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IS350T -- The Amazing Race

6K views 40 replies 21 participants last post by  DanielIS300 
#1 ·
Bored here at work.... just wondering which one of our beloved shops will be the first to boost or SC the MK2 IS? :lol:

Im assuming the one that buy a salvage 2006 Avalon first :lol:
 
#3 ·
In reality a shop that can afford the invesment to create a MK2 IS300 turbo kit will for sure benefit from it. Not only will Future Mk2 owners have somewhere to take their IS's to keep up with all the boosted Mk1 IS300's lol But all the new commers will have an option quickly. I think we will see what shop has a passion for the Lexus IS300, and what shops are in it for the IS300 crowd..Who are dumb and spend thousands on these things...Including myself
 
#4 ·
I've been thinking of this topic actually. I think for tuners (as far as making money goes) the best bet would be to create a nice intake and be first to market on that. Margins are better and a lot more people will invest in that then boost. Turbo MK2's are a few years away IMHO. There are more and more used IS300's floating around and truly the inline 6 rules. Granted, I do like some of the new stylings of the MK2 but overall performance wise enough trial and error has been done on the MK1 that I feel it is money better spent.
 
#5 ·
I am thinking just the opposite. Look how long it took for real performance parts to emerge for the IS. Even though most of the parts are very closely Supra parts, which has an emormous part list.
Alot of it was getting around OBDII, well know not only will they have to deal with OBDII but they also have to deal with the new VDIM, intergrated control that dictates traction, stability, brakes and steering, a function that cannot be turned off.
There may be turbos but till be a while, I see kits emerging in the second year of production. Perhaps if they offer a manual tranny on the IS350, then there may be more pressure from after market tuners to do something.
 
#6 ·
I would expect more performance upgrades first for the IS250....obviously: Intake, exhaust bolt on stuff...then perhaps a Supercharger....then eventually a Turbo....going to take a few years after seeing how other companies have approached the current IS300......patience is a virtue.....i'm sure someone will take the plunge and do it....hmmmmm, wonder who
 
#7 ·
tsopranoMB said:
I would expect more performance upgrades first for the IS250....obviously: Intake, exhaust bolt on stuff...then perhaps a Supercharger....then eventually a Turbo....going to take a few years after seeing how other companies have approached the current IS300......patience is a virtue.....i'm sure someone will take the plunge and do it....hmmmmm, wonder who

Then you have Toyomoto... who was putting 600+ to the wheels of the IS300 less than 6 months after it was released.

Will be interesting to see since the 300 did have the 2JZ... no telling what they'll be able to do with the POS engine they're putting in the 350. ;)
 
#8 ·
dasgalloway said:
Then you have Toyomoto... who was putting 600+ to the wheels of the IS300 less than 6 months after it was released.

Will be interesting to see since the 300 did have the 2JZ... no telling what they'll be able to do with the POS engine they're putting in the 350. ;)
thats only because Lance had been workin on the 2JZ's since 1993... ;)

should be interesting indeed....between both the IS250 and IS350...
 
#10 ·
MDunderPSI said:
Yeah, the 2JZ history def played into that. Besides, who is going to be the first tuner to get a new IS350 engine and stress test it? Then break it a part and build it back up... going to take time indeed.
Team Lexus will/IS the first to do so....they are having an open house meet/BBQ in August, I'm sure we will be able to see first hand just what they have in store for the new IS350 motor...;)
 
#11 ·
i am wondering if the new IS250 would be easier to boost?
I would like an AWD turbo IS250.
 
#13 ·
wingzero said:
That won't work if they get an Avalon it is FWD so the engine is not positioned the same.

I meant ECU wise.. it should have similar obstacles to overcome (VVTi, traction control, etc etc) .... because its mounted in a RWD configuration just means they have to weld things together differently. (that is the easiest part.)

I envisioned it looking like a Typhoon turbo setup with a crossover pipe and the turbo being mounted in a rear corner somewhere.
 
#14 ·
If they are both based on the same block ( I don't know if they are). The 2.5L will undoubtable have thicker cylinder walls ie. stronger and able to handle more boost.

In my opinion, with the knowledge and passion that our tuners have (Toyomoto, turboeast, and SRT) it won't be long before an awesome kit comes out for the MK2.
Lets not forget that while Lance is a 2JZ genius its not the only engine he has worked on. Also, when I bought a 350Z, early in the first year of production, greddy's TT kit had already been built, tested and proven. The technology is out there and people will adapt it quickly.
 
#15 ·
Yes technology is out there, but will people buy it. that is the key, yes Lance is a very good tuner, probably one of the best out there for 2JZ's. But if people don't buy the product, it won't get maid. A 350Z and an IS300 are completely different cars. One is a no doubt sports car. Tell me, what part of the new IS is sporty. Maybe 8 out of 10 people here will tell you that it has lost all sportyness that the 1st gen IS had. Hell the new IS can't even say its a US-spec Altezza anymore.
The new car is WAY more luxury than the old one. Luxury cars generally don't attract turbos (probably why Toyota chose to go with a GE instead of a GTE) Yeah people turbo the GS, which is way more luxurious than an IS, but how many turbo GS' have you seen...not many.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to see a turbo IS350 but lets face it, with the way Lexus is going on the design of the car, thay may not happen for quite sometime.
 
#16 ·
The problem is that nobody will want to do R&D on an engine that is prohibitively expensive to replace. You think GTE blocks are expensive? They are cheap! Try blowing that new 350 engine and tell me you'll replace the block for $1700 + labor.
 
#19 ·
The bigger question is how long will a turbo Is350/250 last....with the pos aluminum block. Yip its all aluminum. I wouldnt waste the time or money. I would just swap it out for a 2jz block and head. I have gotten the aluminum head on a 2jz - turbo IS hot enough to pull the manifold stud threads out.
 
#20 ·
A bigger problem may be the market. Because the IS is moving more upscale, will the right people be buying the car (turbo people)? If the market is smaller, and the R&D costs are much higher then the current IS300 market, then it may not be worth while at first. Whoever does it first will get tons of coverage, but how many kits that are sold remains to be seen.

Right now we are just interested in learning about the new car, and understanding many of the changes. Besides, the current IS300 market is getting better and better, as the used IS's are falling in price and current boosted owners are pushing there cars even more.
 
#21 ·
well I kinda started this a while ago and didn't get much reaction from people. http://my.is/forums/showthread.php?t=243566&highlight=direct+injection

That IS250 is going to be direct injection and that ECU is going to make the complexity of the current one look like OBDI. I know that people are going to be very reluctant to make a go of this thing for a while. The IS350 won't be direct injection from everything i've seen so there's a glimmer of hope on that.

the bottom line is, the shop that will do it first is the one that will have the time and a customer willing to spend the money to be first.
 
#22 · (Edited)
MDunderPSI said:
Yeah, the 2JZ history def played into that. Besides, who is going to be the first tuner to get a new IS350 engine and stress test it? Then break it a part and build it back up... going to take time indeed.
Definitely...would someone choose to have the first Turbo IS350 and put it on the market without proper testing/reliability, then have the thing break 6 months down the road on all of their kits? Or would they wait awhile to have a kit thats reliable, and win in the long run?

PS - love that quote in your signature (I have a BS in Business Economics from University of Florida ;))
 
#23 ·
IS_Dude said:
The IS350 won't be direct injection from everything i've seen so there's a glimmer of hope on that.
I respectfully disagree on that point. The 3.5-liter 2GR-FE V6 from the Toyota Avalon puts out 280 hp, whereas the 3.5 V6 in the Lexus IS350 will produce somewhere between 300 and 320 hp. That increase, most likely WILL come from direct injection.

As to how the 2006+ Lexus IS (and GS) GR-FSE engines can best be tuned/modded for more power, research should point us in 2 directions:

1) The Japanese Domestic Market, where these engines have been available for 1½-2 years now in the Toyota Crown and Mark X models. Unfortunately, there's the language barrier to contend with, and Google translations are often quite unintelligible.

2) The seemingly related GR-FE engines from not only the new Avalon (2GR-FE), but the 4-liter 1GR-FE available in Toyota's Tacoma, Tundra, 4Runner and upcoming FJ Cruiser models. I don't know to what extent the different displacements and the lack of direct injection in the GR-FE engines will complicate any "crossover" to the GR-FSE.
 
#25 ·
jruhi4 said:
I respectfully disagree on that point. The 3.5-liter 2GR-FE V6 from the Toyota Avalon puts out 280 hp, whereas the 3.5 V6 in the Lexus IS350 will produce somewhere between 300 and 320 hp. That increase, most likely WILL come from direct injection.

As to how the 2006+ Lexus IS (and GS) GR-FSE engines can best be tuned/modded for more power, research should point us in 2 directions:

1) The Japanese Domestic Market, where these engines have been available for 1½-2 years now in the Toyota Crown and Mark X models. Unfortunately, there's the language barrier to contend with, and Google translations are often quite unintelligible.

2) The seemingly related GR-FE engines from not only the new Avalon (2GR-FE), but the 4-liter 1GR-FE available in Toyota's Tacoma, Tundra, 4Runner and upcoming FJ Cruiser models. I don't know to what extent the different displacements and the lack of direct injection in the GR-FE engines will complicate any "crossover" to the GR-FSE.
well, that will be interesting if it is, but I'll believe it when it hits the showroom w/ d/i. I think it will be cool, but I think if it does happen the tuner market in the F/I realm will lag seriously behind. Why devote time to it, if it's that much easier to focus on a 350z or EVO or STI?

for the tuner market i hope you're wrong, but I'd say, regretfully, you are probably right.
 
#26 ·
Im was thinking about a 350 as my next car but first you hear the motor can handle anything then you hear they are weak as hell so i dont know what to choose.

If i dont end up with a supra id imagine my next car wont be the IS350 im just not a big fan of its looks ill have to see what it can do once it comes out
 
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