An Iq Called Toya

[craggle]

Hope no one minds me starting a thread here about my car but rather than clutter everyone else's threads up with pictures I thought I'd start my own.

It might turn into kind of a diary of work done to the car although I don't quite intend to go as far as Taz's car in the States but I do like to modify lightly and tastefully. :)

So to start the car is an iQ3 that I bought in Janurary of 2012. It was a pretty much basic iQ3 from the local Toyota dealer with 11,000 miles on the clock.

Here's are some pictures when I first signed on the line at the dealers...

[craggle]

So, First modification or addition was silver light bulbs to replace the orange coloured ones in the indicator units and added a glove box / bag that I won on eBay.

Also added a Blackvue HD camera to the window to record the view forward all the time I'm driving. I have pictures of that somewhere else if anyone is interested.

Craig.

[craggle]

This weekend has seen me spending a fair amount of time with the car as I had a long list of things to do....

I have applied protective 3M clear tape to the door sills to protect the paint finish and cover up a few scratches from the previous owner.

I have applied Toyota clear protective patches behind the door handles for the same reasons as above.

I have removed and painted a few hose clips and bolts under the engine as they were corroding a little bit and needed shining up.

I removed all the wheels and cleaned the insides then sprayed the brake callipers and discs silver to brighten them up a bit.

Craig.

[craggle]

Pictures...

[craggle]

And save the best till last.

Today I have fitted a pair of Chrome interior door handles and a roof spoiler ordered from the US through eBay.

Craig.

[craggle]

That's about it for now.

I plan to do a good clean and polish pretty soon and black the tyre walls.

I really fancy the lower skirt / valance too just to make the back appear a bit lower but I have also added the mud flap kit so may have to modify one or the other to get them to work together. not a very good picture of the mudflaps below.

Talking of tyres while I was spraying the discs I took the opportunity to rotate the tyres around the car and noticed the front ones were a lot more worn than the backs. There is a good 1mm of difference between them so are the iQ's hard on the front tyres or is it normal of a front wheel drive car? The wear looks even across the tyre so I don't suspect tracking although that is on my list to check.

Craig.

[DFish]

Nice looking ride there Craig. Loving the swept lift on the spoiler. :)

Fish

[craggle]

Cheers Dan

I think it was the swept up look that sold the Scion spoiler for me but it's a personal thing I think, Some prefer the flatter look of the UK one.

From the side I think the spoiler follows the side window profile very well and my Dad said today, the car has got longer. Off course it doesn't stick out that far and it's well in front of the bumper but I think it really finishes the car off.

It was a bit nerve-racking though taking a big drill to the back of the car, 4 holes were needed at 12mm diameter each! :o

Craig.

[Soeley]

Looking good there. The tyre wear is normal for front wheel drive.

[craggle]

Thanks Mark

This is my first front wheel drive car so wasn't sure if the previous owner had been doing burnouts or if it was normal. :)

I'll keep an eye on them then and keep swapping them around the car to keep them even then replace all 4 when needed. I like to change tyres in a set for some reason.

Cheers

Craig.

[tarquin]

Hey Craig it looks like mine now. well except my spoiler doesn't turn up. I am tempted to get the scion one now. i guess the 12mm holes i drilled will be in the same place.

David

[sweet-dentist]

Naaaaice ... real naaaaice .... me gusta ... :D

[Guest]

Craig. Nice job on the brake calipers and centre bit, looks very good. You have a very tidy looking car and the silver suits the iQ very well. Like all the pictures. I too bought some plastic (rubbish stuff in my case) to cover the scratches on the doors.

I have also tried today, using a candle, to put wax in the scratch and smooth it off. It didn't work too well. Also, the polish I use has one of those scratch filling crayon thingies, and I tried that on them too, as the paint of the car is purple, the doors are that Plum collour -not a fan really- so thought it was worth a go. It worked, to a point. It didn't completely cover up the mess, but... it's no good either.

I like the shiny mirror cappings. I think if I do something to our's though, it would have to be a carbon fibre type wrap. I also prefer the up-turned spoiler. As you say, it extends the curve of the rear window. Your's would also suit a 'limo black' window covering, being as it's silver.

[surfcitylocal]

Very nice Craig. I'm looking forward to following this thread and keep up with your mods.

The Scion wing looks great on your iQ. For anyone else considering using the Scion wing I would advise against drilling the holes. The wind can be fitted with 3M molding tape and it will hold just as well as the bolts from the mounting kit.

The glove box / bag is a great addition. We were not offered that option by Scion due to the placement of an air bag in that location.

[craggle]

Hey Craig it looks like mine now. well except my spoiler doesn't turn up. I am tempted to get the scion one now. i guess the 12mm holes i drilled will be in the same place.

David

I have the Scion fitting kit left over which included a big clear plastic template showing the hole positions. I could send this to you if you really were interested in changing spoilers.

Interesting thing I thought was my spoiler says "Made in USA" on the bottom, I assumed they were all made in Japan and just fitted to cars for different regions.

Craig.

[tarquin]

cheers Craig

will PM you

David

[craggle]

The iQ is about to get lower. :)

I won a new set of Eibach 25mm lower springs on eBay last night so I better dig out those spanners and spring compressors and get fitting them.

Craig.

[surfcitylocal]

Looking forward to seeing your drop Craig.

[junebug1701]

Interesting thing I thought was my spoiler says "Made in USA" on the bottom, I assumed they were all made in Japan and just fitted to cars for different regions.

Craig.

Didn't you know? USA is a small town in Japan where the accessories are made.

Just kidding! :)

[PaulWorthing]

Would be good to see a pic of your lowered car next to a standard hight one to see what the difference is

[craggle]

Hi Paul

Are you from Worthing by your username? I visit Worthing fairly often at the moment and live just up the road in Horsham so may see you around when you get your car. :)

I'll try to do some before and after photos of the car when I do the springs but it won't be for a while yet, I'll wait for a nice sunny summer weekend to tackle that job. :)

Cheers

Craig.

[Soeley]

I have just updated my thread with my Eibach springs.

http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=129583

Don't forget to get a full alignment check after fitting ;)

[PaulWorthing]

Well to be honest we have moved since I set up my account so we are now in Littlehampton but will keep an eye out for you - just don't race me cos I'm only in a 1

[craggle]

Well, Had another day to play today so fitted some footwell lights.

I saw the genuine Toyota kit to do this but thought the £90 odd price tag was a bit steep so I downloaded the instructions for the genuine kit from here http://www.toyota-tech.eu/ and followed them but substituted my own cables and some small round LED lights I found on eBay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/230771273768

Following the instructions I removed the interior panels, marked and drilled the holes to size using a step drill (Fantastic invention by the way) then soldered on some cables and ran them up the door pillar on the passengers side and connected them to the cables that go to the interior light. That way the LED footwell lights, light up when you open the doors. :)

Just waiting for night fall now so I can see how bright they are...... Next on my list is upgrading the interior light and adding some rear lighting for the boot space / rear seats.

Craig.

[Bainite1964]

Lovin the footwell lights Craig

did the same as you looked at the price and thought what a rip off, just like the illuminated scratch plates for over £200. I may consider doing what you did. Did you run the cable through the dash as per the instructions or take a shorter route across the footwell. I have not checked for access but thought the dashboard route was a bit tortuous.