Supercharged Lexus LS430 Proves to Be One Fun, Reliable Daily
This supercharged Lexus LS430 has racked up around 18k trouble-free miles thus far, making it perhaps the ultimate daily.
The Lexus LS has long held a reputation for being one of the most reliable – if not the most reliable – vehicle on earth. This is true mostly of the first-generation model, but the LS430 is no slouch in that regard either, and it offers buyers a ton of value along with more modern styling and amenities to boot. However, while most simply leave these cars as-is and simply drive them, the folks behind the YouTube channel Speed Academy wanted to make theirs a bit more fun, and wound up creating this supercharged Lexus LS430. Recently, after racking up around 18k miles on this modified ride, they gave us an update regarding how it’s holding up.
While this supercharged Lexus LS430 is already unique, it isn’t exactly running some sort of blower designed specifically for this application – rather, Speed Academy utilized an M118 blower designed for the S197-generation Ford Mustang and its 4.6-liter modular V8. They managed to make it fit using an adapter plate from Elate Manufacturing and a custom intake manifold.
Other than the blower and a tune, this LS430 also utilizes Fortune Auto coilovers to lower it closer to the ground and hug a set of Augment wheels, which gives it a slight appearance upgrade over OEM. Regardless, the point here is to prove that a supercharged LS430 makes the ultimate daily driver, and our host points out that he’s done precisely that with it – which is clear from its many parking lot battle scars.
As one might imagine, lowering the car wasn’t best for rough roads full of potholes, but otherwise, the tank-like LS430 has held up remarkably well. With the supercharger in place, this combination also made right at 300 horsepower and 288 pound-feet of torque at the wheels, which is a big boost from the stock ratings – around 80 horsepower and 75 pound-feet of torque – which makes it a lot more fun to drive. Overall, it’s easy to see the appeal of such a combination, as it’s affordable, a blast to drive, reliable, and supremely comfortable – and what more could one want from a daily driver?
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