Tire Wear

[deanlebaron]

Factory installed Goodyear tires wore out in the first 10k miles which I am told is normal. Upgraded tires might be a little better but not much. Cause: gasoline engine cutting in and out causing change in tire rotation per dealer. Have others had this experience...seems a little bizarre to me.

[NY_RX400h_Savanah]

What???????????????- This must be kind a joke- or total B.S. Car that I've traded in had 45k on it and tires were maybe 50%wore-these were Michelins. 10k- it's totally unaccapteble.BTW- isn't the warranty on tires for 10k??.

One thing for sure- it's not normal a all

[katzjamr]

ten K on 400h this weekend no visible wear on the tires, rotated twice. I do like Michelin as a tire better in general however must be part of this tire wear story we are not hearing.

[lexus411]

see his other post about tire wear on the GS..May be a driver specific problem

[thesaintjim]

Factory installed Goodyear tires wore out in the first 10k miles which I am told is normal. Upgraded tires might be a little better but not much. Cause: gasoline engine cutting in and out causing change in tire rotation per dealer. Have others had this experience...seems a little bizarre to me.

Your dealer is telling you BS. My dealer told me the 400h tires should last 25-30k miles.

[kmke]

Factory installed Goodyear tires wore out in the first 10k miles which I am told is normal. Upgraded tires might be a little better but not much. Cause: gasoline engine cutting in and out causing change in tire rotation per dealer. Have others had this experience...seems a little bizarre to me.

We've got 17250 miles on our Rx400 and are probably half way to the treadwear indicators - we have the Goodyears, should see ~30,000 on them and will probaly replace with Michelin's.

[SW03ES]

Factory installed Goodyear tires wore out in the first 10k miles which I am told is normal. Upgraded tires might be a little better but not much. Cause: gasoline engine cutting in and out causing change in tire rotation per dealer. Have others had this experience...seems a little bizarre to me.

The dealers full of it LOL, that makes no sense.

The goodyear tires are lousy, upgrade them and you'll be fine.

[RX400h]

I noticed the inside of the Goodyear tires that are now in the front is wearing a bit faster than the rest of the tire - could be an alignment issue, but probably not the fault of the tire. Our RX has over 10,000 miles on it and the rears look great. It IS time for a rotation, however.

[Rx330driver]

yes, the good year tires most likely have to be changed at the 30K service, which is when i changed mine on the rx330. short tire life...but they are performance.

[nhrider]

Factory installed Goodyear tires wore out in the first 10k miles which I am told is normal. Upgraded tires might be a little better but not much. Cause: gasoline engine cutting in and out causing change in tire rotation per dealer. Have others had this experience...seems a little bizarre to me.

It's not normal (and your dealer should know that). I have 25K on mine and they are beginning to show signs of wear. I'll probably have to replace them at 30-35K.

I don't care for the Goodyear tires. I don't feel any 'performance' advantage, and they wear quickly and don't perform very well in the snow. I like the Michelins. Swapped to them on my 2004 RX330 when the Goodyears wore out. I'll do the same on the RX400H.

David

[katzjamr]

sorry to hijack the topic however im curious at 25K on the 400h is it running as well as when you first got it. any different sounds, vibrations from the electric motors at low speed or general changes you percieve? mine has 10K now and i am just wondering how yours is doing.

[RX400h]

My experience has been just the opposite, at least with my other cars. Michelins are almost always the most expensive tires you can buy. However, Goodyear has consistantly topped the tire ratings in Consumer Reports and Car & Driver magazine. My Goodyear GSD3s (on the Corvette) are the best tires I've ever owned.

[nhrider]

sorry to hijack the topic however im curious at 25K on the 400h is it running as well as when you first got it. any different sounds, vibrations from the electric motors at low speed or general changes you percieve? mine has 10K now and i am just wondering how yours is doing.

I've had no problems with the 400h, except a weak or intermittent GPS signal to the Nav System. It runs great, and I beleive it is quieter now...The noise from the electric motors/charging system when slowing seems to have diminished. There was more of a 'turbine sound' when it was new. I average 28-30 Mpg in mixed commuting... if I keep it at 70 or below on the highway and drive for economy. I commute ~100mi/day. It drops to ~24Mpg in the cold weather. The mpg will drop considerably if I drive for fun and enjoy the rapid acceleration (I don't do that much with gas ~$3.00/gal).

I changed to synthetic oil, but I don't think it's affected fuel economy appreciably...I do prefer synthetic, and run it in all my vehicles.

[deanlebaron]

sorry to hijack the topic however im curious at 25K on the 400h is it running as well as when you first got it. any different sounds, vibrations from the electric motors at low speed or general changes you percieve? mine has 10K now and i am just wondering how yours is doing.

Mine runs just fine....very pleased with it. Just seemed like a very strange story from the dealer.

[RolandB]

I was told Monday by my tire dealer that he couldn't balance one of my Goodyear tires which had been on the front and the other front tire was badly worn also. Both had insides worn badly. I had had them all balanced at 500 miles (shortly after getting the car) and was rotating and balancing at 5K intervals... Now at 14,800 I'm told two are definitely BAD ! My friendly dealer service manager at Park Place Lexus here in Dallas has informed me that was "about right." He approves replacement all the time for their loaner RX SUVs at about 15,000... 'that's all they last'! I had been appalled when I purchased the car when they said the 'high performance tires' would only last about 25K! Now, the service manager has downward revised expectations to 15K ! He has offered to align the wheels after I get new tires! I firmly believe the alignment was wrong at the outset! I had purchased the road hazard and lifetime rotate and balance from the tire dealer just for protection since they were such expensive tires! Now, that appears to have been wasted since that didn't cover BAD ALIGNMENT!

After checking around for tires, I can roll out with a set of Michelins for about $942 (includes TT, lifetime spin bal, etc) but they have NO Mileage warranty. On the other hand, a set of Bridgestones would cost about $890 (including same) BUT have a 65,000 Mileage Warranty! Matter of fact, Bridgestone was the ONLY manufacturer with any Mileage Warranty.

I went through a similar experience with my LS400 and feel like Lexus QC was lacking with 'alignment checking'!

[skyfish400h]

I was told Monday by my tire dealer that he couldn't balance one of my Goodyear tires which had been on the front and the other front tire was badly worn also. Both had insides worn badly. I had had them all balanced at 500 miles (shortly after getting the car) and was rotating and balancing at 5K intervals... Now at 14,800 I'm told two are definitely BAD ! My friendly dealer service manager at Park Place Lexus here in Dallas has informed me that was "about right." He approves replacement all the time for their loaner RX SUVs at about 15,000... 'that's all they last'! I had been appalled when I purchased the car when they said the 'high performance tires' would only last about 25K! Now, the service manager has downward revised expectations to 15K ! He has offered to align the wheels after I get new tires! I firmly believe the alignment was wrong at the outset! I had purchased the road hazard and lifetime rotate and balance from the tire dealer just for protection since they were such expensive tires! Now, that appears to have been wasted since that didn't cover BAD ALIGNMENT!

After checking around for tires, I can roll out with a set of Michelins for about $942 (includes TT, lifetime spin bal, etc) but they have NO Mileage warranty. On the other hand, a set of Bridgestones would cost about $890 (including same) BUT have a 65,000 Mileage Warranty! Matter of fact, Bridgestone was the ONLY manufacturer with any Mileage Warranty.

I went through a similar experience with my LS400 and feel like Lexus QC was lacking with 'alignment checking'!

I have requested an alignment check @5K, rotated them at 10K and will requrest another aligenment check at 15K. So far the tires look to have at good life left on them (at least to the next rotation). They are the Goodyear tires and I'm not one to baby the tires in my driving style.

[SW03ES]

Unfortunately thats going to remain the case with low profile tires, its not Lexus' fault and theres nothing wrong with the vehicle, its simply that lower profile tires dont last much past 15k or so.

[BillT]

Greetings,

Since wear out of tires leads to replacement, I searched for what options exist.

The revs per mile differ among the 4 and 5 star tires offerred at http://www.tirerack.com/

They range from 731 to 739 , about 1%. I assume I can ignore this as long as I get the

tires in a matched set. Anyone disagree?

The site has Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Blackwall as the best seller. If everyone does

their research, then I can assume it rates better than the others. Does anyone have a better

suggestion if I want a good traction tire for all seasons, i.e. rain in winter and 110F and dry in summer?

Sincerely,

Bill

[RX400h]

Greetings,

Since wear out of tires leads to replacement, I searched for what options exist.

The revs per mile differ among the 4 and 5 star tires offerred at http://www.tirerack.com/

They range from 731 to 739 , about 1%. I assume I can ignore this as long as I get the

tires in a matched set. Anyone disagree?

The site has Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Blackwall as the best seller. If everyone does

their research, then I can assume it rates better than the others. Does anyone have a better

suggestion if I want a good traction tire for all seasons, i.e. rain in winter and 110F and dry in summer?

Sincerely,

Bill

Lately, I've been reading very good things about Goodyear (not OEM) tires. Consumer reports has rated GY tires #1 for the past couple of years. I don't have my mags handy at this time, but anyone who subscribes can check into this.

I do know that the Goodyear GSD3s (ultra high-performance tires) are not only the best tires I've ever driven on in the rain and on dry roads, but they also trounced every other high-performance tire in a recent Car & Driver test.

[SW03ES]

Goodyear has certainly made leaps and bounds as far as product quality is concerned, but I've had too many negative experiences with them in the past.

I would put Michelin MXV4 S8s on that vehicle because they're quiet and ultra low rolling resistance.

[skyfish400h]

Goodyear has certainly made leaps and bounds as far as product quality is concerned, but I've had too many negative experiences with them in the past.

I would put Michelin MXV4 S8s on that vehicle because they're quiet and ultra low rolling resistance.

Those are $181 ea (plus tax) at CostCo with lifetime rotaion and road hazard here in So Cal. I was told there is no milage warrentee for these type of tires, but the Michelin should go for 50K with the 440 tread wear number.

[PJFW8]

Goodyear has certainly made leaps and bounds as far as product quality is concerned, but I've had too many negative experiences with them in the past.

I would put Michelin MXV4 S8s on that vehicle because they're quiet and ultra low rolling resistance.

Those are $181 ea (plus tax) at CostCo with lifetime rotaion and road hazard here in So Cal. I was told there is no milage warrentee for these type of tires, but the Michelin should go for 50K with the 440 tread wear number.

I have had significant tire cupping with Goodyears on my 20,000 mile 400h. Rotated every 5000 miles. The Goodyear dealer blamed the wheel alignment (top of tires tipped in to improve handling). The dealer is checking alignment and is doubtful. Otherwise tire wear is good, but these were never quiet tires! Anyone have similar problems on the RX400h?

[RX400h]

Tire cupping is almost always indicative of bad shock absorbers. Our Goodyears are looking good after 13,000 miles. No, they won't last 40,000 miles, but OEMs rarely do. In fact, I was looking at tire selections for my Mazda at a Discount tire shop not too long ago and the salesguy pointed out a few OEM tires that had 10,000 mile warranties. I'm not talking about super high performance tires, either. These were H-rated OEMs by Bridgestone, Michelin, etc. Apparently, longevity is not a concern of many auto manufacturers.

As proof, my Goodyear GSD3 tires on my Corvette are hardly wearing at all after 10,000 miles. These are ultra high-performance tires that are far superior to anything that goes on most new vehicles.

[PJFW8]

Tire cupping is almost always indicative of bad shock absorbers. Our Goodyears are looking good after 13,000 miles. No, they won't last 40,000 miles, but OEMs rarely do. In fact, I was looking at tire selections for my Mazda at a Discount tire shop not too long ago and the salesguy pointed out a few OEM tires that had 10,000 mile warranties. I'm not talking about super high performance tires, either. These were H-rated OEMs by Bridgestone, Michelin, etc. Apparently, longevity is not a concern of many auto manufacturers.

As proof, my Goodyear GSD3 tires on my Corvette are hardly wearing at all after 10,000 miles. These are ultra high-performance tires that are far superior to anything that goes on most new vehicles.

Thanks for your insight...makes sense!

[desederata]

Last week we took our RX400h into the dealer for it's 1 year/15000 mile service. The dealer called and said the tires were down to the cord in spots and would need to be replaced. We were shocked, neither my husband and I had noticed this. Believe it or not, Kearny Mesa Lexus told us that they were going to replace the tires as a customer courtesy. It took them an extra day but they put 4 new Michelin MXV4 Energys on the car, no charge. What a great tire, by the way. Possibly Lexus knows about an issue with the OEM tire or the car?