RichGS11

1 hour ago, DamianLEX said:

There is a white 2011 one and seller can do much below £20k. Am I missing something there? Anyone knows something? 

Any images or links to the car?

3 hours ago, Akite said:

It was £1600 but i needed x2 new sensors as they could not get them off the old manifolds and a new bracket as it had rusted out.

Yeah that's standard with the old 02's. They seem to fuse into the manifolds.

1 hour ago, Jgtcracer said:

Whenever I drive it there seems to be loads of traffic.  Suppose it’s the main tourist road through the Cairngorms.  Admittedly I’m with the wife so can’t make best use of every overtaking opportunity!

We got extremely lucky with traffic. A few other cars on there for the same reason. I can see how easily it can get snarled up.

34 minutes ago, rob_clio172 said:

Saw this at exclusive jdm full scale, incredible! Love it! So clean, would love 1 of these 1 day!

Thanks Rob, very kind of you to say that mate. I try to enjoy it and also look after it. Thanks for the photo too.

1 hour ago, Cotswold Pete said:

I have been in hyper cars, IMHO I am not a fan of the noise when you really put the foot down.

So no Ferrari for me and as i do not have a pooch, I have no use for the back seats.

But I will say a lovely looking design, nicer than the SC430 (probably not as reliable though)

That's one reason why I am tempted in a performance EV. Fast, instant, and deadly quiet. Personally with a V8 and CATless headers, it's a bit of an occasion for everyone when I floor it 🤣

I'm tempted by the new Hyundai Ioniq 5 N. 641bhp of instant power and lower centre of gravity would be fun! I have my name down for a test drive.

We have EV cars at work and Teslas in the family. I personally see them needing some way to go, but they're certainly becoming more appealing. Should my promotion take me away from my home area, I'll consider an EV for the commute.

40 minutes ago, B1RMA said:

I take your point about what could be underneath, it was like a new car before the wrap which from another point of view preserves the paintwork.

Someone locally who has always liked the car is now interested, so I've got to decide if I want to get rid of an excellent car with low mileage and road tax. I've been here before and kept it, don't know why I put myself through this torture every now and then. Must stop.

Same boat here dude (bar the tax). I always try with the idea of letting go, but then struggle to find a replacement that isn't over the top financially. You'll make the right decision and the GR Yaris is a great car to have as its replacement.

Wraps are a subjective matter. People tend to like them, but not on a car they're about to buy, almost everyone I know in the modified car scene would be tentative about buying a car over £10k that's covered in a wrap. There is a small minority that would, but then you're hedging your bets they also want a wrapped RCF.

Too many horror stories of what's underneath will put a lot of people off. 'Before' photos of every panel is a must, we're talking a £30k plus car. A lot of money to find out the paintwork is dog rough underneath. Obviously I'm not implying your car is anything other than immaculate, but trust is hard to come by in the second hand car market. 

I'd remove all mods and get her back to standard. You'll make more money from the modifications too.

3 hours ago, Mr_Groundhog said:

This is awesome

Where did you do the underside seal job and how much was it?

Thank you.

The underseal was from a local company to me here in Cambs. Some corrosion has started to come through, so I'm in discussions with them now about sorting it. Not sure if there are better places to go, but I'll update as and when I get it looked at.

7 hours ago, Ray Green said:

Hi Rich lovely car don’t let her go I too had a 2010 ISF messer red from new kept it Till 2021 47000 on clock but miss it like crazy but well impressed with what you have done to yours.

Hi Ray, thank you very much mate. I very nearly sold it last year, was looking into Porches and the like, but it was my mates that told me to keep it. Oddly the ones with the cars I went away to Scotland with. They've driven my car and the cars I was looking at selling her for, and they told me I'd be silly to sell. They echo your view exactly and I'll be taking your advice! 

On 10/17/2023 at 9:34 PM, Jgtcracer said:

Some pretty good stuff in the cairngorms or over to the west.  Even just north of Glasgow it gets a bit quieter…. Down here in the borders it’s terrific too!

The Old Military Road in the cairgorms is a blast. We did that in September on a dry day and it was pretty amazing!

It's a cheap and easy fix replacing the radiator. Something I would reccomend with the type of radiators Lexus use on some models. The coolant line for the gearbox runs into the bottom of the radiator. These radiators can corrode from the inside and I don't need to tell you the damage coolant can do in the place of gearbox oil! It's around a £5k fix from Lexus for a new box.

I changed both my radiator on the GS, and the ISF (same style radiator), on the drive at home. It's a relatively cheap maintenance job when compared to the possible damage it will cause when faulty.

31 minutes ago, Jgtcracer said:

Appreciate the responses so far.  I’m inclined do disregard the contis based upon wear rate so am trying to balance up the pros/cons of MPS5 and MPS4S tyres. Slightly different applications but I do quite a few miles do it does add up.

 One thing I have noted is how relatively cheap tyres seem to be at the moment.  Currently looking around the £700 delivered before fitting!  Seems very reasonable to me…..

That is a good price. I think I paid £550 (18's though), HOWEVER, we had a really good offer through Asda of all places, and they did it for all four shipped straight to our door. I can't say I'll see that proce again, but here's hoping when the time comes 🤞🏼

22 minutes ago, BillNick said:

This is awesome mate, you should / I would be proud. Sounds lovely too 👌🏼

Thank you mate.

Time to let the car modifications rest until the new year. I have someone that can custom make carbon now, do expect some one off items on the horizon. He can lay a carbon bonnet or front bumper similar to that of a Zonda, with the carbon joining in the centre and spreading out from there.

Also looking into new front buckets and reteim of the rears to match, a lightweight Battery and valved exhaust modification. 

So time for a little update....

Over 1,700 miles covered through Scotland and the Lakes and the car didn't skip a beat. The tune has now put the car in the 500bhp area and with the quest for weight reduction, the car has become incredibly competent. I've not driven a Lexus quite like it and I love it. 

To give some context, I had the company of a Gallardo, 599, E63 and DB11. In the dry I was easily able to keep up and even overtake the DB11 (a mix of driver and car). I could also keep pace with the E63 in the wet. To say the least, the crew I went with were impressed with the ISF. By the end of the trip, my confidence with this machine has grown.

A few snaps and clips from the trip....

I couldn't obtain MPS4S's for my new wheels and so I went with Asymmetric 5's. I didn't want to stray from the Michelins, but needs must and after a lot of research, I went with the Goodyears.

I've pushed them in both wet and dry at questionable speeds, and they performed incredibly well. In the dry I was chasing down a DB11 and in the wet, a new E63. Neither cars put a gap between me and the ISF, and the feedback from the wheels was impressive. They're wearing really well too. Heading towards 5k with no signs of wear. Very happy customer and worth a nose.

Thank you very much!

Alignment was the only issue as I also got CF fenders too. Took 3 days of tinkering, but you have to expect that with CF panels. They're not an exact fit unless it's custom made to the car. There are 2 areas I plan to revist to get the fitment perfect, and I'll be doing that over winter.

No sun fade issues yet, and CF front end fitted Feb '22. Only coating on the parts is a ceramic coat.

The vented bonnet has been discontinued whilst they change their moulding.

I have the standard CF bonnet from them, from a company in Luton. As stated they give you a total quote plush shipping and that's all you pay, no hidden taxes, etc. I thought I had their details saved, but it seems I can't find them. I'll post it when I find it.

11 hours ago, BillNick said:

It would explain it yes, but still very odd.

I work in Finance and making them different sizes just feels like an unnecessary production cost that could be avoided to me.

I've never found a definitive answer. The closest I could get was maybe down to the blindspot mirror being larger in whatever respective country the car was manufactured for. Which makes no sense because you could just make them all the same size to cut down on costs, as  you already pointed out. It's an odd one.

On 9/22/2023 at 8:02 AM, BillNick said:

Very odd. Im aware that they didn’t get folding mirrors in the US but did in the EU so it can’t be anything to do with that. So are the housings different size or just different moulding inside?

One side is smaller on the ISF. Not sure the exact specs and why, but I recall someone saying the ISF mirrors are different sizes, which would explain why LHD and RHD covers have issues.

Take it easy Dan. I'll swoop in on some parts as previously discussed. Looking forward to seeing what you do with the other motor.

2 hours ago, NothernDan said:

All, having just been through this rigmarole. A quick question.

What makes you think your headers are cracked?

If it's a ticking noise when cold that disappears once the exhaust has gone through its "warm up my cats" cycle then mine had this. Wasn't the headers. Was the high pressure fuel pump. Replaced that, noise gone.

I replaced my headers and the sound went, so did the emissions issue at MOT time. I have a video of the location that mine cracked at, which from watching countless videos on cracked headers, mine was the exact same flange. Did you run a data logging check on yours? I wonder if that would show a fuel issue if it is the pump that's going? Like a quick and easy way to deduce the cause? I can't believe that 'all' ISF headers will crack, but the numbers are quite high.

9 hours ago, ubersonic said:

Hey all,

Got home yesterday to discover coolant dripping from under the car.  Quick inspection today with a borescope reveals it's coming from the valley plate seal, yay.

I know some people in the UK have had this repair done so I was wondering if anyone could tell me what it cost you? And was it done by Lexus or a specialist?

Thanks in advance.

Sam recently had his done by a specialist out Essex/Kent way I believe. I'll get him to revisit the site and add his costs, times, etc.

2 hours ago, Grey One said:

Thanks Rich - it sounds like a moving feast of additional items to consider, so not a project to be taken lightly from a budget perspective.  I may also call a garage that has been listed on here as having done this job before to see what they have to say.

Tempting though...

Yes costs mount up quickly. It's not a cheap job. I managed to find a rare, new set of RHD PPE headers in California when I was there, for £1k, but after supporting mods and upgrades, I still spent over £2.5k, and I even installed them myself!