Vincent123; LS400 build

[Vincent123]

So Ive had a gs300 and a 2jzgte / v160 swapped sc300. Both the gs / sc are sold now and now I've picked up a 1999 ls400. Ive had the car for approximately 4-5 months so far, havent really done too much but I wanted a place to dump all my photos and keep track of everything. So why not make a "build" thread.

I dont have any pics of when I first bought the car. But the factory rims were bugging me and I came across a set of 370z rims for pretty cheap and picked them up. There is about like a 1 or 2mm clearance for my brakes with these rims, got lucky. Picked up some megan lp sport coilovers and tinted the car and hit up my homie for a photoshoot

http://i56.tinypic.com/1g4zec.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/14wwp75.jpg


Also picked up a set of front + rear youzealand ss kit. It lowered the car 20mm more all around to get rid of that wheel gap

http://i54.tinypic.com/z7adt.jpg



Then went over to mikes muffler and got a 2.25" piping all the way back and removed the resonator and first two mufflers. The two rear mufflers are still in place, will be replaced soon. Still too quiet

http://i53.tinypic.com/ji19ap.jpg


So my factory stereo screen display stopped working and wasnt showing any numbers. So I decided to replace it with aftermarket double din.
Pioneer Avic Z120bt
Infinity 860w
Infinity Kappa Five
Polk Audio db651
Metra dash kit

Still not installed yet, waiting on the wire harness before I send it to the shop to get installed

http://i54.tinypic.com/mv3x90.jpg


Ended up fatmatting my entire trunk, trunk lid, rear seat, and rear deck
Only have pics of the trunk though, forgot to take pics of the other locations
Sorry, i'm not baller enough to afford dynamat haha


http://i51.tinypic.com/2cegtau.jpg


Then I traded my weds kranze shoki's for a set of fabulous profounds 19"

http://i51.tinypic.com/2ptpa2s.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/sfdvlk.jpg



Did a quick test fit, going to need a spacer up front to clear my brakes. The rears I havent taken a pic of but will need atleast a 25mm spacer. Dropped the rims off to get refinished and will post more pics of it on the car when I get it back

http://i53.tinypic.com/nltugp.jpg


Picked up these headlights from joe 2 days ago.
LS460 low beam w/ sti clear lens
FX35 bi-xenon w/ color mod
Clear turn signals

Right now its 4300k but i'm still debating if I should do a 6000k or not


http://i54.tinypic.com/aacdnb.jpg




Recently just got a oil change, transmission flush, diff oil change, spark plug change, brakes bled, and coolant temp sensor. Maintenance should be ok for now, until it hits 90k

Thats it for now, i'll post more in this thread as I get more done to my car.

[Vincent123]

Put on new mufflers today and had them tuck up the exhaust even more coz I kept scraping it

FullBoar 14" straight through muffler

http://i53.tinypic.com/29gk0gj.jpg


Out with the old, in with the new

http://i52.tinypic.com/t6v8xs.jpg

2.25 all the way back
magnaflow x pipe
resonator delete
first two muffler delete
fullboar muffler 14"

http://i56.tinypic.com/987nz6.jpg

[Vincent123]

Heres some pics of my previous cars. vip GS300, white turbo miata NA, and the black 2jzgte / v160 6 speed SC300

http://i52.tinypic.com/2yljv5t.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/332savp.jpg
http://i55.tinypic.com/2ahfpqb.jpg

[driftsucky]

Wow. Coming along nicely. I'm excited to see where this goes.

[BAHC]

good to see you here from vsc..the miata was a bit goofy, but i was always a fan of the GS. interested to see what comes out of this build!

[Vincent123]

good to see you here from vsc..the miata was a bit goofy, but i was always a fan of the GS. interested to see what comes out of this build!

Thanks, the miata was a phase coz I was bored of the GS. But it only lasted like a few months then I moved on

[Vincent123]

Got a chance to install my system today. Snapped some pics, please dont comment on the quality, it was all taken with my camera phone.

Tear down begins
http://i55.tinypic.com/20jlovn.jpg

Drill hole and install backup camera
http://i56.tinypic.com/22fbmc.jpg

Infinity kappa five amp, hidden in the trunk
http://i56.tinypic.com/23hvwnc.jpg

mockup off the car
http://i52.tinypic.com/v7b2wk.jpg

Pioneer avic z120bt installed
http://i55.tinypic.com/9tz8d1.jpg


I didnt get a chance to take a pic of the subwoofer installed on the rear deck. But this little 8" hits hard. Now i'm kicking myself for being too lazy to put sound deadening on the top of the rear deck. Only did the bottom of the rear deck. Got some rattles, hopefully more sound deadening will help

[BlameBigM]

Cars look great and cant wait to see the build thread for the LS400 its gonna be sick....

[Flu5hBuDdi3]

sick build thread cant wait to see whats instore lol

[Fitted1]

I got mad love for the LS400's

[Ninjawagon]

nice ride

[Vincent123]

Finally got my wheels back from the refinishing shop. Mounted tires on the rear pair today, gonna do my front's tomorrow

http://i55.tinypic.com/2dme06v.jpg

[Don Henley]

Looking good

[jzz30dk]

car is looking sweet man. looks like those wheels fit pretty nice

[driftsucky]

dopeness. I absolutely LOOOOOOVE build threads. It's so cool to see the progression. Looking good man. Looking good.

[Vincent123]

So I threw on the front rims, but they needed a spacer to clear. I slapped on my 5mm but it still wouldnt clear and I didnt want to go past a 5mm for lack of spins on the lugnut. So I decided to call some buddies over and we grinded down my calipers on the area's that it was hitting so the wheel would clear.
Overall grinded about 3mm and it barely clears the wheel now, the most I can slide between the caliper and the spokes is a sheet of paper

http://i53.tinypic.com/zv7m1y.jpg

I didnt want to have my caliper expose bare metal, looked incomplete. So I decided to paint my calipers.
Went to autozone and picked up a few things
Duplicolor metal specks (silver)
Plastikote Flexible spot filler and primer (grey)
Rustoleum Engine Enamel 500 degree high temp clear coat

http://i54.tinypic.com/255lxzs.jpg

Didnt take pics of each step, just pics of each spray
Heres the primer on

http://i52.tinypic.com/11ccih0.jpg

Heres a layer of the metal specks silver on

http://i54.tinypic.com/k53fk3.jpg

Finished, put the wheel back on

http://i54.tinypic.com/2aamzvq.jpg

Upclose shot. When the flash hits the paint all the flakes show up

http://i54.tinypic.com/14ka7hy.jpg

And this is where my baby sleeps at night

http://i54.tinypic.com/296j0b8.jpg

[Vincent123]

My homie snapped a quick pic today for me, thought i'd share it with you guys
Check out his flickr
http://www.flickr.com/photos/julian_morales/


http://i51.tinypic.com/9qxxg1.jpg

[dunne]

not usually a fan of these cars, but im loving this one, great job.

[Vincent123]

I appreciate it man. Gonna send it out to get fully detailed on thursday and maybe i'll be back with another photoshoot or two

[Vincent123]

My homie finished up some more pics

http://i56.tinypic.com/10s98pu.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/mkk5sx.jpg
http://i53.tinypic.com/2qu801t.jpg

[Vincent123]

So after I put on the fabulous profounds, it lowered my car about 1.5" just due to sidewall height. Went from a 225/50/18 to a 225/35/19
And because of that, I would scrape my exhaust on every driveway. And I already had it tucked up, apparently not enough. So I went to my local muffler shop and got it taken care of

My car on their rack

http://i51.tinypic.com/e878kn.jpg

The main problem area, hung about 1 inch or so below the frame

http://i52.tinypic.com/2iarb6q.jpg

Cutting off the x-pipe and rear portion

http://i56.tinypic.com/2qtiz2c.jpg

Removed the main heatshield right above the x-pipe. It prevented me from going any higher so it was removed. I may or may not put on some exhaust wrap tubing depending on if i feel any excess heat coming into the cabin

http://i53.tinypic.com/2hpimoh.jpg

2x4 laid flat against the frame. Now my piping clears the frame by about 2 inches or so. So if I scrape anything now, i'll be scraping frame

http://i55.tinypic.com/25f4myb.jpg

All completed

http://i51.tinypic.com/293hd6q.jpg

Oh and one of my friends dropped by to adjust his mufflers on his full exhaust system
Porsche Panamera Turbo

http://i54.tinypic.com/2ujjghk.jpg

Upskirt

http://i54.tinypic.com/2ugdrvk.jpg

[The Skipper]

ls lookin sick. love those fabs on it. ur boy with the panamera gonna dump it?

[98z24ragtop]

Damn! Sick LS! I love the pearl white calipers and custom touches. Those pics your buddy took came out amazingly! I love the petals on the hood and scattered around. Very classy touch! Great work!

[Vincent123]

My fusa came in yesterday. Thanks to sean @ jdmpalace!

http://i54.tinypic.com/28aqb85.jpg



Got my car fully detailed this morning
I have my 370z wheels up front coz I sent one of the front wheels back for minor touch up. There was still a bit of curb rash, but I should have it back by tomorrow or this weekend hopefully

http://i51.tinypic.com/xgek1z.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/10yqmo4.jpg
http://i54.tinypic.com/1z236fp.jpg

[Vincent123]

Damn! Sick LS! I love the pearl white calipers and custom touches. Those pics your buddy took came out amazingly! I love the petals on the hood and scattered around. Very classy touch! Great work!

Thanks alot, i'll be sure to tell him you enjoyed the pics. Btw the calipers are silver ;)

[Vincent123]

Got an alignment today finally. Good thing I did it before I mess up my brand new tires lol
Pretty difficult getting up the rack, scraped frame the whole way up even with 2x4's. And my rear tires would spin and shoot the 2x4's out from under the car so many times. Had to sit in the trunk and have ppl push the car up onto the rack

Specs are now -2.5 camber front and -4.5 camber rear. All factory adjustments
Ppl are telling me to get toe as close to 0.00 as possible but the alignment guy said that he put it under oem specs

http://i53.tinypic.com/dw6fch.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/2i7l9mv.jpg
http://i54.tinypic.com/167p2kj.jpg

[Vincent123]

Got my car shot last night by my homie Jordan Mo
Check his flickr, up and coming photographer.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdm_shots/

If anyone in 626 needs a photoshoot, I can arrange shoots for you. Shoot me a PM


http://i51.tinypic.com/smr1ah.jpg

[BlackestCoupe]

Damn you do work son, keep it up!

[Vincent123]

Thanks man, I try. My other homie did a full blown photoshoot of my car tonight. I'll be posting those up once hes finished with them

[Vincent123]

Deciding on what exhaust tips to go with. So far Ive decided on quad tips but still unsure if i want 3" tips or 3.5" tips

[06RawRsx]

O my gawd! this car is so perfect. Great work, and also your previous cars are awesome too.

[Vincent123]

Thanks man, really appreciate it

[Vincent123]

feature is up!
http://fatlace.com/slammedsociety/hella ... rclassmen/ (http://fatlace.com/slammedsociety/hellaflush/upperclassmen/)

[Vincent123]

So I didnt like how the rear end of my car looked so empty with no tips visible. So I decided to do something about it. Ordered some quad tips, I actually ordered 2 set of quads coz I didnt know which one to go with. But I decided on these, the other set will be for sale in a little bit along with my mufflers. Gonna go straight pipe with these tips.

Gonna cut my rear bumper this weekend and get the tips tucked up flush against the rear bumper cutout opening. I'll probably have them extended about 2-3" from the rear bumper, no more than that or I cant fit in my garage


Here they are laying on the ground

http://i52.tinypic.com/at3pt.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/rm6xcl.jpg

[Vincent123]

Decided to take a exhaust vid before I went straight pipe and put on new tips

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK_YOkvGBXw

[Vincent123]

Got the tips installed this morning. It was scary cutting up my rear bumper, I made a scratch on my rear bumper while cutting it coz the disk was too large, so I'll probably cover it up with some touch up paint later on.

Driving back home was scary, afraid of getting pulled over. Way louder than I expected it to be. Theres a resonator in each tip so thats a total of 4 resonators and its still pretty damn loud. Anything past 2,000 rpm drones like hell. I'll probably have to add another resonator to quiet it down some more



Taping up the rear bumper and drawing where to cut

http://i51.tinypic.com/2mmv7m9.jpg

Cut the rear bumper

http://i55.tinypic.com/2eevspd.jpg

Test fit

http://i52.tinypic.com/2j1o6de.jpg

Finished

http://i52.tinypic.com/1zbcx1y.jpg

Up close

http://i54.tinypic.com/2ur6rfs.jpg

Looking down

http://i54.tinypic.com/dfyses.jpg

[Vincent123]

Quality is not the greatest, taken with my phone. The staticy sound is coz we were revving in the building and the sounds were echoing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvBfRLzsOE0

[Vincent123]

So my homie sells leds and he told me he had a led puddle light kit. Supposedly its exactly the same as the monarch kit without their logo on the box. I compared the two kits, and they look identical. It was a pain in the ass to install, took us about 7 hours to do everything. The cutting and measuring took the longest. And the lights still aren't 100% straight, due to how my side skirt curves downwards. If it was flat like most aftermarket side skirts itd be wayyyyyy easier

Anyways, onto the pics. I will have installed pics later on, didnt have a chance to take any yet

http://i51.tinypic.com/11kjk40.jpg
http://i54.tinypic.com/3097vgj.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/6z0enp.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/dpir87.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/31273vc.jpg

[iLLest_Z]

its turning out to an awesome build...nice

[subi28g]

Dude, this makes me want to build a vip car so bad.

[06RawRsx]

Congrats on the feature. Those pictures are amazing.

[Vincent123]

Aww yeah, found some pics of my car on fatlace's site from the formula d x slammed society event

http://i52.tinypic.com/13za8b6.jpg
http://i55.tinypic.com/2sbkf2g.jpg


And the face behind the ride
http://i55.tinypic.com/25q6w5z.jpg

[Vincent123]

Getting ready to pack up the wheels to be shipped

http://i51.tinypic.com/vy4is2.jpg


Oh and my coilovers came in. I prefer this design where I can twist the bottom portion all the way up until it touches the top two collars(did it right after this pic). I'm pretty sure it'll go low enough for me, if not time to remove some collars. They are 18kg front and 8kg rear

http://i53.tinypic.com/nv5el1.jpg

[Vincent123]

Decided to do the UCA clearance mod today. Dropped by my friend's shop Jason Noren Fabrications in upland. At first I was just going to leave it be a circular hole but Jason suggested that we cover up the hole with a box. Here are the results. Glad to say my UCA doesnt bang against my car anymore


Getting started
http://i55.tinypic.com/k1w1m9.jpg

Hole halfway cut
http://i53.tinypic.com/1zzjpg2.jpg

Hole completely cut, UCA visible
http://i53.tinypic.com/8x1shi.jpg

Measuring placement for the box
http://i56.tinypic.com/64jn60.jpg

Box complete, mock test fit not welded onto car yet
http://i54.tinypic.com/6xyxkl.jpg

Paint grinded off to prepare for welds
http://i52.tinypic.com/10rv874.jpg

Up close of the tig welding
http://i54.tinypic.com/298neb.jpg

So we figured out the hood wouldnt close because the hood struts would touch the box. Modifications were made so the hood would close but still have the box there
http://i54.tinypic.com/10h82ok.jpg

Final design of the uca box that clears the hood struts
http://i54.tinypic.com/zx49w3.jpg
http://i53.tinypic.com/15chdtf.jpg

[Kaiyin]

man, great build so far! Definitely some inspiration for my own UCF20. :)

btw, any more info on this kit?
http://i54.tinypic.com/z7adt.jpg

I'm a bit curious as to what it does exactly and where I could get it. Thanks!

[Kruizer]

Dude that exhaust system is a work of art, well ware !

[Elvis]

You're a mad man V! Haha, crazy ass pipes bro!

[Vincent123]

thanks guys!

[Vincent123]

So I havent made much progress in awhile. Thought Id update my thread on what I completed today. Ordered some E-46 shrouds from The Retrofit Source.


http://i53.tinypic.com/jsdlj8.jpg

Heating up the headlights to get the lenses off
http://i51.tinypic.com/34zcz9w.jpg

Disassembled
http://i51.tinypic.com/24dnbc2.jpg

Housings off
http://i51.tinypic.com/2rcpjt4.jpg

Primered
http://i53.tinypic.com/15884ro.jpg

Nighthawk black pearl paint w/ flakes
http://i52.tinypic.com/2zr2ivr.jpg

Up close
http://i55.tinypic.com/33u6aaf.jpg

Preparing to seal the headlights
http://i52.tinypic.com/hulzb8.jpg

Complete
http://i52.tinypic.com/2rhky03.jpg

On the car
http://i55.tinypic.com/2z4a6nl.jpg





Gotta black out the housing of the turn signals as well but I'm trying to figure out how to open them. Doesnt seem the same as the headlights. Might have to cut them open with a dremel and re-seal. Not sure yet. But it will happen

[Vincent123]

So turn signals are done. Alot harder than I expected it to be. Didnt come out as well as I expected it to. When cutting with the dremel is melted some of the plastic material so when I tried to realign them back together to seal it, there was gaps. So I guess I'll just end up buying a set of pre-done black turn signals off ebay or somewhere and just use those. But until I can source a seller who will sell the turn signals only, these will have to do.

http://i56.tinypic.com/2whqfpl.jpg

[Vincent123]

Got my wheels put on today just in time for wekfest tomorrow! Excited, my friend tagged along and snapped some pics for me. Enjoy!

Getting tires stretched
http://i52.tinypic.com/196yvc.jpg

275 tires are fatty
http://i56.tinypic.com/xpwlg9.jpg

Rolling them into the car
http://i51.tinypic.com/2r6z1jl.jpg

Fully detailed
http://i52.tinypic.com/f4oigh.jpg

My babies
http://i55.tinypic.com/24nfltt.jpg

Wheels on. She will sleep in the garage until tomorrow morning
http://i54.tinypic.com/15d2qvc.jpg

[Vincent123]

Oh and a video for your viewing pleasure

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuevZyWgnWE

[Kaiyin]

New wheels are looking yummy and loving the exhaust tone!

I pull a lot of inspiration from this build. Can only hope that mine turns out half as nice. =)

[Vincent123]

Heres how the car sits right now in the garage. Raised the car up 0.25" since I was tucking rim in the back and got stuck on 3 driveways the day of wekfest. Should be daily-able now


http://i51.tinypic.com/2mwb2b7.jpg

[Vincent123]

Oh I forgot to update on my latest splurge


Picked up some crystal lugnuts
http://i51.tinypic.com/59sql5.jpg

Test fitting the night before wekfest
http://i51.tinypic.com/2v2b3wg.jpg

And up close shot of my UCA box I had fabbed up
http://i55.tinypic.com/2d6scd0.jpg

[Vincent123]

Some photos I found of my car online from wekfest

http://i55.tinypic.com/1231k5v.jpg
http://i55.tinypic.com/a0vvao.jpg
http://i53.tinypic.com/258mpo9.jpg

[BlameBigM]

Car looks great with those wheels on :clap:

[Vincent123]

Another shot taken by FYC

http://i54.tinypic.com/25exqc1.jpg

[Vincent123]

Stopped by tire central in san gabriel yesterday and the owner came out and snapped some photos, and posted it on their facebook page. Just thought I would share

http://i54.tinypic.com/2prgyh1.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/20gbog0.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/ea3wc5.jpg



And one more taken by my homie Will over at Night Import

http://i53.tinypic.com/33ac49g.jpg

[xsuperbeex]

you found my/fyc pcis :D

[Vincent123]

haha yeah i did some browsing online and found pics of my car

Heres some rolling shots

http://i53.tinypic.com/1zdrndg.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/maxn3p.jpg

[Vincent123]

pic stolen from fatlace's site


http://i53.tinypic.com/2hy58w.jpg

[Vincent123]

So I ordered 3.5" lips at first for my fronts making it at 10" but I ended up getting 4.5" lips instead making it a 11j up front. Had to do some pulling to make it fit. Dont have pics of the fitment yet, i'll have it up in the next few days after I get my alignment all squared away. Heres a pic of the stretch for now

235/35/19 on a 11j

http://i52.tinypic.com/5a3n8i.jpg
http://i51.tinypic.com/33auqf4.jpg

[BennyJay]

Just read the while thread and wow...amazing build man. So much style is in this car its crazy sexy. One question..where did u get those tips from? Im in the market for some like that. Thanks

[Vincent123]

http://i51.tinypic.com/9znjix.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/156y26p.jpg

[Vincent123]

Rolling shots from the cars n coffee meet

http://i53.tinypic.com/awt1tw.jpg
http://i56.tinypic.com/2a6tg7o.jpg