Flat Tire - A First Time for Everything

Yes, it's true - in my over 20 years of driving I've never had a flat tire. Until just last week, when on the way home from Yokota Air Base, my Chinese made "RUPSE" Tire Pressure Monitor System started going bananas.  In the past, on a hot day it had indicated a problem, but when I parked the car and drove on a cooler day, it was fine.

So when the TPMS started flashing again indicating a fault in the right rear tire, luckily I was going slow enough to pull over and take a look. The right rear tire looked fine, but just in case I looked at the other rear tire and... yep it was pretty flat (the sensors had been switched left to right on installation. Oh well). Tire gauge indicated a 1.5 when all other tires were 2.5.

As I was hoping for a slow leak, I pulled into a gas station, had the tire inflated back up to 2.5, and then drove home. The TPMS warning went away, but then as I approached my house I noticed the air pressure number for the right rear (in reality the left rear) tire dropping. And of course, the next morning the the tire was flat with the rim on the ground, with only the rubber of the tire between it and the ground.

So I went off to work, and during the day called the dealer to see if they could help. Their idea was, with a slow leak I could either inflate the tire myself (or mount the spare) and then drive over, and they would see if they could repair the tire. So that's exactly what I did - I left work early, used a portable electric pump and filled up the tire, and drove to the Lexus dealer, thankfully only about 1.3 km away from my house.

After enjoying the free drink and snack, they invited me back to the workshop to check out what was going on.

Super clean, wish the Nissan dealer was like this too...

 Surprisingly, they found a nail in the tire, but that wasn't the cause of the leak. When they dunked the tire in soapy water, they found the source of the leak.

Looks like something wedged in there. 

 Luckily, because it wasn't on the side of the tire, it was repairable.

But look at what it was!

Broken off knife blade!

It appeared to be a broken off utility knife blade.  So they plugged up the leak and told me it was a temporary fix, and sent me on my way.

Now, I DID ask about what tires to get next - the car is on Michelin Pilot Super Sports, and while those are still in stock, for not much more I could get the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, which is the follow on model to the Super Sports. Unfortunately, the dealer wanted about 80,000 yen per tire (or about $800 each!) while I could shop online and get each tire for less than half that price. So guess what I'll be doing soon...

Except of course I have other expenses in my life right now, so as long as this repaired tire holds (the dealer showed me I have about 4mm of tread life left until each tire hits the wear bars on the tire), I'm going to try to hold out...

A Short Trip Up To Nagano... and the Prince & Skyline Museum

...and the Prince & Skyline Museum!

I'll post more on the museum itself on my R33 GT-R page later, but wanted to include some photos that just came out right!

Yamanashi and Nagano Prefectures are VERY green this time of year, and with a bit of rainfall the scenery was even more interesting (check out the clouds) and pretty.  Bonus was all the fresh air...

Found a neat bridge with red railings. Had to stop and take some photos! 

Found a look out point a few kms later...

Here was the view... the kind of green I don't see in Yokohama!

Another nice bridge

Still think the carbon lip really balances the car...

Towards the end of the day, found this road...

Had some fun on a gravel road....

Got out to check it out and what a great picture here

Of course this will need a wash....

 Anyway it's been a while since I drove this car so much (over 450km in one day) and this blog also needed an update.

Until next time...

LEMS Carbon Fiber Lip Spoiler Install

So this is indicative of how long it's been since I last updated this blog (for real, not the sticker stuff in my last post) - this mod was done last July 9 (2017!!)! So over a year ago! Sorry friends, but obviously I don't do much for this car compared to the GT-R so updates don't seem as urgent...now that the car is off warranty (as a CPO car, it had a comprehensive warranty that expired in August 2018), I'm itching to do some stuff to bring out the car's best.

Anyway, soon after I bought the car, I was researching the various types of cosmetic mods - such as carbon fiber front lips (and other body part) options, and stumbled upon LEMS. There are other companies here in Japan that do Lexus stuff too such as NOVEL and ThinkDesign but each seems to have their own speciality. For example, ThinkDesign has some very tasty interior parts, and NOVEL has the market cornered with race developed engine and suspension mods.

The car without the carbon lip spoiler

So one day I was casually looking at items on Yahoo Auction, and found the item below, being sold by LEMS themselves (I could tell as the Seller ID was different but the address was LEMS).  The lip spoiler was being offered for substantially less than retail price of over 220,000 yen, so I figured maybe it was a one off or maybe slightly damaged.

When I got the box, it didn't inspire much confidence on the contents.

But yes a genuine LEMS product, with these instructions...

Wow. Gorgeous weave. Too bad this is on the UNDERSIDE and can't be seen

I had my friend Alessandro come over to help. 

The white stuff is clear silicon, not glue!

The lip spoiler is very well made. In fact, I could have simply slipped it on and it would have stayed on. But I went ahead and used some silicon as you can see in the above photo. First, I didn't want any water accumulating. Second, and more importantly, I was concerned about scratches to the bumper paint.  So we just slipped on the lip spoiler and I think there were a couple of screws on the outer sides, and voila!

One of the easiest mods I've ever done. Didn't even need to lift the car up (had jack stands ready just in case)

Really makes the car look better!

Verdict - great mod! Makes the front end of the car look much sharper and lower to the ground. I've only scraped a couple of times in tower parking lots as I'm going up or down a steep ramp, but the scratches aren't noticeable.

I'd say the problem now is, I am very tempted to add more carbon to the front of the car... it can certainly use more of it!!

Yes I'm Alive and I've Done Some Mods!

But I've been too lazy to post here. As readers of my GT-R blog know, an incident last year dealing with a complete fraud of an alarm shop, really took away a lot of my passion I have towards my cars.

But, the guilt for not posting. So, here's one item to ponder.

Which sticker should go on the IS-F, versus my GT-R? I'm thinking of the blue sticker, as it will match the Lexus.

And as for why Air Force? Well message me to find out!

Some More Parts to Improve the Car...

In my quest to improve my IS-F in the most efficient manner possible, I have been slowly collecting some parts over the past year or so which I thought would bring me the best bang for the buck. Because I haven't been as good at updating this blog as my GT-R blog, I'm going to simply lay out all of these parts.

First -  I decided to replace the OEM halogen fog lights with later year (2011-2014?) OEM LED fog lights - just plug and play...

Before

Much whiter!

And yes my car wasn't clean when I took this photo...

As for performance of LED vs halogen, hard to say really. They are mounted so low and act only to fill in the dark space under the headlights so I think the effect is more of a visual, than performance difference. Oh well, wasn't that expensive and it gives a more modern look...

I had also learned from Yamada-san at CREF (where I had the clear film installed) that when Toyota was developing the IS-F, they found that the large amount of power meant that the rear subframe would actually move and cause some instability, and that this was especially noticeable on a rain slick track. So, Spoon Sports developed the Rigid Collar kit for the ISF.

Just a few collars...

For anyone not familiar with the Rigid Collar concept, here is a video link that describes how they work.

Yes it sounds too good to be true, but yes they work and I will go into more detail in a future post about what they did for my car's handling. I had gotten them for my GT-R and was suitably impressed so the lack of internet feedback on their use on the IS-F didn't bother me.

I had also read on the ClubLexus forum how the Apex'i throttle controller made the car feel much more responsive (but not necessarily faster - but that's ok, I just want something more responsive!). So, I ordered one and the car-specific harness.

From: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-f-2008-2014/626697-apexi-throttle-control-installed-i-love-it-d-2.html

In a later post, I'll discuss this part - all I will say for now is, it really is worth getting!

Finally, some bling - I found something in my closet that I had ordered when I first ordered the car, but was not delivered in time for the dealer to install it, a dry carbon fiber rear license plate frame from LEMS.

Two photos from their website (as I was too lazy to unwrap it before handing it Ninomiya-san to install):

Side facing out

Body side

Here is the rear license plate before:

... and now afterwards! 

As you can see in Japan, there is this metal "cap" on the upper left bolt that has to be installed by special tooling (available only at the DMV). So Ninomiya-san had to make a quick trip in order to get it done... but I think the results are worth it!

Now I have to decide whether to splurge on a matching dry carbon fiber FRONT license plate frame and/or a rear trunk lip spoiler...but before that, one more piece of (possibly functional?) bling... stay tuned!

Sunny Day Means a Wash and Detail!

Right before Japan's raining season (late June and July), I happened to be home on a weekend where I had some free time. And it was nice and sunny.

I had recently noticed some minute scratching in the paint surface, so in addition to giving the car a wash, I decided some work with an orbital buffer would also be good.

Using, of course, my favorite car care products from Zaino.

I know, it's not good to dry in the sun. I had to move fast...

Loe how the water still beads even though I don't wax the car regularly. This is the Zaino AIO in action (plus the occasional Z-9 or Z-7 instant detailer spray)

Blinded by the light!!

Another shot - I wonder if I should get an OEM carbon fiber trunk lip spoiler? 

Here in Japan, with our narrow streets, I had to park and not block the main street!

All done! Hard to tell the gloss though...

Here we go. 

So what do you think? Shiny enough? I think the Lexus has very high quality paint, which makes cleaning up and looking good so much easier...

Suspension Upgrade (Part 2)

Anyway, after I finished drooling over the red LC500, I let them take the IS-F in to have the OEM Tokico dampers replaced with the late model OEM Sachs (ZF) dampers.  I was keeping my fingers crossed, because although the guy on the ClubLexus forum swore it was a worthy upgrade... well, the Internet is only as true as you believe it to be.

This time, no GS-F loaner car. However, they did let me borrow this for the day:

IS300h. 

I still don't like how the rear end looks. Oh, and the wheels look tiny!

The interior... well I DID like the LFA inspired dash...

As I had a few chores to run, I actually drove the car into Tokyo. It's a decent highway cruiser, but after the IS-F, I need more POWER!  As expected, the build quality was great, but without the Mark Levinson stereo, the sound quality was just mediocre. Really!

The next day, when I went to pick up the IS-F, I saw THIS parked at the dealer...

No no, keep it!

 The techs had loaded up all the used parts into the back of my car's trunk:

I like the way that, even though my car has an aftermarket rubber mat, they still "wrapped" everything they loaded up with the large white foam sheet. So Japan...(ZF = Sachs)

And the results? The moment I began to drive to leave the dealership, I immediately noticed the difference. Firm, but way softer. Then, I driving home I noticed how the car was able to absorb small bumps much much better.  

Finally, a few days later on the expressway the car was AMAZING on the curves, the tighter it got, the better. What I mean is that, the car before was stiff. Just stiff. So the car would bounce excessively on bumps, and at speed a loss of confidence as it felt a bit unpredictable. Now however as a curve approaches I can feel the outside front wheel "bite" as the weight transfer happens to the outside. This "bite" gives better road feedback and thus more of a sense of what the car is doing. The car feels flatter too, strangely, and better planted to the road.

Don't get me wrong, the car is still very firmly sprung but I suspect the spring rate is a bit reduced and there is longer suspension stroke, at least in the rear.  So, a very worthy modification if you insist on keeping OEM and don't care about ride height.

Update - I just googled and found this article from Edmunds analyzing the changes made to the IS-F suspension. I am pretty sure that when the dealer did the alignment they did NOT give the car the rear  camber adjustment as per the 2011 model, but I will ask next time I take the car in...