[fishtail]

i was looking at the engine compartment and there's definately sufficient room for both a large turbo (notice all that space just left of the engine when facing the car)... but a superchargers will have to piggyback the engine and that'll mean the black plastic engine cover will have to go.. and perhaps the insulation on the underside of the hood...

i must admit that the thought of adding any sort of forced induction sounds appealing but... although a supercharger should add at least 75 hp... at a decent level of boost... performance isn't going to improve by as much as some people hope... its not going to become an M3, S4 or C32 fighter... the main problem with adding a supercharger will be the auto tranny... the GS400 is 300hp/310lb/ft stock, so it should handle a supercharger.. but barely... (assuming the IS is the same spec. as the GS4's)...

in my humble opinion a supercharger/turbo on this car is a waste of money... not worth an extra 5-6K to take a second and a half (at most) off the 0-60 times... $500 NOS upgrade will do the same thing (if not more)... better to spend 2-3K on suspension upgrades, a set of slicks and race school/driving lessons...

95% of IS300 drivers (myself included) don't have the skills necessary to take the car to anywhere near the limits of its capabilities (even in stock form)... 0-60 is for punks! anyone can stomp on a throttle and aim straight...

hitting an apex perfectly... now that takes skill...

 

[TEG]

Just call me a punk then...

If I can get a resonable aftermarket S/C that will bring the 0-60 down to 6.0 then I will be a happy camper.

The S/C wouldn't have to go on top of the engine... I could mount alongside over the exhaust manifold...

300hp with 300lb/ft (GS400 power levels) would be great in this car!

 

[TEG]

I don't exactly endorse these guys, but I like what they are trying to do:
http://www.rimmersuperchargers.com/subaru.html http://www.rimmersuperchargers.com/944.html

 

[fishtail]

what i'm suggesting is that the money is better spent on a tighter suspension and some slicks and driving school...

it's sad to hear stories about people wrapping their cars around posts or worse... too much power is not a good thing, unless its accompanied by similar amounts of skill...

Originally posted by TEG:
Just call me a punk then...

If I can get a resonable aftermarket S/C that will bring the 0-60 down to 6.0 then I will be a happy camper.

The S/C wouldn't have to go on top of the engine... I could mount alongside over the exhaust manifold...

300hp with 300lb/ft (GS400 power levels) would be great in this car!

 

[lilaznboi]

i don't get what the point of slicks are? slicks are illegal on the streets...there track only. and why not getta supercharger if it makes ur car faster? and driving schooL?? juss learn from experience.

------------------
Spectra Blue IS300

 

[mrclam]

buy the slicks so you can use them at the track.

 

[TEG]

There is nothing inherently illegal about going 0-60 in under 6 seconds. As long as the car is under control and the wheels are not smoking you are unlikely to get cited for exhibition of speed... I would go out on a limb and say that the accident statistics for a lowered Civic are worse than for a stock M3. The accidents I have seen are much more often caused by bad driving judgement than by a high performance vehicle.

Oh - and a "tight" track tuned suspension might be a liability on the street. I have seen cars goes airborne on the street because they had a track tuned suspension but hit a railroad crossing, pothole, curb (etc) on the street and didn't have the stock suspension to absorb the impact.

 

[TEG]

And slicks are illeagal on street cars for a reason: they are very dangerous on wet surfaces.

 

[ckolsen]

As for racing schools, I joined the BMW CCA this year and plan on doing some 'driving schools' when I get a car I can fit in with a helmet. (no way with the Integra) The BMW Car Club's driving schools are cheap, $150 or so, and you get to drive on road courses like Lime Rock Park or New Hampshire International Speedway.

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by lilaznboi:
i don't get what the point of slicks are? slicks are illegal on the streets...there track only. and why not getta supercharger if it makes ur car faster? and driving schooL?? juss learn from experience.

Slicks are for the track - you can save money getting slicks (you don't want to be running bridgestones for $150 a pop) -

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by lilaznboi:
i don't get what the point of slicks are? slicks are illegal on the streets...there track only. and why not getta supercharger if it makes ur car faster? and driving schooL?? juss learn from experience.

i wonder if F1 drivers subscribed to the 'juss learn from experience' school of thought??? - fact of the matter is, there are very very few truly good/safe drivers out there... and far too many idiots with cars that they don't know how to handle safely at speed...

in my opinion people with 'performance' cars should do themselves a favour and invest in driving schools... its not just a coincidence that Porche, Ferrari and some other manufacturers offer driving school to new owners...

 

[GPR]

driving school for everyone??? isn't that what the DMV is for? Off the subject here, I've seen some pretty crappy video gamers around and some really good video gamers. The thing is even WITH tons of practice some will always just suck no matter what they do. Same thing with driving some drivers just suck so bad that nothing could help them.

 

[lilaznboi]

sorrie fishtail...but the IS300 isn't meant for the track...unless u strip everything out and get a whole new engine. so there realy isn't a point into getting slicks. and the IS300 is not a F1 car so u don't need to think about going 200 mph.

------------------
Spectra Blue IS300

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by lilaznboi:
sorrie fishtail...but the IS300 isn't meant for the track...unless u strip everything out and get a whole new engine. so there realy isn't a point into getting slicks. and the IS300 is not a F1 car so u don't need to think about going 200 mph.

wasn't suggesting that the IS300 is a track car, the slicks are for driving school purposes... i think too many people overestimate their driving abilities... dodging in and out of traffic hardly counts for true driving skill... if anything its dangerous... leave racing for the track...

have you ever driven autocross... you don't need a supercharged engine to compete... for most people learning to drive the stock IS well is challenge enough...

anyone who attended a Lexus event when they introduced the IS300 can attest to the capabilities of the IS300 on tracks in the hands of a professional driver...

my point is simple, even as a stock vehicle, most owners can't drive it to its full capabilities...

rather than improve performance that most drivers can't utilize (other than stomping the throttle to try to beat some tricked out Civic or Integra - ie. addition of a supercharger or turbo), the money is BEST spent at a track taking driving lessons.. (and I'm not talking about the DMV sort

 

[vvtipwr]

Well, I wouldn't consider forced induction a waste of money for this car. IS's acceleration, I think, is a little slow. (Just almost as fast as my GSR stock). Getting it down to the low 6's or high 5's would be great(I'm sure when the manual comes out, it would be a better match to the forced induction), and give me HELLA passing power to pass other stock IS300s, not to mention other non-M BMWs on the road.

Call me shallow, but that's all that matters to me when I'm on the freeway. Sure, handling is important and I will defintely have to upgrade my suspension when I get my IS, but a car of this stature and looks definetely needs better acceleration than 7.1-7.5s.

 

[brad]

Tell me what is so unappealing about an IS that costs 38K (after a little negotiating and adding a 6K supercharger package) that does sixty in six seconds and the quarter in the low fourteens?

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by vvtipwr:
Well, I wouldn't consider forced induction a waste of money for this car. IS's acceleration, I think, is a little slow.

I'm not suggesting that FI is a waste of money... just that there are better ways to spend the money and improve your driving pleasure in a better way (other than pure power)...

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by brad:
Tell me what is so unappealing about an IS that costs 38K (after a little negotiating and adding a 6K supercharger package) that does sixty in six seconds and the quarter in the low fourteens?

not suggesting that its not appealing... suggesting there are better alternatives to spending the money on FI...

by the way, 6K plus labour and probably a voided warranty...plus a higher insurance premium... (its not as cheap as you think...will probably run you aroud 12K when all is said and done... and that puts the vehicle in the 50K range... NOT QUITE AS APPEALING ONCE REALITY HITS...

especially when a CIVIC si with a $500 NOS will keep up with you or burn you in a straight line...and it only cost the guy 20K with upgrades...

just something to think about...

 

[brad]

Look, I'm talking about a supercharger that typifies TRD pricing that doesn't void the warranty. And you're not talking fifty g's. A s/c will come and you will, imo be able to drive an equipped IS away still priced in the thirties. Now, my take is that for city driving this is a much better modification than fifty inch rims, body kit, and suspension kit. Now, I do agree that a driving school is money damn well spent.

 

[fishtail]

Originally posted by brad:
Look, I'm talking about a supercharger that typifies TRD pricing that doesn't void the warranty. And you're not talking fifty g's. A s/c will come and you will, imo be able to drive an equipped IS away still priced in the thirties. Now, my take is that for city driving this is a much better modification than fifty inch rims, body kit, and suspension kit. Now, I do agree that a driving school is money damn well spent.

i think we are all hoping and praying that a L-Performance S/C is available... but its going to cost more than 6K (Lexus Mechanic's bill $75/hr alone!) - the rumours going around now are that Kazuma (and not TRD or L-Performance) will be selling the kit, therefore the warranty probably won't be upheld...

I agree that big ass rims and body kits are a waste ... larger rims actually slow the car down! - (increase in unsprung weight)