jc19907 Posted January 13, 2006 Posted January 13, 2006 My comments have nothing to do with tire rotation. There had been prior discussion in this post about using tires that aren't speed rated for the LS. Essentially, if you put underrated tires on your car, your tires could fail under significant load limits (sidewall failure etc). Odds are that this probably wouldn't happen, but not something I'd compromise. Tires are made more sturdy to handle extremes that large vehicles may put on them. I would never use tires that aren't rated for my car, if it were just for insurance reasons alone. Additionally, I'm aware that modern tires are directional; and not. Sorry for any confusion.
nc211 Posted January 13, 2006 Posted January 13, 2006 Just my $2 cents here....I think it's a given that Michelin tires are a good match to the LS400. However, I was unable to afford them, so I went with the Continential Premium Contact tire from Tirerack.com. They were $87 ea. and have about 200 miles on them. I myself am very impressed with them. They're 80k mile tires. They have a soft sidewall and take bumps very well. Now I can't really give an honest comparision to the Michelin's that were on there prior, as they were damaged. But the Continetials are very quiet and quite responsive. I'm very pleased, and I think the consumer ratings on the tire from tirerack.com will show "to a degree" that the general public likes them too. All in all, it cost me just shy of $390 for all 4 tires, plus $40 to mount them. Not too bad if you ask me. But, to each is his own I guess, and we'll see what these tires are like with several thousand miles on them. If the postings on tirerack are correct, then they should be excellent.
jc19907 Posted January 14, 2006 Posted January 14, 2006 I looked at those tires too. I'd read some reviews about uneven wear on Conts.; It was a close decision b/c I felt like they were a better looking tire than the YOKO's I bought. I would've have bought them if I drove in more snow here, b/c the Continentals had a more aggressive tread pattern for snow. I decided to go with the Yoko b/c it looked like a more quiet tire. Also, had excellent reviews... Probably, not much a difference. A couple reply's ago, a fellow mentions that tires should be chosen to the conditions and driving style that suits. I agree. I'm totally sold on the Pilot A/S from Mich.; like you I just don't feel like spending 175$ a tire. Maybe when my pockets are fatter. Happy Trails...
jim54perk Posted January 21, 2006 Posted January 21, 2006 I replaced a lousy set of Dunlops with Bidgestone Turanza LS-V's, great all around performanceon my LS-400. Have a set of Michelin MXV4's on another car, hard tire, handles well but is noisier, will get almost 50K out of them though.
akewlguy Posted January 21, 2006 Posted January 21, 2006 LS-V Tauranze has about 8k. As it turns out just put on some BLIZZAK winter tires. They both are amazing. The LS-V have minor wear on the front. I mean very minor so when I rotate I will have new tires on the front. The BLIZZAK work like nothing else. I would question the old theory that nothing can drive on ice. These can and will. Something with the double compound really works. I could not back up or drive into my driveway with new LS-Vs on the ice and snow. The BLIZZAK's did not even slide just straight up the hill any way I tried. It really amazed me. Cheers, Chris
SW03ES Posted January 21, 2006 Posted January 21, 2006 I would question the old theory that nothing can drive on ice. These can and will. Questioning that theory will wind up killing you. While they may help, they won't make driving on ice significantly safer.
akewlguy Posted January 22, 2006 Posted January 22, 2006 At very slow speeds BLIZZAKS improve one's control. Have not tested over 20MPH.
SW03ES Posted January 22, 2006 Posted January 22, 2006 Improve it sure, but they're not going to make an appreciable difference on solid ice, they're not designed to do that.
RCRFAN3 Posted January 23, 2006 Posted January 23, 2006 I have the Bridgestone Turanza LS-V on my 98 LS they are great in rain and snow but after 30k miles they are getting very very loud!!! I wont go with these again
akewlguy Posted January 23, 2006 Posted January 23, 2006 BLIZZAK's are also loud. Did you rotate every 6k? Hope mine dont get tooo loud or I will have to blast the radio!
KY350 Posted January 23, 2006 Posted January 23, 2006 I have noticed a lot of reports of bridgstone tyres getting very noisy, especially as they reach just the halfway mark down to the treadwear indicators. Unfortunately, the same thing happed on my other car with Bridgestones. Got very loud with just 10,000 miles!!! It appears that Bridgestone prefer to use a very stiff sidewall, compared to a alot of other manufacturers, and while it results in good road feel and steering response, the trade off seems to be a lot of tramlining and road noise. I was thinking of getting the LS tyres replaced with a set of Bridgstones that are OEM tyres for a Merc model (perhaps E class but I cannot recall specifically), but now I'm leaning towards something else. I wish we had the Comfort treads in Aust.
SW03ES Posted January 24, 2006 Posted January 24, 2006 Well the Blizzaks have an excuse for being loud, they're snow tires. The LS-Vs are premium performance touring tires, no excuse for them being loud.
VMF Posted January 24, 2006 Posted January 24, 2006 dont get the OEM windshield, i would recommend you to get michelin pilot sport AS tires. those tires are awesome! changed whole LS experience! brought it to completely new level!
branshew Posted January 24, 2006 Posted January 24, 2006 The MXV4s are probably the best tires I've ever had, certainly light years better than anything thats been on this car before. Like Denny said, OEM tires are contract tires and that may be the difference. I agree w/ your statement above and your previous post about the price of Michelins. I will say though that I had Michelins on my ES as well that were put on aftermarket. They were much nicer than any other tires that I ran onthat car and I got about 75K miles out of them. They do cost about 1.5X as much as a decent alternative, but you get 2X the overall mileage so there is definitely a return on investment there. I recently needed 2 new rear tires on my LS. I was going to put Michelins on, but my mechanic had a brand new set of Goodyears (4 tires) that a customer ordered and never picked up. I got a set of 4 for what it would have cost me for 2 Michelins. I would have preferred the Michelins, but the price on the Goodyears couldn't be beat.
SW03ES Posted January 25, 2006 Posted January 25, 2006 dont get the OEM windshield Why do you reccomend against the OEM windshield?
branshew Posted January 25, 2006 Posted January 25, 2006 Why do you reccomend against the OEM windshield? Good question. I had my windshield on my ES replaced 2x and each time I requested that the insurance company install an OEM one. You'll get a definite match that way. Why put non-OEM on your Lexus? (Unless it's an upgrade over factory - but i'm not sure that's possible w/ windshields)
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