GS - 2nd Gen (1998-2005) Discussion about the second generation GS300, GS400 and GS430 (1998 - 2005)

Black Cherry Twins!

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Old 03-25-06, 02:32 PM
  #16  
suge66
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Originally Posted by reggiek
Schweet twins. I sorta like the bezels. They're slightly too thick but I like that it is different than anyone else's gs.
That's what i'm saying, it's all about what the person that is paying the car note wants. I think it's alright, if that's what suits you. Nice pics also, wish i could have made the meet, but had to work. I'll make sure i make the next one.
Old 03-25-06, 02:42 PM
  #17  
D2-AUTOSPORT
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Hey Guys looking good! One of my favorite pics. I think the largest issue that I have with the tail rings is its easy to miss the fact that they are JP!! 1300 bucks mang, you dont want
ANY confusion! lol

You guys enjoy, and looking good Nate
Old 03-25-06, 04:14 PM
  #18  
asci01
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Originally Posted by D2-AUTOSPORT
Hey Guys looking good! One of my favorite pics. I think the largest issue that I have with the tail rings is its easy to miss the fact that they are JP!! 1300 bucks mang, you dont want
ANY confusion! lol

You guys enjoy, and looking good Nate
Yeah right. I didn't notice they were JP until someone brought it up, so I would ditch the chrome rings, IMHO.
Old 03-25-06, 05:45 PM
  #19  
KevinGS
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LOL, wow, I didn't know the chrome rings would bring out so many responses. Funny that all many of you see is the chrome rings covering the well-regarded JP Tails, where most others (including myself) just see some "factory" clear taillights that complete the look of my car. The difference of this observation is the disconnect here in CL.

Nevertheless, thanks for all the feedback, ya'll. I do understand that the chrome rings seem outlandish to many of you, especially since in your eyes they are "taking away from" or "clouding" the appearance of the renowned JPs.

But...

I like them.

And really, that's all that matters.

"Why does he like them?", I am sure many of you are asking yourselves....since you just can't understand why I would put chrome rings around my JP tails? Let me explain...

As you can see, I like having no words or numbers on the rear of the car. I had even removed the Lexus emblem too, but then after a few weeks it looked so barren back there that I put it back on. I like the 'absence of letters/numbers' look, but that's just me. I've always preferred this look on all cars I have owned.

I also have always liked clear lights on the entire car. So, right away, I got clear markers, got clear fogs, and I KNEW the JP Tails would be one of my first mods...because I just prefer clear lights on most cars. If I trusted myself more, I'd try to remove the orange reflector in the front turn signals too. But for now, I haven't...so the turn signals remains the only bulbs I have not changed out on the car. Again, I like clear lights, but that's just me.

So once I put the JP Tails on the car, and already had all the emblems removed from the car, except for the center Lexus "L", I drove around for about a month with no rings. And the rear of the car just didn't look right. It looked so plain. Those JP Tails looked great, for sure. But the rear as a whole just didn't look "right". And I knew I still wanted no numbers and letters on the car. (I like for others to have to 'wonder' which exact model I have.)

So the rings got re-installed (they were on my original 01' tails too). For me, it looked much better this way, completing the look of the rear.

To me, the JP Tails help complete the rear of my car, but they don't make the rear of the car. Actually, the JP Tails just really complete my "all-clear-lights" look around the whole car. Nothing more, nothing less.

Now, CL members see the JP Tails and immediate think "lavish" and "exclusive". But that's just us. We know how much they cost. Non-CL members only see the rear of the car as a whole. The clear lights don't stand out much to the masses, even when it's the only thing different about the rear of the car, especially for non-Lexus owners. Other people just think the car came that way from the factory, because it integrates into the car so well. And this is why I like the JPs so much...they're so clean that they look like they came on the car right from the Lexus factory.

So, as prestigious as many of us think it is to have JP Tails....out in the mainstream public, they're just clear taillights. Nothing more, nothing less. Yes, they are finely-detailed clear taillights, but they're still just clear factory taillights...and for all most people know, the car came that way from the factory.

I've had GS-owners and other Lexus owners come up and ask me on more than one occasion if I had some special edition 'anniversary' model that they were unaware of...because to their eye, the car's modification looked like factory mods.

When this happens (and it just happened a month ago when I was at the gas station), I know that I have accomplished the look I was going for...factory-looking subtle mods.

So, again, the JP Tails look great, and they may stand out here in CL, but you leave here and hit the mainstream public, and they are looking at the totality of the car, not just some clear tallights, no matter how much they cost.

Therefore, since it looks good to me, and I get validation often that I have accomplished the look I was going for (factory-ish)...ya'll can just give up on convincing me to remove the rings. They're staying on, unless I go in a totally different direction for the rear...like painting the inner lights or something. And as much as I like that look, I don't think it's quite "me".

Of course, contrary to most CL members, I'd much rather have the chrome rings on my car than the numbers and letters to complete the look of the rear of the car.

But that's just me.

And to each his own.

Last edited by KevinGS; 03-26-06 at 09:01 AM.
Old 03-25-06, 06:23 PM
  #20  
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Absolutely outstanding colour that black cherry. Makes me rethink Cinnabar....
However, the chrome rings don't do it at all, and the sunroof deflector makes the car look like an old man's Volvo 240 series, and usually cars don't look good photographed from the rear as a rule of thumb, especially when there are two of them.
So the front shot looks great, except for the deflector.
Old 03-25-06, 09:36 PM
  #21  
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Love the front shot with both
Old 03-25-06, 10:39 PM
  #22  
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KevinGS,
The bottom line is, every one is unique, and lets face it, we all have different tastes. You are the only JP Tail owner who decided to add something new to his car, and that is what makes modding what it is, the bawls ro put something out there not because of the mainstream, but because you like it. My hat is off to you. You are making your car 'yours' and that is the whole point. Some of the Cl members need to remember that.

Congrats on the beautiful ride bro, and keep up the good work,
Old 03-25-06, 11:21 PM
  #23  
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One more vote for chrome ring removal. This is just personal taste. It has nothing to do with the JPs. I don't like them on the OEM 98-01 tails and 01-05 tails either. Just me.

With that said, if the rings complete the look for you, then keep them. You have to look at the car everyday, not us.
Old 03-26-06, 06:15 AM
  #24  
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Originally Posted by Neo
One more vote for chrome ring removal. This is just personal taste. It has nothing to do with the JPs. I don't like them on the OEM 98-01 tails and 01-05 tails either.

that's how I feel, even on stock tail lights and headlights, those rings just look tacky. I don't see how Kevin can say that he thinks they look factory.....

I understand though, to each his own, and there's no use trying to "convert" Kevin Since he likes them, that's all that really counts.

peace.
Old 03-30-06, 10:45 AM
  #25  
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Very interesting comments in this thread in regards to the chrome rings. And typically, my comments would be the same for sure.

In general, chrome rings around the taillights make me gag (literally). They usually look shoddy to me too, on any car...though I have seen them on a late model E-Class, and surprisingly, they looked pretty damn good I have to say.

Funny thing about KevGS' car though...when I first saw pictures of his car in his other photoshoot thread (with the front chrome rings), and then also later in that same thread saw the rear shot (with the rear chrome rings), the rings didn't stand out at all to me. They just flowed with the rest of the car, which is basically all chromed up anyway. Hec, I'm not even a clear lights fan, but on this car, I like the clear lights AND the chrome rings. I think it's the color, and yet it's not only the color, but the depth and shine of the paint as well.

To me, the car is so darn clean (literally) that the chrome rings fade into the whole design of the car. And without the rings, and no emblems, the rear would definitely look unexciting to me too. Those clear taillights are nicely crafted, but they can't carry the whole rear of the car with the stock spoiler and no emblems. The $1500 price tag (fifteen HUNDRED????) doesn't mean crap when non-CL members see them. They might as well be $150 for all most people care.

And I typically don't like debadged cars either, but I like this one debadged. The car just seems to come together nicely, better than many I have seen.

Would I ever buy chrome rings for my Lexus? Never. But I'd never buy a carbon fiber hood for my Lexus either, nor a vented hood, nor a roof spoiler, not those zany eyelids and taillids, nor those side-window vent thingies to keep the rain out when the window's cracked. All of those items seem out of place on a Lexus to me, or any luxury car built for road use....no matter how much HP is under the hood. I do understand the window vent thingamajiggers for functional purposes though, but if it's raining, just close all the darn windows and use through the A/C system. You can afford it, you bought a Lexus. And actually, the roof spoiler looks OK on some GS I have seen, but I'd never buy one for my Lexus.

But as KevGS said, "that's just me".

When I and about 10 friends who were at my house last night checked out KevGS' gallery (because I mentioned to my friend that she should paint her Audi dark cherry), we ALL salivated, especially once I showed them Kev's recent photoshoot featuring the spotlight. And not a one of them thought the rings looked out of place on his car. I wouldn't recommend them on other cars, but on this particularly debadged dark cherry GS, with the clear lights and the chrome rims (this color and chrome go well together), it looks just fine, mighty fine really. It's this particular car that makes it work.

Again, I'd never buy them myself (don't have the courage), but if I bought KevGS' car, I wouldn't remove them. But I would definitely remove a vented hood (except on maybe Dave's car, black hides it better), and I would remove eyelids and side window vents as well.

And KevGS has the best license plate I have seen in a long time: "It's all a matter of...PRSPCTV". That really says it all, as beauty lies in the eye of the beholder for sure. It's all just a matter of perspective.

Where is KevGS anyway? I hope you guys didn't chase the poor guy away. {Kev, I already have a buyed for your car whenever your ready to sell, and she doesn't care about the miles. She loves it. I'm serious too. She's got loot!}

(Since I'm a copy editor by trade, I figured one long post deserved another. OK, I'm back to work... )
Old 03-30-06, 11:41 AM
  #26  
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Originally Posted by TTurboPimp
+1for what its worth!
it would look so much better
Old 03-30-06, 11:59 AM
  #27  
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the one without the JP tail looks better....the other is messing up with that chrome outline.
Old 03-30-06, 12:38 PM
  #28  
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I like the chrome bezel itself. Though not the best on dark color cars, I'm sure it looks great on a silver car, so that it blends in better.

Nonetheless I love the way your car looks. It's unique. The world would be boring if everyone had the same taste.
Old 04-02-06, 12:20 PM
  #29  
KevinGS
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Originally Posted by Amber
...When I and about 10 friends who were at my house last night checked out KevGS' gallery (because I mentioned to my friend that she should paint her Audi dark cherry), we ALL salivated, especially once I showed them Kev's recent photoshoot featuring the spotlight. And not a one of them thought the rings looked out of place on his car. I wouldn't recommend them on other cars, but on this particularly debadged dark cherry GS, with the clear lights and the chrome rims (this color and chrome go well together), it looks just fine, mighty fine really. It's this particular car that makes it work.

Again, I'd never buy them myself (don't have the courage), but if I bought KevGS' car, I wouldn't remove them. But I would definitely remove a vented hood (except on maybe Dave's car, black hides it better), and I would remove eyelids and side window vents as well.

And KevGS has the best license plate I have seen in a long time: "It's all a matter of...PRSPCTV". That really says it all, as beauty lies in the eye of the beholder for sure. It's all just a matter of perspective.

Where is KevGS anyway? I hope you guys didn't chase the poor guy away. {Kev, I already have a buyed for your car whenever your ready to sell, and she doesn't care about the miles. She loves it. I'm serious too. She's got loot!}
Wow, that WAS a long post, Amber. That looked like mine.

Well, thanks for all the buzz. Because of you, some in CL thought I was actually selling my car, and I got 2 offers PM'ed to me, not including your friend's. Hec, when I am ready to sell this car (if ever, as I usually drive my cars until they drop), I will be in touch. You'd make a good spokesperson for the car.

And thanks for the impromptu focus group of opinions about the rings. It really didn't matter though. I like them, and I trust my eyes, so I wasn't removing them anyway. But again, thanks anyway.

I got your PM about the car, and as I responded, the car is not for sale...unless someone wants to pay more than I paid.

And yes, the license plate/frame sometimes is more of a conversation peice than the car.

And no, CL members didn't 'chase me away' because of their opinions....I was in Seattle/Vancouver for a while on business. And besides, CL members have been too instrumental in making my Lexus ownership experience at least 5 times better than it would have been otherwise. I love these guys now (**sniff-sniff**)

...I just know when to ignore them.

Last edited by KevinGS; 04-02-06 at 12:24 PM.
Old 04-02-06, 12:42 PM
  #30  
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