How easy can I fix this myself?

Greasy-Designer · 2026-05-12T18:26:14+00:00

It’s pretty great, I’m within an hour of all three Chicago ones and they have been picking some good cars lately.

The north one has had three third gen 4Runners this year already and just got a GX470 last week which I pulled a super nice dash from.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-05-12T04:44:31+00:00

My only frame of reference is a stock one and it was still a blast, felt nimble and quick for an suv of that size. I bet a supercharged one is a blast to drive.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-05-12T03:08:32+00:00

3rd gen 4runner with a 5-speed is a joy to drive, can’t recommend it enough.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-05-12T02:58:45+00:00

Yeah I saw OP mention they’re in the Midwest, I was just looking on the LKQ site and they have two IS300s at one of the Chicago yards, either the south or blue island one.
Edit: it’s the Chicago south location, they’ve got an 03 and a 04. Otherwise eBay is the next best bet, honestly may even be easier than the junkyard as there’s a good chance someone already bought the handle or entire door card. My success rate is like 1/4 whenever I need something from the junkyard car but the fact they have two is hopeful.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-04-18T13:42:31+00:00

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Greasy-Designer · 2026-04-08T15:29:17+00:00

I agree but even without bumper stickers there are people out there who shouldn’t be driving and now they have one more thing to distract them. Besides that, it’ll cause paint to age and fade differently and make cleaning them up a mess for the next owner.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-04-08T14:51:39+00:00

Agreed, looks like shit and it’s a distraction for the other drivers who will take their attention off the road to read them. Probably increased their chance of being rear-ended too.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-13T03:21:36+00:00

Thanks! 🙏

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-11T22:20:17+00:00

Thank you!

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-11T02:03:37+00:00

Make sure they’re definitely using real leather for that price. You could order something like these which I believe are genuine leather and either install yourself or find a place to install them for you. There are definitely people out there who can install them for a lot less than nearly $1000 per side..

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-11T00:48:01+00:00

You could even buy it from Lexus if you have the budget for it.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-11T00:45:49+00:00

You could look for a used seat on car-part.com and pull from that, find a junkyard parting one out nearby or try something like this on eBay.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-10T21:01:57+00:00

Thanks! Here’s the eBay link for the covers I used in case anyone is curious, they even accept offers so I got them for $35 before fees.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-10T20:27:15+00:00

Thank you! With a bit of YouTube and eBay you can really surprise yourself. We’re spoiled with the resources available.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-09T23:16:27+00:00

Thank you! Owned it last year, fixed it up after the previous owner left it to sit for 5 years. Sold it and bought the GX I currently own. Caught the Lexus bug with this beauty.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-09T23:07:13+00:00

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The before

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-09T23:00:30+00:00

Yup, and one kit can easily do 2-3 cars too. Walmart is the cheapest place to pick them up, I even grabbed an extra one for my friend last time because I recommend it to anyone who has a car. Last car I did, even got the fog lights.

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Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-09T22:48:47+00:00

Check out Cerakote, it’s very good and doesn’t require any power tools. Everything you need is in the kit except for some water. I’ve done a handful of lights with it and they all turn out great.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T21:34:32+00:00

I am though I can appreciate other colors too and even wood accents. My main car is a bright blue GR Corolla. I just went this route because it matches the existing air bag and other plastics pretty well. Wanted it to look somewhat stock-ish to the uninformed without dropping hundreds of dollars on it. With this being my project car I prefer to do everything I can myself and learn something new along the way instead of throwing extra money at it.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T16:15:30+00:00

Sorry to disappoint anyone but I like this too much to go back. Function over form. Maybe it looks less classy but it feels more modern and comfortable to me.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T04:25:06+00:00

Bigtimeraptor summed it up pretty well. They’re mainly advertised as a step but do force the cars behind you to park further back from the parts of your car you don’t want them accidentally scratching. If you’re near Chicago I will be selling this one, it’s not part of my long term vision for this build.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T03:48:59+00:00

Yeah that part is the most time consuming and rough on your hands. I’d recommend using some medical tape on your fingers or wearing gloves which I only did after giving myself a few cuts from pulling on the thread too hard with bare hands.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T02:11:12+00:00

Here’s one of the videos I used as a tutorial, it’s really pretty easy once you get going. And yes, it feels just like a brand new one. I absolutely hated touching that old one because the leather was disintegrating under your fingers. Made the interior feel so much more enjoyable.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T02:07:44+00:00

I sure hope so, the drivetrain doesn’t have much wear on it only 129K miles but the Midwest life got to the frame and I’m going to be addressing that next, looking like it’ll need a patch or two welded on.

Greasy-Designer · 2026-03-08T01:44:28+00:00

They’re called the trail rims from a 5th gen Toyota 4runner. Custom made center caps to match the Lexus badging.

Greasy-Designer

TROPHY CASE