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Alex's 2004 8N6 IS300 NA-T build

65K views 311 replies 24 participants last post by  blackmenace 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello everyone. I've owned my 2004 IS300 for nearly a year now and I'm in the process of gathering all of the required parts for an NA-T build for low boost. It's an automatic, but it will still be a blast to drive.

EDIT: Here's a parts list as of Oct. 2020 with the completed NA-T setup having over 1k miles on it:


Part description:Quantity:
Fuel Return-
Aeromotive A1000 FPR with 6an fittings1
Aeromotive stealth 340lph pump part number 115421
Aristo fuel pump hanger with return fitting from ebay - no need to modify it at all1
6an braided nylon hose 15ft1
6an orb push lock fittings for FPR2
1/8NPT tap for oem fuel rail1
1/8NPT to 3/8" barb 90 degree fitting1
11/32" drill bit for fuel rail hole1
Engine-
NKG BKR7E Spark Plugs6
NGK blue spark plug wires1
OEM MLS exhaust manifold gaskets 2 per set1
Suprastore.com "Supra 1JZ 2JZ OEM Exhaust Short Studs and Nut Package for Single Turbo Manifolds"1
CX Racing NA-T T4 turbo manifold1
CX Racing NA-T intercooler1
CX Racing NA-T intercooler piping1
CX Racing NA-T downpipe and midpipe1
CX Racing NA-T turbo intake pipe 4" with 1 connection port
Turbosmart 45MM hypergate wastegate1
Tial Q 50MM BOV - Had the flange welded to the CX racing pipe to replace the greddy flange1
Garrett T04S 60-1 turbo with P Trim turbine wheel and PTE .68 T4 turbine housing1
Exhaust wrap 100ft for manifold and downpipe and dump pipe1
KL downstream o2 sims1
Merged primary o2 sensors -use pigtail from b1s1 o2 sensor and tap into the b2s1 sensor wires (blue and white wires). Plug this into the b1s1 connection near the water pump. Do not merge the black heater wires. Instead plug the b1s1 pigtail heater wires into a spare o2 sensor and leave it dangling in the engine bay secured. This will result in no o2 codes and both upstream sensors being close fuel trims. You could also add another bung for the b1s1 o2 sensor that is dangling because it will get hot.1
Ebay catch can routed to both valve covers and the turbo intake pipe1
Approximately 30" turbo oil feed line AN4 with proper turbo oil feed adapter1
Oil feed line tee to pressure sender - EBAY: "1/8" BSPT Oil Pressure Sensor Tee to NPT Adapter"1
Allen bolts for turbo mounting on 3/4 spots - 1.5 pitch M10 hex bolts. 25 length would work3
Stud and nut for turbo mounting hole closest to the bank 2 o2 sensor connection - EBAY: "Turbo Stainless Stud Kit & Egged nuts M10x1.5 For Garrett GT40 GT42 Turbo"1
ABS Relocate-
Summit part URR-BSCJ312 - 5 pieces of 12" brake line1
Summit part EDD-274000 - brake union need 5 of these5
Summit part URR-BR210 - 6 piece brake flare nut, OR reuse the nuts from the cut lines1
Rented flare tool from autozone1
Battery relocate-
Summit part TAY-480001
Oil Drain-
Metal turbo drain line - Dorman 625-2121
3/8-18 NPT tap1
37/64" drill bit1
3/8 NPT to 10AN straight fitting1
7/8" high temp blue rubber hose 1 ft.1
Exhaust-
Tanabe super medallion axleback
DNA motoring resonator
Note: You cannot use the stock muffler, it's too restrictive and will cause the WG to open early
Electronics-
AEM FIC and boomslang harness
AEM UEGO X Series wideband
AEM Boost Gauge
Hose routing-
Intake manifold y pipe pcv connection block off
Intake manifold y pipe fuel rail connection block off
Both valve cover PCV hoses to catch can
Catch can top port to turbo intake pipe


Original post follows-

Background:

When I first got the car it had about 180k miles on it and it had a few of the common oil leaks from the valve covers and cam seals. I decided to do a complete refresh (VC gaskets, cam seals, PCV valve, VVTI gear o-ring, timing belt, tensioner, water pump, serpentine belt, crank seal, spark plugs, ngk plug wires). After all that was done, the engine runs perfectly and has no leaks. I also replaced the transmission mount and rear differential mounts which were both completely torn. My car came without LSD, but I installed an FRS LSD in it.

Next I decided to fix the squeaks and rattles in the front suspension. The previous owner installed function form coilovers and the car was really low. I raised it back up immediately and noticed that the lower control arms, ball joints, and tie-rod ends were toast so they were replaced. I also ended up replacing the power steering pump and rack because the previous owner didn't use ATF and instead used power steering fluid. The pump whined like crazy and the rack was really too tight to move the wheel. Those issues are now resolved with replacement parts installed.

The car is my daily driver and consistently gets about 20 miles to the gallon and has ice cold A/C...which is a blessing in the Las Vegas summer.

Over the coming months, I'll be installing the parts that I've gathering and be posting videos on youtube and photos here to document the progress.

Here's a pic of how it looks today:

 
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#2 · (Edited)
I picked up a radiator cooling plate/air diversion panel used from ebay for a great deal. Just need to paint or polish it eventually because it has some scratches on it.

I made my own oil filter relocation setup for the car to make oil changes much easier and to also make adding an oil feed line much easier later.

I also just added an oil catch can that is just routed back to the intake

Only issue is that I'm not quite sure if the catch can will be in the way when I put the turbo kit on. If it is, I'll just end up relocating the battery to the trunk and having plenty of space there.

 
#3 · (Edited)
I also did the IS350 steering wheel swap and used the PAC-SWI-RC to make the buttons work with my Pioneer AVH-280BT deck.



And I found a sweet deal on a nice buddyclub racing seat that feels like memory foam and should be perfect for when I eventually add a harness.

 
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#6 ·
Thanks fellas. I'm very excited to get this thing boosted! I'm going to be building the fuel return line as soon as the fittings and hose arrive. I'm hoping to use the aristo style return with two FPR's (one in the tank and one on the rail), rather than bypassing the stock FPR as many have done. If it works with the aristo, it should work for me.
 
#8 ·
Well....I did the aristo style return setup and I ended up having to go back into the fuel pump hanger and do the official FPR block off and reroute of the return line into the ventricle. I didn't drill out the ventricle hole on the return line connection. Also, for those wondering. 1 foot of submersible 5/16th's fuel hose is fine. I bought two feet but ended up only using 1 foot of it.

The problem was the the stock regulator was limiting maximum fuel pressure to around 60 psi, per my aftermarket regulator gauge on the return side. Once I blocked off the in-tank regulator, I was able to raise fuel pressure with no imposed limit. I tested it to around 100psi to make sure everything was working properly.

I'm glad I decided to do this mod at this time because I found a broken spark plug in cylinder 5. There were no broken pieces, but the inside ceramics were able to free spin inside of the metal housing and there was soot around the top of the ceramic indicating that combustion gases were escaping from there. The plug tips looked perfect. I also installed a rebuilt set of stock fuel injectors at the same time because i had bought them awhile back when I did the timing belt but didn't install them.

Now the engine really purrs and the fuel system mods are done. All I have left to do prior to installing the turbo kit is to drop the oil pan and drill/tap the oil return fitting in the block.
 
#7 ·
I know there's a lot of hate for the AEM FIC 6, but I'm hoping that I can figure out all of the quirks and get it running flawlessly and with no check engine codes so that I can pass smog.

Worst case scenario...if I blow up the 2jzge, I would try to find a 1jz or 2jz turbo engine and run it off the IS300 and FIC 6 piggyback so that I can keep the immobilizer and still pass smog. Maybe in 2024 when the car is 20 years old and qualifies as a classis car in Nevada then I'll make it more extreme.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Update:

I decided to tackle installing the AEM X-series UEGO 30-0300 wideband and AEM FIC 6 w/ boomslang harness in addition to doing the B2S1 splice into B1S1 mod.

Routing the boomslang harness through the firewall was VERY easy. I just cut a small opening into the grommet where the main harness runs through next to the brake booster. For the wideband gauge power and ground, used an add-a-fuse onto the cig lighter fuse in the driver kick panel and found a ground under the dash. I used a few strips of 3m double sided tape to "mount" the FIC 6 directly onto another module under the dash that was about the same size. I'll take a picture for future reference. There was more than ample length to run the boomslang harness inside cleanly. I was able to run the UEGO gauge connectors and usb wire for the FIC up through the side of the center console without removing the stereo, I only removed the center vent/cubby and the steering wheel under tray.

Everything went smoothly and I was able to start the car and rev just fine with and without the FIC bypass installed. I drove the car for a short period with the FIC un-bypassed to datalog and it threw a primary O2 code because the AFR's were too different from the factory. It was more of a test to make sure there were no weird tach/rpm issues or other problems. I also was able to reconfigure the FIC AUX input table to match the calibration for the 30-0300 AEM UEGO LSU 4.9 sensor as it comes setup for the older model AEM UEGO. I read online that you have to open the fi6 file in MS Access and change the values in the "gauge_AFR" table.

The FIC seems to be working well and now the aux input gauge matches my AEM UEGO gauge exactly. I just need to setup an OBD2 bluetooth app so that I can really start getting a feel for the tuning on the FIC to tune for the fuel trims.

I'm planning to tap the oil pan for the oil return sometime next week. Then I'll mount the intercooler and piping. the last thing that will go on will be the turbo because I want to spend more time getting familiar with the FIC so that I can tune it well in boost.

For now I'm just VERY pleased that there were no ignition issues that seem to plague some people doing these kind of installs. I just kept reading about people having missfire codes. I'm very glad that I opted for the boomslang harness instead of trying to tackle it myself. I must've checked the pins for the O2 splice about 20 times before I cut and soldered the wires.

Here's a video of the FIC 6 running:
 
#10 · (Edited)
I added my AEM boost gauge and both gauges are mounted into the cubby and I can still close it. I'm VERY pleased with the visibility and overall fitment. The blue cord is the usb connection for the FIC 6. Kinda wishing I went for the x-series boost gauge in addition to the x-series wideband, but oh well.
 

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#11 · (Edited)
I just picked up a set of 2015 IS250 17" wheels to put on the car. They look nice and should fit without issue.

 
#13 · (Edited)
I finally got around to changing the cluster, HVAC and key ring leds. Looks soooo much better.

 
#14 ·
Your first pics are not showing but seems like you have a nice ride being put together. I have that same head unit and wanted to do a swap on my steering wheel. How did you get the controls to work for the head unit? I used the search button but maybe I am not typing in the right words for it to pull up. Keep up the good work also.
 
#15 ·
Stupid photobucket is blocking the embedded images. I'll have to rehost them and relink.

For the stereo, I followed the guide that said to use a PAC SWI-RC device. There are no instructions on wiring that up, but I figured it out myself after examining the instructions. You'll need to add a pin to the clock-spring on both the steering wheel side and the back side to have the wire that will send signal to the PAC SWI-RC. I pulled a pin out of an unused connector from behind where the coin tray is next to the steering wheel on the dash and used that for the backside of the clock-spring. You'll need to remove the lower plastic piece of the steering console to see the connector coming out of the clock spring. For the steering wheel side of the clock spring you will need a similar pin. I actually had someone send me the wiring from the steering wheel so I had extra wiring and pins in case I had issues.
 
#17 ·
No the thread doesn't really go into the PAC SWI-RC wiring or the pins. The tutorial mentions that you'll need spare pins, but doesn't really dive into the detail on how it's done. I had to figure it out myself and get a bit lucky.
 
#19 ·
Sure, NP. It's not too difficult once you're in there and you see all of the wires. The only mildly confusing bit is when you solder all of the steering wheel buttons with resistors and connect into the one wire that will go through the clock spring and into the PAC SWI-RC unit. I stashed my PAC SWI-RC in behind the radio but toward the glove box. I'll take some pics when I pull it apart again. The stock amp bypass was done by the previous owner so I'd like to check the wiring while I upgrade the front speakers soon.
 
#20 ·
I just fixed the photos and now they're hosted by imgur.

Also, That ebay FPR is junk. It's getting replaced by an aeromotive part number 13109. The ebay junk one has a thin PLASTIC diaphragm and it's not holding consistent pressure and causing leaning out while NA. It's getting replaced very soon and then I'll do some more driving on it to make sure it's ready for the turbo install.

The last somewhat major item is the drilling of the oil return port on the upper oil pan. I plan to replace the lower pan and add a fumoto valve because the original lower pan is dented from the previous owner running the car too low on coils. I am also going to replace the motor mounts with stock replacements at the same time. I saw a youtube video where a guy used this turbo truck oil drain line, dorman part number 625-212, and I'm going to use that for the bottom side of the turbo into a braided hose using barb fittings.

 
#21 ·
Here are some pics of the FRS diff fitted into my car. I used the figs poly rear mounts because the originals ones were trashed. I had to melt the stock rubber out and then use a dremel to cut the ring on the bushings out. The figs parts went in perfectly after that with some grease on them.



 
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#22 ·
Here's a pic of when I replaced the front lower control arms and added the new rotors and pads and braided brake lines.

 
#23 ·
Some people may hate on the ebay aftermarket headlights, but honestly they have good light output since I've manually adjusted them to be level and at the right height and I think they look good.

 
#24 ·
Here's a video of me having a little fun in the rain and testing out that LSD diff. I put the automatic into low gear and just modulated the throttle.

 
#26 ·
No issue whatsoever. It is maybe a couple hundred RPM higher in each gear at the same speed as compared with the open diff, but the pickup from a dead stop is a noticeable improvement. I'd highly recommend it for all of the automatic folks out there. The speedo stays accurate because it's reading from the abs sensors and not the transmission.
 
#27 ·
Progress has been delayed a bit because of other projects getting attention, but I did manage to install these Lexus ghost lights in the doors. Some people would say they are cheesy, but I think they look good.

 
#29 ·
Yes, they are from eBay. The ads imply they only fit the later Lexus models, but these installed without issue into the IS300. For $15 it was worth it to try it and I'm pleased with the result. Looks cool at night.
 
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