I'm undecided... I think I'd go with the 400/430... Yeah, do that... I wish I could have done it... But there was no way I was going to pay 12 grand yr. for insurance... So I went with the 300 and it will be TURBO'D......

 

Thought it was the E46... anyhow Marken's car is still quicker than any "(slighly modded) GS4", point is a GS4 is going to need some Forced Induction or NOS to hang with Marken's car... a NA is not going to cut it, most I have seen out of the NA GS4 is around 355hp which is considerably less than Marken's car(400hp).

The M3 convertible weighs over 400 lbs more than the coupe version and is over half a second slower than it's coupe counterpart in the 1/4, runs high 13's, which makes sense why a GS4 with SRT HFI/Race ECU, Torque Converter, Limited Slip Differential, etc... could keep up with it(which is impressive IMO), although Markens GS3-T would have killed it.

Oh and back to the thread topic if the choice is a "GS400 + mild tuning (ECU, Intake, TC)" or a Turbo GS300 I would definitely take the turbo GS300.

 

Since you've thrown the G35 Coupe into the mix, questions which beg to be asked are whether you want a coupe or a sedan and whether you want an automatic (or E-Shift) transmission or a true six-speed manual.

The G35 Coupe is IMHO the nicest looking Infiniti exterior ever produced (judging by pics; I haven't seen one live), but the interior is still pretty lackluster. Performance-wise it should hold its own pretty well, and since it's basically a rebadged 2+2 350Z, the aftermarket should be very good. Having said that, if you want a coupe, a manual transmission, and/or a brand new car, the G35 Coupe is probably what you want.

Now, if I were choosing between the GS3 + Turbo or the GS4 I'd make the same decision I made once before, which is to say I'd get a GS4 for most of the same reasons already stated (lower maintenance, opportunity for turbo V8 if you're okay with maintenance, etc.).

 

My question to you is, can you handle the cost of major repairs if something goes wrong with your booted GS300? With external mods like supercharger and turbo, your increasing your chance of major damaging to the engine and also voiding most of the warranty if you have one. I seen a few people go big on the forced induction and they really couldn’t afford to deal with major issues, if you have the coin then a Turbo 300 would be sick, if your like most Americans would who be struggling just to get the car and the turbo kit, get the GS4 and be able to afford it.

 

Why do people have this misconception about Turbos costing tons of money to maintain . My JZA-80 never had one problem with it...EVER, if maintained properly and not misused turbo's have and continue to prove to be just as reliable as NA cars... I have a feeling that the people who ASSUME turbo cars=huge maintenance have never owned a boosted car

 

That is not entirely true. Ususally turbos = more power = lesser of reliablity. You had your turbo on a Supra's bullet-proof engine so you might not have seen any issues. Another big thing is how far you push your car. Since a turbo doesn't flex its muscles untill enough boost is built, one could say that turbo doesn't decrease reliability because it can be "off-line" or running on very little boost. But let's be honest, how many people would turbo their car just for show If you took a stock GS3 and a turboed GS3 and drove it like it is supposed to be driven, I am pretty sure that the regular GS3 would proved to be more reliable with less oil changes.

 

1) I can vouch that a GS4 with a TC and HFI/ECU will hang with an M3. Pete is a witness to that

2) I am sure that Marken's car is quicker than the M3 he raced and this is just topping on the cake. I think he is ready for some better competition, unfortunately, not many fast sports cars regard the GS3 series as a "true competitor". Isn't that about to change. Right Marken?

 

We are talking about a GS300 with a "Stage1 or 2 SRT turbo kit" meaning a max of 400hp which is not even close enough stress on the car to ruin reliability, now once we get in to the 500+hp range that's a different story

 

Ooops. I missed the Stage I or II part.

I don't think that will play a big role in the reliability department provided everything is set up as it should be and proper cooling enforced.

 

"Why do people have this misconception about Turbos costing tons of money to maintain . My JZA-80 never had one problem with it...EVER, if maintained properly and not misused turbo's have and continue to prove to be just as reliable as NA cars... I have a feeling that the people who ASSUME turbo cars=huge maintenance have never owned a boosted car"


I didn't say all, but I am saying it does increase the risk. It's not like your adding a chip to a factory turbo, you’re adding a complete turbo to a GS300 . My point is I wouldn't get the turbo unless I could afford to deal with the potential problems it may bring. I know way to many people who heavily modded their car without thinking of what may happen. And if you do have a warranty, good luck talking with your local Lexus dealer if you do have problems. Stage 1 on a GS3 would not be worth it to me if I had ANY problems at all, even the slight inconvenience wouldn't be worth it since I could have the same thing in a GS4, a stage 2, now we are talking more power then a GS4, maybe worth a slight inconvenience, but then again I like a no hassle worry on my daily driver, as a second car a turbo anything sounds great.

All I am saying is make sure you have the coin to pay the toys, just because you can afford to buy the car and kit doesn't mean you have $$ sitting around to fix any major problems, and I don't care what stage it is, adding any turbo will affect the reliability of the car.

 

The posted dyno run for the stage 1 shows it still has more rear wheel hp then a stock GS4.

You bring up so very good points. It's up to car owner whether it's worth it or not it's right to mod his/her car. It may not worth it to some but others are willing to change their oil a little more frequently and wait a few minutes longer before shutting off their motors(or get a turbo timer) to get that extra something.

 

I have twin turbos and never had any problems and mine is heavily modded. Doing a engine swap or adding a turbo to a NA engine is going to cost over 10g's. Unless you can get an Aristo I would say definitely go with the Lexus GS400 and don't worry about turbo's. They make lots of supercharger kits for both the 300 and 400 engine.

 

I think SRT's stage II for the GS3 costs about $6K installed. Maybe with a torque converter, LSD and valve body upgrade, the cost would be around $10k. Since the price difference between a used GS3 and a used GS4 isn't much, turboing a GS3 will end up costing more than a used GS4, void the warranty if any exists and be a little more problematic. But the performance reward, IMHO, is worth it. I had the opportunity to ride in Marken's GS and that thing can blow the doors of my stock GS4. Well, it should since his GS3 makes more power at the wheels than my GS4 makes at the crank. So you have to decide whats more important to you: awesome performance with some drawbacks or good performance with no drawbacks. and also how much money are you willing to spend? Good luck with the decision! Either way, GS3 turbo or GS4 , its a good choice.

 

How about buying a GS3 and spending the reminder of the money on upgrading the stereo? That's a 100% return because you can always use your tunes but how often can you use your power?

 

Hey man, nice car you have there!!
Love the huge IC!!