007 Lexus-Building the Ultimate LS400

[ColoradoRon]

OK, so Ive built lots of cars/trucks and have always had my eye on a LS400. I happened to land a LS400 the other day so its time to build it the way I always wanted. Before we start, please dont tell me how it cant be done, I know there are plenty of obstacles. If it was going to be easy I wouldn't be interested.

Background:
I travel a lot! Long cross-country trips. I wanted a car that was super comfy to drive, hence the LS400. But when Im home I drive fast, canyon carve through the Rocky Mountains, drag race from time to time, and looking to race the Pikes Peak Hill Climb one day. And yes, I want to knock it all out in my LS400 all while looking mostly stock-THE ULTIMATE SLEEPER. Hence the nick name of 007. The car that can do it all.

Input will help out a lot on how to get this achieved.

My ideas so far:
Looking to drop it 2 inches, coilovers, and 18 inch wheels. Either LS or GS 430 wheels.

Engine, Ive given the car full tuneup and replaced all maintenance items. Plugs, wires, oil change, fuel filter, air filter, temp sensor, flushed tranny, etc. Its running great. Ive had a NOS system sitting around for quite sometime that I bought for another project. So looking to run 150 shot. Motor is sitting at 185k miles. Plan on installing a shift kit after my next road trip.

My main questions for now are

1: What is the best coilover setup to maintain a decent ride for long distant cruising but still handle corners decently.
2: Im wanting to remove factory stereo and replace with iPad mini. Does anyone know anyone that could handle that? I really suck in the audio dept. Willing to travel for the right install.
3: Ive heard the 4.7 shortblock is a fairly close swap. Anyone done this and maintained 4.0 topend? Power difference?

Thanks for any help in building this car!

 

[spf_lexus]

Welcome Ron,

1. I had a set of JIC coilovers on my 1991 LS400 and they were top shelf. Not cheap, but very high performance (roughly $2000). With coilovers on an LS, 120+mph lane changes are very flat and stable. There are plenty of coilovers available for the LS: (Megan, JIC, stance, D2, Cusco, etc). When it comes to quality I can vouch for the JIC's as being extremely durable and well built. I almost totalled my LS (all suspension destroyed) but the JIC's were as solid as the day I bought them. I drove them 4 years+ and they never wore out or leaked. Most of this was commuting from CA to CO (pueblo) for college.

2. I know that you can use an iPad as a display in place of the OEM stereo however it would most likely require an aftermarket deck that will allow a "video out" so that the iPad displays everything. Any reputable stereo shop should be able to fill in most of the blanks here.

3. The 4.7L swap is not a direct swap but is fairly straightforward. First, the 4.7l 2UZ pistons will have to be modified or replaced with performance pistons in order to clear the 4.0l 1uz head. Its not a cheap swap but its been done. Gains would be: much more low end torque (earlier on), as well as top end. Maybe 40bhp and 40btq more or so with a tune?



By far the cheapest, easiest and most reliable power adder for the LS is to add a centrifugal supercharger and use Lextreme's "fish" bracket. This can be found under the products tab of this site. The bracket fits a Vortech or Procharger and is very reasonable price wise. low boost of 5-6psi yields over 300hp at the wheels which translates into just under 400bhp. I have put together a few of these kits and they can be assembled for roughly $1500. Ebay has vortechs/prochargers for low prices quite often and a blower for $500-$750 isnt out of reach. The good deals sell fast so best advice is to check ebay/craigslist often. Hope this helps some.

 

[4U2QUIK]

if you get a amp amd a rca to 1.5mm jack adaptopr you can plug the ipad directly into a aftermarket amp without any issues.

 

[ColoradoRon]

Thanks for the posts guys.

I just did a round trip from Denver to Houston. After 3300 miles I have a better feel for what I want.

Thanks for the heads up on the centrifugal chargers, I wasnt aware that a plate was being made. I agree that is the best route. Ill be relocating the battery shortly to prepare for innercooler.

Ill look into those coilovers. I looked under the car and dont seem to have air ride so should be an easy swap.

 

[ColoradoRon]

Also have an annoying exhaust leak, so that is at the top of list. Anyone know of a header and full exhaust system that would work well with a supercharged LS400?

 

[spf_lexus]

Ron,

The only company selling headers for the LS is PPE and they run betweem $650 and $700. All the exhaust systems available for the LS start at the mid catalyst (just after the first Y merge). Best route on cat backs or header backs would be custom as its cheaper in most cases. Best bang/buck is deleting 2 of the 4 rear mufflers as its good for 5-10hp easy. FYI, the best pipe size on a naturally aspirated 1UZ is 2.25" dual.. any larger and you lose more tq than is gained. FI is a different story.

 

[spf_lexus]

Sorry forgot that you are supercharged. 2.5" dual would be the best size.

 

[ColoradoRon]

Since I'm going supercharger will I see much benefit from the $700pair of headers?

 

[spf_lexus]

Yes! On a stock engine you can expect 20whp and 20wtq. When boosted, the gains will be even higher. Stock manifolds are very very restrictive.

 

[XR8tt]

Since I'm going supercharger will I see much benefit from the $700pair of headers?

Yes more so over N/A engine !!

 

[ColoradoRon]

I assume by PPE you guys are talking about this site: http://www.ppeengineering.com/

Unfortunately it is down. Hopefully it's only temporary.

Everytime I find some 18 inch Lexus wheels on Craigslist they are gone before I catch it! Ahhh!

Does anyone know if the newer wood grain shifter can replace our old leather wrapped?

 

[spf_lexus]

Its probably a website issue. I just bought a set of PPE headers a couple months ago. You can also get them here as well: http://shopfigs.com/v1/index.php?route=product/product&path=63_62&product_id=163