Wheels For 99 Ls 400

[ericp]

I just got a 1999 LS 400 and want to put 18 inch wheels on it. My local Lex dealer said doing so will cause problems with my "roters" and is not advisable because of suspension problems and brake problems and that the tire will rub in the front. All the wheel stores say the car will "take" upto 21 inch wheels. Has anyone tried 18s on the 99 ls 400?

Thanks in advance...

[chips229]

I just got a 1999 LS 400 and want to put 18 inch wheels on it.  My local Lex dealer said doing so will cause problems with my "roters" and is not advisable because of suspension problems and brake problems and that the tire will rub in the front.  All the wheel stores say the car will "take" upto 21 inch wheels.  Has anyone tried 18s on the 99 ls 400?

Thanks in advance...

Hi...the main problem is with the offset of the wheel....i have 18s fitted to my old series 1.....a 1991 model.

It seems most alloy wheels are around 35 to 42 offset....meaning...my 91 400...the offset of the factory wheels are 50....the offset should be stamped on the wheel.

On my wheels it was stamped on the outside(the side you see when its on the car)as i found out after taking the wheel off the car thinking it would be stamped on the inside :chairshot: :chairshot: :chairshot:

I think you can get away with a 43 offset on a replacement aftermarket alloy.

See when i bought my new alloys the firm blagged it,saying yea them wheels will fit on your car NO TROUBLE :whistles: :chairshot:

I had to send them back to them,because the front wheels,well the tyres were hitting on the tops of the wheel arches :chairshot: :chairshot: (fenders :D ) (i do smile when i read what different parts of the car are called by us all :D )....so the firm had to have the wheels machined...taking 3mm thats all they say is safe to machine off the inside face of the wheel,meaning the middle hub part of the alloy...

So all in all after alot of messing about the wheels now fit :)

I believe the lower the offset number the more the wheels will stick out the side of the car causing rubbing.

Your car has larger discs(rotors :D )than on my model so also that might be more of a problem for you..

Heres my car at the bottom of there "customers cars" web site page

click the link below

my car with 18s

[ConfigmanUSA]

I have a '98 LS400 and mounted 17" aftermarket wheels on the car. I selected wheels with a front wheel drive offset (catalog actually categorized these as wheels that would specifically fit a '98 LS400). When the wheels arrived, that's when the trouble began. I had to get spacers for the front wheels to clear the calipers. I also learned the difference between lug centric and hub centric wheels. The new wheels, are lug centric - the factory wheels are hub centric. No matter how I tried, I could not center the lug centric wheels on the car. For after market, do yourself a favor and mount only hub centric wheels. You can learn from my mistake and frustration. Once the tires wore out on the new wheels (and be aware, the larger wheel you go with, the shorter the tire life), I went back to the OEM wheels with upgraded rubber. They don't look as good, but man the ride is smooth.

[Neo]

18s will fit on your LS. You just need to be careful with the offsets like the others said and it would also help to get wheels that are high disk. The later LS400s have larger 4-piston calipers that need the high disk fitment to clear the caliper. Sometimes you also get lucky with the wheel design and how it curves. This sometimes help with the fitment.

As for the hub-centricity, hub-centric is always preferable. If you cannot get hub-centric wheels, see if they make hub-centric rings for the lug-centric wheels. These are like adapters taht will allow the wheels to act like hub-centric wheels.

Good luck.