gwvg

I'm 17 and I have 10K to spend on my first car. I'm thinking about getting a 95-96 ES300 but I really don't like the way the headlights and taillights look. I remember reading about how Lexus likes to switch wiring, mounts, etc. from year to year. Also, I'm considering getting a wood dash kit. Is there any way to swap out the old lights for newer ones?


Edit: I'm also looking at a 98 Accord coupe or a 95 BMW 325i. Any recomendations?

Edit 2: Well, I dont have 10K anymore. Mom got laid off, now I have to wait till she gets a job again. Goodbye ClubLexus

carfanatic

hey welcome dude...another 17 yr old i see..lol...well im pretty sure that the taillights of lexus arent interchangeable w/ those of acuras and bimmers...the dimensions would be off and so would the curvature most likely. If you really wanted it...you would have to go all custom...which of course means $$$...but yeah...i think the best first mod is to get HIDs...something i have yet to do...lol...and then get some rims if you can

gwvg

LOL, no thats not what I mean. I just want to replace the older lexus ES300 taillights and headlights with the newer looking ES300 ones. I was just using the BMW and Acura as an example since the old BMW tails are fugly but they sell clear ones that look like the one on the 5-series for the old E36s.

steviej

iTrader: (1)

do a search on HID, headlights, taillights, clearing corners, etc.

I think you will find a multitude of possibilities described in the threads that pop up from the many talented members of CL. Definately search the "lighting" forum, too.

Be careful on the BMW, after market maint. costs are can be in the thousands. The Accord.....it's not a Lexus. that's all I'm saying.

steviej

Nabeel

The BMW 325i is a very good car, and can practically last forever if properly maintained. It is faster and a better handler than the ES300, and is more fun to drive. It lacks the refinement and interior quality of the ES300, but the mechanicals are bulletproof. The engine should last a long long time unless it has been abused. BMW builds the best 6-cylinder engines in the world IMHO. The ES300 is more comfy inside, while the BMW is more sporting. There isn't a lot of room in the 325i. The back seat is cramped and the trunk is not that big. The ES300 will be cheaper to maintain. If you live in an area where the climate is bad (lots of snow, rain, etc) then the ES300's FWD will be a plus. Otherwise, the BMW is a lot more entertaining with its RWD and neutral handling. Honestly, you can't go wrong either way, both are great cars.

Oh, by the way, if you get the 325i, make sure you replace the plastic water pump impeller with a newer metal version, if this already has not been done. Also, BMW automatics are not the strongest. They work excellently but tend to have a reletively short life, with most needing a rebuild at about 80- 120K miles or so. Then again, us ES300 drivers over here have had our share of tranny problems lately, so I guess it's fair game...

No comment on the Accord, that car is pretty much you-see-what-you-get Honda quality, dependability, and boredom. Good Luck.

Kyle Harty

iTrader: (17)

If you search, you can find info on clearing your front and rear turn signals by opening the lights and removing the orange lens. I did the fronts a while back and just did the rears yesterday. IMO, it's a little subtle thing that freshens up the look of the lights. Someone not familiar with the car may not even notice that they aren't stock, but I think it looks nicer. I'm sure if you search you can find some good pics and a description of how to do both.

gwvg

Well, could I just buy OEM 97+ headlights and replace use them to replace the 95-96 ones? Will everything fit OK?

Kyle Harty

iTrader: (17)

Unfortunately, I can say with about 99% confidence that it wouldn't work without alot of custom body work.

squarehat

Why do you want the multireflectors from the '97? The projectors, both the clear (92-94) and smoked (95-96) are much sportier IMO, and do not look dated at all. Look at all the higher end cars switching over to projectors: new E class, 2003 refreshening of S class, 2001 refreshening of 5 series, etc. If you want, do a swap out of the projector itself to a Hella BMW or Audi unit, designed to give a correct beam pattern with HID, and the color flicker effect. The only ES headlights I could see making a swap in are the 00-01 with the HID optics (the two seperate reflectors, they share the reflectors with the LS400/IS300), but that would be no less expensive than the Hella D2S projector swap, which is IMO a much better mod.
Yes, I agree with you that the 1st gen tails do look a bit dated, with their huge size and amber bars. You could clear the amber strip out (check out Ghetto-Pimp's pics), just be sure to put an amber bulb behind the clear part to keep things legal. Putting the 02-03 tails would involve a lot of body work, and would take a shop skilled at doing custom jobs. I've seen a lot of pics of cars with absurd light swaps (Civic with SC430 headlights, Accord with IS300 tails before aftermarket "Altezza tails" were available everywhere), and you can tell the ones where the lights look well blended, and the ones where the lights look slapped on.

1BadAzzLex

a 17yr old with 10K allowed on his first car. Man, that aint right. My first car was an 87 Chevy Blazer.....blah....

zexen

haha hey i'm 16 and i have an ES300... ... need new tires, but i got an ES300... my grandparents gave me $10k to spend on my own car, but i saved it and took the extra laying around in the house... (my dad's in china, so car sits in garage). my mom said the car was mine... so i guess now it's mine... but there's nothin' wrong with getting $10k these days. i've seen people at school getting brand new WS-6's... 300+ hp pontiacs... there's new cars everywhere with teens these days, it's nothin big now...
(just fyi)

gwvg

Well, I dont have 10K anymore. Mom got laid off, now I have to wait till she gets a job again. Goodbye ClubLexus.

meZoom!

just get HIDs on the 95-96 and either smoke out or red out the tails. the HIDs will run you a couple hundred $$ but you'd still have money leftover, counting down from $10K. with a 95-96, you never know when it'll die on you (transmissionally speaking, not the engine), or crash it (!) or just start to want a faster car, considering you are young, and it'll be heartbreaking if all the dough you spend on your first baby goes down the drain....oh wait, this might happen no matter what car you drive. yah, i say get HIDs and lower the car, if u r getting the ES

XenonES3

Damn, you guys who get $10K to spend on a car are lucky!!!

I'm 16 years old, and in my family, the motto is, "you want something? work for it!"

My parents say if I get a full paid scholarship, they don't mind dropping $40K on car for me since a scholarship would be saving them $250K total.

BUT, UNTIL THEN.....I'm working my @$$ off to pay for this ES, I still have about $3.5K left on loans, but it's all good