First things first: I'm new here. Hey.

All right, so I'm thinking of getting a 2011 tC, but first I wanted to know a few things. Unfortunately, I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to cars, so if you could break it down to pretty basic terms that'd be greatly appreciated.

1. How's the ride on a set of 19" rims instead of the factory 18s?

2. Where do you guys go for interior mods? Specifically I'm looking for leather seats or seat covers (bonus points if you can find them in white - I've been searching for those for days), something to replace the factory dash, and the carpets. I haven't installed anything like this before, but I've got a clunker that I can practice on before diving into the real thing. Any tutorials out there you guys prefer to use?

3. Is the premium Alpine audio that the dealers offer worth it or should I go a different route?

4. Is there any news about a release series 7.0?

Thanks!

 

I can't speak for the 19s. the 18's are a bit on the punishing side, so I can't imagine the 19's would be. And $2100 for a rougher ride? Yikes man, yikes.

For seat covers, there's Clazzios. You can get different colors for the inserts, so black and white two-tone. They're cheap compared to either factory leather or a custom installation ($450).

I've never seen a dealer installed upgrade that is 'worth it.'

 

in my opinion going up a size in rims is always a dumb idea. hurts the cars performance, and makes your tires cost way too much more after that. big waste.

 

To answer your questions:

1. Couldn't tell you from personal experience, but I plan on going to 19s when I upgrade my wheels.

2. I agree with Occam on the Clazzios. You might also email 5 Axis about the covers. They made a set for the tC1, so maybe... I wouldn't replace the dash so much as just repaint it. WellesleyScion and Superpickel both have successfully done it. Pieces just pop out, paint, and replace. Carpet is a bit trickier. Not hard, but will require pulling out the seats, finding someone to make the new carpet, etc, etc. I'd recommend just sticking with the stock carpet unless you know a good custom shop.

3. I have the premium Alipine HU. Sound (now that Toyota fixed the software) is great for a factory unit. I plan to keep my HU, but there are plenty of aftermarket units out there that can do extra stuff.

4. Nothing yet.

 

I can only speak for the 19" TRD Wheels. The ride is a rougher than stock, but not as bad as you would think and there are some pretty bad roads out in the Metro Detroit area. It's my daily driver, so I pretty much baby the hell out of it.

For me, they're just for show (I think it goes well with the Nautical Blue Metallic.) and for the price they aren't worth it if you're thinking about getting a different set or doing a lot of engine mods.

I still have the stock 18" wheels and will be using those for the winter, but for the track I'm going with a 18 x 8.5 wheel.

In the end, they are pretty.

They may be lighter than stock, as well, I think.

 

The TRD 19" wheels are 2.5 lbs per corner lighter... but that's just the rims.

 

Thanks for the quick replies!

I've heard the tC's interior materials are a bit cheap. Which makes perfect sense considering it's a 20k car. But unless I hear otherwise I don't think painting it will be what I want. Anyway, I know a few guys who can help me out and I've been driving a clunker for quite a while to save up, so it's either a brand new tC for 20k + 10k for customization or a used Infiniti g37 for 30k that's not really "mine," so to speak. I'm a big proponent of unique cars and I may wind up taking it to a few custom car shows. I do appreciate the feedback though.