Gmo97SC400

First and foremost I would like to say that this carclub is one of the best I've seen. Im new to the SC family, but I have been checking this site out for a while now, I manage a mechanic/body shop with a few customers that drive SC, every once in a while you get that oddball that you cant find at the dealer or that special request and this place has always been a great help.
Now let me get straight to my issue.
I bought a 97 SC400 w/90k miles from one of my customers, that unfortunally for him (and lukcy me ) got hit by another vehicle. The customer decided it was time for a new car, so he took the check from the insurance and I got the car.
The accident it self was minor, but it occured in a weird angle, so it looks alot worst than it actually is. Theres no frame damage at all. The front bumper and reinforment are useless and theres a piece where the reinforcement goes attached to that I already ordered from Lexus ($59).
Theres a small cooler that I already ordered as well and the rest of the parts that I need that are some what easy to find.
My only issues are making decisions. Since Im not what you call an expert on Lexus, I dont know which bumper covers I could find/afford that would look nice with the car. The fenders didnt get damaged, but they had marks from previous accidents and decided to take them out and get a new pair. The headlights on the right side are OK, but the left side is trashed, so maybe I can get a set of projectors to-be HID in the future.
The rear of the car wasnt damaged either, but since I was going to paint the front clip I decided to fix a few blemishes and give it a whole new coat of paint to make it match easier and look better.
Over all, the car runs great, I've known the car since the '99, so I know it has been taken care of, the interior is spotless.
Well, thats pretty much the story of the week, maybe some of you guys have a few ideas on what direction I could go with this car, maybe naming a few places where I could get a bumper and/or headlights. Maybe you know someone selling the parts around my area (that would be AWESOME) ??
Also I saw a few pics of upgrades done by members, like the GS steering wheel, or the cluster needles, or performance that wont ruin the smooth ride of the car. Might consider doing stuff like that in the future (Im pretty handy, have the tools and a whole shop) could help me learn about the SC a little more.

Thanks again for any help or pointers given and keep up with the forum work.

BTW, the pictures at the bottom are of the car after I took the parts out, soonest I get some progress I will post more.

_G-mo_
Germantown MD

RedSC

iTrader: (3)

Well, since you already got the 97' tail lights there is no need for you to replace those, if anything i would keep the rear bumper,the quarter pamle extension and the sideskirts. As for the front bumper i say go with something like a vertex, JIC, or Origin. Buy the JDM sidemark lights to make your car look different from the other SC400s. If your trying to keep the smooth ride, i recomend lowering your car using coilovers, Tein Flex, JIC FLTA1 or 2 or Tanabe Sustec seven pros will keep your ride smooth and allow you to have your car low. Get an exhaust, an intake won't hurt either, then if you want to keep going you can buy headers or even supercharge or turbo it. Theres a couple of sites that have all this stuff for sale, for example ebay is a great place to buy parts at a great price, Raceonusa.com is also another site with alot of stuff. It's really up to what you like and your budget, but yea man congrats on the 400.

FormosaSC

go Auto couture

pnyboy27

nice pick up! and i think it depends on the look you're trying to achieve..if you're trying to achieve a nice oem type look..then go the auto couture route..if you're looking at a more agressive but still clean look..go the vertex route. as for random parts for the car..go hit up aliga..hes got PLENTY of parts for sale. also go look in the classifieds, you'll see quite a bit of other parts there for sale as well. welcome to the club and good luck with your project!

pmpdaddyt

iTrader: (4)

hey congrats on the new car. u should ask some guys in NELOC section about your shop, i would come, i need a shop. and like pnyboy27 said aliga is a life saver and most of his parts are in waldorf, MD. hey do ya'll do motor swaps?

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

Welcome to CL!

Gmo97SC400

Thanks to everyone for the quick replies and the welcomes... I was thinking leaning towards an OEM type of look, but not quite stock.. Its really hard to explain but I guess everyone would recognize that feeling of trying to stick above the crowd but not getting that "what was he thinking" look when I pull up at a traffic light (Which sucks 'cause I had this awesome matching set bean cans for exhaust tips LOL).
Theres ALOT of pictures that I been going through at the members ride section, theres a few altered Soarer look-alike bumpers that look sweet. Im good with fiberglass, might get a used cheap cover and go to town with it as longest I keep it minor, who knows...
Also thanks for the recomendations, I will sending a few PMs, or even better, since anyone can see the pics, if you have a cover, or anything else that might look necessary, send me a PM or email.

PMPDaddy: My shop does mostly maintenance and body work. I have done a few engine swaps, but now a days is really hard for me to get my hands on anything since I work at the office all day. Im not the type that would grab an employee and tell them what to do witn an engine swap, more like DIYS type of guy (not that I wouldnt trust them, but at the same time, dont want to blame anyone when something goes wrong). As far as anything else of a smaller caliber, I do it all (including bodywork, of course). If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a PM or mail.

Once again, thanks for the help to everyone.

_G-mo_

TroySC300

iTrader: (1)

Welcome! If you want to stay semi stock but still update the look, you could do what I did and go with the 18x8 18x8.5 is350 rims. They are affordable and look pretty sweet if you ask me.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=328644

Ali y0

cliffs please.

Gmo97SC400

Update:
Today I got the section where the reinforcement goes attached to and its already installed, hopefully I will get the bumper reinforcement soon so I can start putting this thing together. Also took a few shots of the rear of the car while it was being worked. Cant hardly wait to get this car running.

http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i3...usSC400014.jpg
http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i3...usSC400013.jpg
http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i3...usSC400012.jpg
http://s68.photobucket.com/albums/i3...usSC400011.jpg

Gmo97SC400

Today I woke up with the idea of shaving the hole for the antenna, so while I prepped the fiberglass, I covered up a few more details here and there with primer. Its funny to think that bought the car in the first place because the accident was minor, now Im painting the whole car. Looking at some of the cars here makes you go beyond your original plans.
Maybe while Im at it, I will cover up the holes for the rear badges...

FormosaSC

great progress! more pics!!!

Gmo97SC400

Update:
I been busy at work, so work has been progressing slower than expected, but the antenna mounting hole has been deleted.. I completly forgot to take pictures as the fiberglass was drying, but if anyone has questions, feel free to shoot me a PM.. the job was fairly easy to do.
The last picture shows the panel from the inside, where you can actually see the fiberglass mesh.

FormosaSC

humm people fill the hole with fiberglass? i always though its a piece of metal

Gmo97SC400

You can use metal if you are willing to risk overheating the sheet metal and worping the shape of the qtr panel ... seen it happen more than once, so since the hole is the size of a quater, a piece of fiberglass mesh will hold...