The Perfect tuner sedan A car a desired for a very long time. Manual IS300. You were surprised how good it was... you should be. LSD, Manual and RWD you should have expected it to be good dont let the Lexus name and 4 doors foul you. This car is a beast waiting to be unleashed if you get the right parts
+Toyota4Life I would rather have the RS200 - 3S-GE and 6 Speed Manual although the 2JZ-GE has a bit more power - but over here (not sure in other places) the RS200 and aftermarket parts are widely available.
Yesss! Please add this onto the fleet. The IS300 is actually one of the cars I am thinking of purchasing for my next fun car. and would love to see your tthoughts!
@@grqmedia3489 same block as a gte 2jz. Can be modified with gte parts and minor block drilling to be exactly the same as a gte. In stock forms you are correct though
this is awesome I got a Millennium Silver Metallic 2005 Lexus IS300 can not wait to see the upgrades,Is this going to be a project we see more in the future on speed academy?
Ha... I was held up by that Smart Car several times that night! Nice to finally meet you guys and see the car (FRS) in person. Good luck in the 1500! See you at Mosport, I'll be doing some lapping.
LMAO!!!!! "Who brings a smart car to a lapping day". So quick story; One night I was going to the electronics store and I came up to a light. NOBODY around and I was in the car with the top down (s2000). Smart car pulls up next to us (buddy in the car with me) and eyeballs us. So we're like wtf. Dude PUTS ON his sunglasses and "peels" his targa top thingy back, all the while staring at us. Light turns green and he launches it. So we're DYING laughing, my buddy opens the door and is laughing to asphyxiation in the street. Turns out that damn thing was an electric version because all you heard was a little tire skitter then a slight whisper of emasculation..... EEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...
+Austin Nwaenyi haha Dave feels kinda bad about shit talking the Smart Car owner like that. He was actually really good about getting out of the way and wasn't the slowest car out there. Not sure if it was electric or diesel or gas.
+Luca Car Mods ya, the handling balance was actually surprisingly good. Understeer on turn-in but you can neutralize it with the throttle. It was a lot better than we expected, especially considering it has 300,000 km on it so the bushings are probably all pretty worn not to mention the dampers. It's going to love the new coilovers, we think!
Strange it's a 5 speed. In the uk all our is300s are autos but the IS200 (same body) the manuals all come with the same 6speed gearbox so you can use the slip diff off the sport is200 on any trim is200 manual
For a second you would see some very tuned IS's locally and in the Houston area. Then they just disappeared, I think people like the combination of luxury and sportiness. It's a good entry level car in my opinion and the TRD tuning etc is out there.
Awesome to see another IS300 on the road course I liked how mine felt a lot, and i also have FA500's and Figs control arms waiting to go on before I do another track day. What spring rates did you go with?
+Daniel Tojcic yup, Dave's tested several stock GTIs including a Wolfsburg Edition with DSG and a regular GTI with a manual gearbox. If you Google 'AutoGuide Lap Time Leaderboard' you'll find all of Dave's lap times in unmodified press vehicles including the GTIs. Best lap is about a 1:27.4. Handling balance was actually really good, and the interior is beautiful. It's a really nice car for the money.
+Dan Wall Hah, good question, Dan! I don't think Rick will be doing a build as extensive as we did with the ASS2k, but a lap time in the 1:22 or 1:23 range would be really nice in this car with basic bolt-ons and some stickier tires. Rick's thinking he'll get a second set of rims for track tires next year.
+Slobalt09 halfpound nope, you can get them with a manual, though they're kind of rare. The IS350 I believe was auto only, as are all Lexuses (Lexii? lol) these days. Cool thing about the IS300 is it has NA 2JZ but you can bolt the twin turbo motor and 6-speed Getrag manual gearbox right up.
+Speed Academy thanks for the info! I know people drop the 2jz in it all the time I just figured there was some tranny tunnel diggin to do for a 6speed. keep up the videos fellas, very informative and now I know to properly train for bucket seat harnesses. ..yoga!
+STEELERS743 seen him there a couple times now. Don't know the guy, but he's actually modified it a bit and it's not the slowest car out there. Dave was just being a bit of a drama queen when he caught up to it. The Smart Car driver is actually really good about getting out of the way of faster cars.
The Perfect tuner sedan
A car a desired for a very long time. Manual IS300. You were surprised how good it was... you should be. LSD, Manual and RWD you should have expected it to be good dont let the Lexus name and 4 doors foul you. This car is a beast waiting to be unleashed if you get the right parts
+Toyota4Life I would rather have the RS200 - 3S-GE and 6 Speed Manual although the 2JZ-GE has a bit more power - but over here (not sure in other places) the RS200 and aftermarket parts are widely available.
Toyota4Life w
I literally see you in every video
@Polymer Tools yes. I have had mine for 6 years now
Yesss! Please add this onto the fleet. The IS300 is actually one of the cars I am thinking of purchasing for my next fun car. and would love to see your tthoughts!
+Kevin Parra It's a great platform and comfortable too which makes it so great. We may do a few mods to Rick's next year.
I found stock suspension is soft, very soft. Alittle stiffer on the damper will help the car handling nicer.
"see how bad it really is"
Obviously knows NOTHING about the IS300... Its heavy but its no boat.
Modify it and its gonna destroy and haul ass. It can handle over 1400 hp since it has a 2jz engine.
AIMXDY not exactly this is a VVTI motor it’s a lot weaker than what’s in the supra. Still a good engine tho
@@grqmedia3489 same block as a gte 2jz. Can be modified with gte parts and minor block drilling to be exactly the same as a gte. In stock forms you are correct though
@@hasty-carnaage1518 Can the handling be made as good as the heavy hitters, like R34?
@@aimxdy8680 🤡🤡🤡
this is awesome I got a Millennium Silver Metallic 2005 Lexus IS300 can not wait to see the upgrades,Is this going to be a project we see more in the future on speed academy?
Ha... I was held up by that Smart Car several times that night! Nice to finally meet you guys and see the car (FRS) in person. Good luck in the 1500! See you at Mosport, I'll be doing some lapping.
You shouldn't be surprised that this car did okay on the track...it was the japanese answer to an e46 330i, and we all know that cars no slouch.
Yasss! Been looking into buying an IS myself. Really looking forward to this segment. Props guys .
LMAO!!!!! "Who brings a smart car to a lapping day". So quick story; One night I was going to the electronics store and I came up to a light. NOBODY around and I was in the car with the top down (s2000). Smart car pulls up next to us (buddy in the car with me) and eyeballs us. So we're like wtf. Dude PUTS ON his sunglasses and "peels" his targa top thingy back, all the while staring at us. Light turns green and he launches it.
So we're DYING laughing, my buddy opens the door and is laughing to asphyxiation in the street.
Turns out that damn thing was an electric version because all you heard was a little tire skitter then a slight whisper of emasculation..... EEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...
+Austin Nwaenyi haha Dave feels kinda bad about shit talking the Smart Car owner like that. He was actually really good about getting out of the way and wasn't the slowest car out there. Not sure if it was electric or diesel or gas.
I think the coilovers will improve the handling a lot! Now it's only under steering and on power it over steers.
+Luca Car Mods ya, the handling balance was actually surprisingly good. Understeer on turn-in but you can neutralize it with the throttle. It was a lot better than we expected, especially considering it has 300,000 km on it so the bushings are probably all pretty worn not to mention the dampers. It's going to love the new coilovers, we think!
Lol 300k on stock dampers that's an accomplishment on it's own!
Strange it's a 5 speed. In the uk all our is300s are autos but the IS200 (same body) the manuals all come with the same 6speed gearbox so you can use the slip diff off the sport is200 on any trim is200 manual
You can drive man! Nice.
I am picking one of these up soon, can’t wait!!
looking forward to the install and re-lapping videos! mini tuner series so-to-speak. Dave, have you ever run a
its a w55 so yes there are long gear ratios i had a w58 in my supra and the gearing was good for me
Can you guys do a follow up with the IS300 please
its funny how a fairly quick car is considered slow after driving mad cars like skylines and supras
+LennyFont That's how it always goes haha.
took me a while to find my manual is300. Loving it like i knew i would, but it is a very quiet car with the stock exhaust. I kinda like quiet tho.
+J is300 Sweet! They are rare gems.
Jayy's Daily i
For a second you would see some very tuned IS's locally and in the Houston area. Then they just disappeared, I think people like the combination of luxury and sportiness. It's a good entry level car in my opinion and the TRD tuning etc is out there.
+Mister McGill We like it too, it really is a solid platform to mod and still drive daily.
Right on, if you take a look at some tuned ones you'll definitely see that it's a really composed chassis.
got mine for 4200, 137k miles was it good deal haha?
MoistCheeto Damn I'd kill for a deal like that
in my country it would cost double of that, sucks seeing how incredibly cheap the same cars are in other countries
if manual and not raped, yeah good deal.
great ass2000 project. I also own a is300 so I'm excited to see the progress. thanks
+Joey Vang We've got a video coming with the coilovers installed later this week. :D
Peter Tarach
That's awesome I cant wait to watch it. Thanks for making the IS300 a project.
very nice!! Please do a full build on this car if you can, it's very convenient to have 4 doors 😉
+k24hybrid you'll see more of it next year, since Rick wants to do some power adders.
+Speed Academy ho!! very cool !!!
Awesome to see another IS300 on the road course
I liked how mine felt a lot, and i also have FA500's and Figs control arms waiting to go on before I do another track day. What spring rates did you go with?
+Suds We havent ordered the coilovers yet but the next video will explain exactly what we used.
+Suds we ended up going 13k front 9k rear. Video coming very soon with a track test :)
+Speed Academy any regrets on the 9k rear? seems like it could have been stiffer?
I'm thinking 14/12 might be good?
+Suds any update? how do you like the FA500s and figs parts?
have you ever run a GTI at that track? If so, what type of lap times are expected?
+Daniel Tojcic yup, Dave's tested several stock GTIs including a Wolfsburg Edition with DSG and a regular GTI with a manual gearbox. If you Google 'AutoGuide Lap Time Leaderboard' you'll find all of Dave's lap times in unmodified press vehicles including the GTIs. Best lap is about a 1:27.4. Handling balance was actually really good, and the interior is beautiful. It's a really nice car for the money.
These cars should have potential
+touge410 We heard they are limited in terms of suspension design but we'll find out!
+Speed Academy oh, that's interesting. I guess we shall find out lol
+Speed Academy doesn't it have double wishbone?
Double wishbone front, multi-link rear.
Wtf is that shift knob...?
Doesn't the is300 come with a 2j
this is the 3s one i think
It would be a 2JZ-GE (non turbo 2jz)
+RB26 likeaboss Cant be a 3S if its an IS300.The numbers are indicative of the motor capacity(3L),so it must be a 2JZ-GE like SDH said :)
ohhhhhh. right. i knew that. KNEW.
ok ok dont hit me please :P
Can you guys help me? How would I 2JZ-GTE in my is300? Should be easier than BMW
mine is automatic .. is there much difference
mine revs high in auto mode
Cool vid! for a sec i thought this was a TheSmoking Tire video haha keep it up
+Integra DIY TMP One Take, haha
Wow, learn something new everyday... I thought all ISes came with V6s... 2J? That's pretty cool.
This looks really intresting
The 4 door Supra!
How does this car fare on the freeway around 100 mph; are the RPM’s too high to cruise at that speed
Simon Gratkowski at 100 in 5th gear your above 4.5k rpm. Even cruising at 80 I’m right above 3k rpm. It’s not great at high speeds
so if the ass2000 was aiming at lapping faster than a jag. What's the target for l-ass300? an m3? ;)
+Dan Wall Hah, good question, Dan! I don't think Rick will be doing a build as extensive as we did with the ASS2k, but a lap time in the 1:22 or 1:23 range would be really nice in this car with basic bolt-ons and some stickier tires. Rick's thinking he'll get a second set of rims for track tires next year.
Hey guys. Does the is300 came only in auto mayby its the is200?
+Sebastian Sosnowski in Canada the IS300 was available with a 5-speed manual. We didn't get the IS200 here.
+Speed Academy sweet this is 2jz from supra yes?
this is gona be interesting
Is $5500 a good price for an is300 with 170k miles? I've seen some as high as 190k going for more where I'm from (east coast)
its not worth it if u cant afford one under 10,000 miles. gonna cost more to fix as lexus parts are more expensive
No. Get a better deal. I got mine for $5300 110k
i have bought one with 200k and it has been bushed badly redlined so many times still runs great those 2js really hold up
What does trac off do? i always leave it
2JZ GE ? If it is, good base for insane power very easily ! ;)
damn manual is300 in canada, they are pretty rare
+Frankie G Yes, indeed! Took Rick a while to find.
Rick and Dave could pass for brothers! You guys aren't brothers right?
Not brothers, but I agree we're both extremely handsome! 😜
Not brothers, but I agree we're both extremely handsome!
Not brothers, but I agree we're both extremely handsome!
+maximus9401 clearly Dave has a stutter today. Cut back on the coffee, Dave!
Are we done here already?
Boost the hell outta hit
Its a na 2jz. Maybe 320hp with a gte headgasket, after that you need to build it.
3:50 That's so mean... Smart car is RR after all. :)
I thought these things only came auto?
+Slobalt09 halfpound nope, you can get them with a manual, though they're kind of rare. The IS350 I believe was auto only, as are all Lexuses (Lexii? lol) these days. Cool thing about the IS300 is it has NA 2JZ but you can bolt the twin turbo motor and 6-speed Getrag manual gearbox right up.
+Speed Academy thanks for the info! I know people drop the 2jz in it all the time I just figured there was some tranny tunnel diggin to do for a 6speed. keep up the videos fellas, very informative and now I know to properly train for bucket seat harnesses. ..yoga!
+Speed Academy urrg knew it came with 2jz, figured there was chopping for manual**... long hot day at work :p
+Slobalt09 halfpound You thought wrong. I believe the Manual version was a full second and change faster to 60 then the Auto
+Toyota4Life learn something new everyday aye?
Boost the hell outta it
This is the same car as my dad's
manual is300
Haha someone is tracking a smart car! That has got to be a joke.
+STEELERS743 seen him there a couple times now. Don't know the guy, but he's actually modified it a bit and it's not the slowest car out there. Dave was just being a bit of a drama queen when he caught up to it. The Smart Car driver is actually really good about getting out of the way of faster cars.
Not a hot lap if you can talk while driving 😬
Lmao a smart car... Some ppl
+Yo Fizzle It's an interesting choice as a track car but hey, to each their own!
Smart car! Haha
God damn smart car. Pretty fucking stupid to me. Especially on a track. Might as well be a fucking cyclist!
it is a is200 because it is a manual if it is an is300 it only comes in auto
um... no...
Turbosauce that guy sounds so damn dumb 😂😂
IS300 offered in manual 2002-2005. US spec anyway.
Under 301 lol
Boost the hell outta it