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View Full Version : Shop for R154 swap into IS300



mrsingh
11-02-2015, 10:03 PM
So in the summer my IS300 started developing the dreaded 4th gear syncro problem that plagues the W55 transmission. By the time I parked the car the transmission would only go into 4th gear at low RPM's or if I double clutched.

Now that it is parked for winter, I'm debating on what to do to fix it. Any option requires dropping the transmission, and I will likely develop the problem again if I swap in a W55. The R154 is a fairly common swap on these cars, and can hold a lot more power if I choose to boost the car down the road. That being said, there is some customization required.

Does anyone know of a shop that is familiar with the IS and has done this sort of swap before? I'm not looking at doing it right away, but am tempted to do it before next summer. I'm trying to find a shop who has done it so I can get a real ballpark on what the cost is to see if it's worthwhile.

The rest of the car is very clean; full leather, coilovers, LSD, 150k Kms, and I do enjoy driving it. For the price point I can't think of another car that gives me this much fun and can still hold two kids. Also with the price of oil these days I prefer putting money in this platform then dumping a bunch of cash on something new.

Any feedback or suggestions are appreciated, thanks!

ercchry
11-02-2015, 10:10 PM
I'd talk to vex... After sema is over though

hamkered
11-03-2015, 02:18 AM
OP, see if you can find an R154 from a Soarer or a Chaser. Those have the remote mount shifter, so that it lines up with the opening of the transmission tunnel. The R154s from the MKIII Supra have to have the shifter mount extended to fit through the opening.

And yeah, go talk to Jimmy from Vex. He helped me find an R154 for my IS... too bad it just sits there collecting dust atm :cry:

mrsingh
11-03-2015, 09:16 PM
Does anyone know if the Japanese R154's from Soarer's and Chaser's accept the DriftMotion transmission rebuild kits? On the website it says it's only tested on the Supra transmission.

sr20s14zenki
11-04-2015, 07:49 AM
Apparently some use a 2 piece synchro and some use a 3 piece. Just sold my last r154 and had a guy asking that.

if your is300 is already w55, its a pretty easy swap. As mentioned, the hard part is making sure you have the correct shifter. IF you get a shifter that is too short, I perform the shifter extension services, and im fairly cheap. Just figured id throw that out there if you run into shifter issues!