Australia and NZ.

I’ve found two retailers that currently sell the genuine model.

Japanparts.com (Japan - ¥113,000 + fog lights + shipping + VAT)

Fizz Autosports (USA - $1,436.00+ fog lights + shipping + VAT)

However, they both buy their bumpers from Toyota Japan and then raise the price. Just for fun, I gave the item number to my local Toyota dealer who gave me a quotation for 29,613 kr (£2432)…

There are quite a few fiberglass and FRP copies out there and some of them may fit as good as the genuine one, but it just wouldn’t feel right to buy one of those. Here’s a bumper that’s been developed by Toyota on the other side of the earth and as with most car parts, they probably spent huge amounts of money and time designing it. The Legana bumper is named after an annual rally in which it took part and won three years in a row (Not the bumper itself, but the IS200 that was wearing it). That means it’s got a history. You can drive around knowing that your bumper was made for a purpose, not just to help the fiberglass bloke in Hong Kong afford his hot dog.

Cheers!

Patrik Lindblom

Since the IS200 is such a rare car in Sweden it's quite easy to keep yourself updated on which ones are for sale. There are currently 61 IS200s for sale, but one of them caught my attention.

What I first noticed is that the car is fitted with the 18" TTE rims and obviously lowered. I know these rims have never been sold in Sweden and when I looked up the license plate number I discovered the car was imported from Germany, where the TTE superchargers came factory fitted as an optional extra.

Importing cars from Germany has always been popular here since their prices are a bit lower and the cars are better equipped. This one has the cloth interior, so I've got a feeling that there is some other reason why somebody imported it back in 2002.

The only supercharged IS200 that I know of (in Sweden) was imported from Germany, has the same TTE rims and is lowered, just like this one.

It belongs to a 44 year old lady and I'm not sure if she even knows about the supercharger.

Now, is there a way of telling whether or not this car is fitted with the SC from the pics? I've tried to contact the owner, but with no success. I really want to SC my car.

Can't you pop the Brake Light Housing off and re-connect it ?

It does just pull off from what I remember when my bulb went.

Thanks for the tip, mate :) I tried, but I couldn't find the cable under my shelf.

I didn't take any pictures of the upgrade, but luckily for you I forgot to connect the brake light. Tomorrow I will have to remove the rear seats, head rests, D-pillar covers and the speaker shelf again, just to connect the stupid cable. I will then take a couple of pictures.

I never take my rear seats out to remove the parcel shelf, i just remove the pillar covers and head rests and lift the shelf up at the front, unhook the seat belts out of the slots in the shelf and slide it out, takes a few minutes to do

I tried that as well. The pillar covers went just fine, but my shelf is somehow helt in place by the rear seat. Anyway, I ended up removing everything and finally got my middle brake light connected again.

This is where I fitted my crossovers, if anyone is interested :)

Nice pictures and useful threads, nice work !! :D

Hi mate, I managed to track down a Legana front bumper from NZ. Still interested? It will be 700AUD plus the shipping costs(somewhere around 500 i think...no where near 750quid plus the shipping ). The guy is going to send me some pics if it and find how much it would be to have it sent to Au. Then I will sned it to you. Or I can negociate with the guy to send it straight to you.(It might come up a bit cheaper. Please let me know if you're still interested. I might be able to track down some more...Anyone interested? This one has the fog lights as well. I might get one for me if the price is right.

Probably a group buy?

You just got the world's happiest PM, mate :D

More sterling work mate.

looking good m8

Thank you! :)

Today I had a lot of spare time, so I started by decorating my front speaker covers.

Then I realized I would probably have time to replace my rear speakers as well. I drove to Uppsala and bought a set of 6x9 Infinity Kappas.

This is me, connecting the crossovers. The sheet was there to prevent scratching the car while entering/exiting the boot. Today the temperature reached 15 degrees below zero.

I didn't take any pictures of the upgrade, but luckily for you I forgot to connect the brake light. Tomorrow I will have to remove the rear seats, head rests, D-pillar covers and the speaker shelf again, just to connect the stupid cable. I will then take a couple of pictures.

A lot of pics from my front speakers upgrade: http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/ind...st&p=619493 :)

Now I've started upgrading my sound system. I've just replaced the front door speakers and tweeters, in minus ten degrees Celcius :duh: