Both luxury and sport were combined with the listening pleasure of a 5.1 system as Toby Johnson of Oldsmar, FL, converted his 1995 Lexus GS300 daily driver into a demo car for his shop, T&J Elite Customs. While some aspects of the plan evolved as Johnson and head installer Dan O'Connell built the Lexus, the core remained the same: a 5.1 system from the start.
To The SourceTo make room for a center channel in the dash, Johnson opted for JVC's KDAVX2, which gave him a single-DIN size, LCD screen and the necessary onboard surround decoder. On the head unit, he tacked on a JVC SIR1 Sirius tuner with the KS-PD100 iPod interface. Johnson needed six channels of equalization so he added an AudioControl DQS.
Front And Center (Rear, Too)The center channel comes via a Crossfire SR5 set up as a coax. Up front, a variety of speakers create the front stage, and none of them make use of the factory locations. "I chose the [Image Dynamics CD1 pro horns under each side of the dash] for their great fidelity and imaging," Johnson explains. The installers also set 6 11/42" midbass drivers from a Crossfire SQ6 set in custom kick panels. Johnson says he picked these "for their smooth frequency response (particularly in the midbass region) and their neodymium motor structure, which cut down on the necessary mounting space." For rear surround, he made the unusual choice of eight Hi-Vi 2" Beryllium drivers. "I chose them because they look much cooler than single big drivers," he says.
Subs In A Pod"For sub bass, I really wanted to go with an IB [infinite baffle] setup, for its smooth, predictable, low-end response," Johnson says. While Johnson could've just replaced the factory 10" sub, he wanted at least two woofers. The gas tank, located right behind the back seat, limited sub placement options. A pod suspended from the reinforced rear deck provides the solution. It directs low-frequency output up through the factory 10" sub hole in the rear deck, maintains cargo room, leaves space for a spare tire and gives easy access to the three Crossfire P1228's subs. "The P12's were chosen for their TS parameters and power range," Johnson offers.
Good PairingsUnder an acrylic window in the trunk, a Crossfire VR705D 5-channel amp consisting of four 50-watt channels and one 300-watt channel was installed to match Johnson's 5.1 system. The four 50-watt channels run the front stage, while the 300 watt powers the subs. Also in the trunk, a Crossfire VR354 runs the rear speakers and the center channel.
Final AdditionsWhile additional video wasn't part of the original plan, Johnson incorporated a Drivesoft in-car PC. The PC sits in the trunk, while a 7" Lilliput touchscreen sits at the base of the center stack. The headrests sport a pair of 5-inch Eiger Vision monitors. A two-toned leather interior, hidden Beltronics radar detector and custom-painted dash complete the interior mods.
Johnson swapped in a 1JZ JDM twin turbo Supra motor and converted the 250 hp stock twin turbos into a 450 hp upgraded single turbo. The Lexus sits 2" lower with 19" Foose Lusso wheels completing the exterior look.