Tires Tires Tires

[skyfish400h]

You will, if you were unlucky enough to get the Goodyear Eagle RS-A tires. These are more performance oriented than the Michelin Energy MXV4 S8, but hardly a good trade due to their short life.

Here are your options...

For those who enjoy the soft ride, fuel efficiency and long life of the Michelin then the Michelin Energy MXV4 S8 is the right choice.

For those who had a long life Michelin and are looking to save a few $$ and get another long life tire with a bit more performance but without giving up too much comfort or MPG then the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza is the right choice.

For those who had the Goodyear Eagle RS-A and are willing to give up some performance to get longer life and a more comfortable ride then the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza is the right choice.

For those who (like me) had the Goodyear Eagle RS-A and are looking for even better performance you have to start looking beyond the 235/55R18 tire sizes that come stock on the RX400h...

The rule of thumb is as long as you stay within 5% of the OEM dia (or revolutions/mile) and the tires don't rub against anything, then you are safe to upgrade.

There are several upgrade choices out there but keeping the list to only the highly rated ones we have the following short list in descending order:

Yokohama ADVAN S.4. (245/50 VR18) [performance tire, expect ~20-30K]

Tops in its category Ultra High Performance All-Season. Smaller in dia that either of the OEM tires and with a lower profile, these tires will maximize your RX handling performance with a minimum sacrifice to ride comfort. They are pricey tho and may actually be more tire than you need on an RX.

Goodyear Eagle ResponsEdge (255/55 VR18) [50,000 mi warranty]

Tops in its category Grand Touring All-Season. Larger in dia than either of the OEM tires with excellent handling and comfort scores due to its unique hybrid design. Heavier and stiffer than either OEM tire will likely sacrifice some MPG. Prices vary widely as these tires are becoming more popular as word gets out.

Toyo Proxies S/T (either 255/50/R18 or 255/55/R18) [performance tire, expect ~20-30K]

Highly rated Street/Sport Truck All-Season tires. These small truck tires (same category as the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza) have an aggressive look and come in sizes that bracket the OEM size. The lower profile 50 series will likely ride stiffer and give better handling and the larger 55 series will allow greater ride comfort without giving up too much performance. There have been successful installations of these tires on RX machines without any rubbing or clearance issues. These tires are low cost due mostly to the lack of advertising dollars spent by Toyo.

BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDWS (245/55 ZR18) [performance tire, expect ~20-30K]

These are rated 11th place in the Ultra High Performance All-Season (same category as the Yokohama ADVAN S.4.). While not the highest scoring tire in its class, one must consider the company they keep. These tires will likely perform much better then either OEM tire and may out perform the small truck category tires as well. They also come closest to the OEM tires in size dimensions. They are competitively priced.

I'm in the market for one of these last (4) choices and I've started shoping dealers. I'll report back on price details and my selection after I'm riding on my new meats.

[katzjamr]

thanks im in the market too, the goodyears have 25K and some tread but more wear on one tire due to alignment. i was gonna just do the michelins but u have me thinking.

[RX400h]

Are you sure about that 5% rule? That's almost 1.5 inches! It's hard to believe that this much difference won't be reflected in the speed reading and odometer. Regardless, I have found that although I could easily get the OEM Goodyears to squeal, it is much harder to do with the Bridgestone Alenzas, despite their same width and diameter as the OEMs. I guess if you want to track the 400h, having super high-performance tires will help, but really, the suspension is not set up for ultimate handling. Lexus chose to keep the ride smoother than that of BMW because many luxury SUV buyers like it that way.

Of course, if you really just want bigger tires, that's another thing!

Dave

[skyfish400h]

I've added tread life info to the upgrade tires listed in my original post.

It's worth noting that the Goodyear Eagle ResponsEdge comes with a factory 50,000 mi warranty.

[skyfish400h]

Are you sure about that 5% rule? That's almost 1.5 inches! It's hard to believe that this much difference won't be reflected in the speed reading and odometer. Regardless, I have found that although I could easily get the OEM Goodyears to squeal, it is much harder to do with the Bridgestone Alenzas, despite their same width and diameter as the OEMs. I guess if you want to track the 400h, having super high-performance tires will help, but really, the suspension is not set up for ultimate handling. Lexus chose to keep the ride smoother than that of BMW because many luxury SUV buyers like it that way.

Of course, if you really just want bigger tires, that's another thing!

Dave

No doubt the Bridgestones are a better tire than the Goodyear OEM. Almost anything would be, but this is not the point. Neither is it about "tracking" the RX as you put it. It's about extracting as much of the RX handling and performance as possible without giving up too much of the ride comfort. Oh and having the tires last longer than 20-30k mi.

The 5% rule is a consensus of opinion from various tire dealers. Some will not install anything other than the OEM size, others will put on whatever you want (think monster truck). But the average seems to be keep it under 5%. The largest tire in my list is only about 3% over size from the norminal dia between the two OEM tires.

This will affect your speedo, of course. The wear on your tires will affect your speedo too. But at 3.5% over size that means when you are reading 65MPH you are actually going 67MPH. This effect is with in reason and to put it into perspective, the difference between the (2) different OEM tires is 1.3% when they are new and the difference between the larger size (new) and smaller size (worn out) is 3.4%, so the kind of change I'm talking about is within "normal operating perameters"

One advantage of larger tires is less wear and tear on the moving parts since they will rotate less and you get a slight edge on total miles on the odometer, so when you've traveled 100k mi your odometer will only show 97k mi ;)

[skyfish400h]

The results of my pricing research are in. This is specific to Southern California and are subject to change, YMMV, not all dealers available in your area, void where prohibited, yada yada yada.

All prices are for (4) tires, installed/balanced, including tax and all other fees... out the door prices.

The Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza have caught on big and the tire dealers are starting to take notice. Prices vary considerably right now and I would expect the trend to be up wards, so act fast if this is your choice. The only two places I found them still under $900 were on line at Tirerack.com ($805) or from American tire ($822). Everyone else was in the $900 range, from Allen Tire ($908) to Big-O ($998).

The Goodyear Eagle RS-A, if anybody wants them, are either way over priced (up to $1080 at one place) or dropping like flies. Big-0 Tire had the best offer at $775.

The Michelin Energy MXV4 S8 can be had from Costco at $816 and includes lifetime rotation. I doubt anyone can beat that price. Worth the cost of membership for that purchase alone.

The two different size Toyo's can be had from Allen Tire ($812/$832) at the best price that I could get quoted. Most dealers do not normally carry them, but Allen does. Allen tire stores vary considerably in their price and helpfulness of service, so if you can, call more than one in your area to shop prices and customer service.

America's Tire Co / Discount Tire Co (not to be confused with Discount Tire Centers) had the best prices on the largest selection of tires. Including the...

Yokohama ADVAN S.4. @ $1034

Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza @ $822

BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDWS @ $739

Goodyear Eagle ResponsEdge @ $826

Many I talked to have been very positive about the ResponsEdge, and given the ratings on line, the 50,000 mi warranty, and the price... I think these will be my next set of tires. I will probably try to get the Allen Tire dealer in Cerritos to match the America's tire price in Long Beach. The Allen tire guy in Cerritos was very helpful once I weeded out two other locations who were very unhelpful.

Also I've found out there is now a Nitto 420s tire in the 255/55R18 size which should work fine on the RX. They are made by the same company that makes Toyo. They look radical, check them out.

There, I think that pretty much captures the current tire market for the RX400h in a nutshell. I should be getting paid for this ;) but enjoying a smooth handling luxury SUV with freeway torque o-plenty for the next 50,000 mi will be my reward!

[RX400h]

And to think that I paid $600 + free mounting and balancing (courtesy of my dealership) for the Alenzas. Now THAT'S a bargain!

[skyfish400h]

They are ON!

I landed on the Goodyear Eagle ResponsEdge (255/55 VR18) [50,000 mi warranty] for $826 from America's Tire

And I'm glad I did. Here are my first impressions.

Installation/Fitment:

These tires are wider and larger than the OEM tires and due to suspension geometry there was some interference when installing them.

The rear tire rubs against one of the screw heads the secure the plastic fender well lining. This only temporary as when weight is put on the suspension, the tire quickly moves out and up, away from the interference. So, unless I become airborne, this is not an issue.

The clearance behind the tire to the rear shock tower is tight. Any mud or snow that attach's to the tire will definitely be scraped off by the tower. There is NO room for rear chains, but that is true of the OEM tires as well.

I have also noticed that when turning lock to lock going forward I can hear a slight bit of rubbing. It only seems to be on the drivers side when turning left, but that could be unique to my car's assembly tolerances. The rubbing seems to be with a bit of plastic that extends down from the plastic fender well liner. Not a concern.

Aesthetics:

These tires look GOOD on the RX. They fill the fender well better than the RS and the added width give the car a more "attached to the ground" look (I've always been secretly envious of the FX stance). The five bands of treads complete the impression of width and power.

Because they are wider they also complement the appearance of the rims. They finally look like they have a tire on them that fits, rather than one that appears to be too small. The added width also helps protect the rim from scraping on the curb. I've already damaged one rim that way, and it now lives under the car in the spare tire well.

Driving (the one you've all been waiting for, I'm sure ;):

What a difference. How to describe it. Like a different car? Like the RX was meant to feel? I'm soo glad to be rid of those OEM tires, it doesn't even bother me that they only made it 27K (I easily got an extra 10K out of them by running them at elevated pressure for the last half of their life). I'm running the new tires at 36 psi.

Cornering is secure and predictable. Easily adding 10mph to freeway exit ramp speed on the way to work. The added rubber between the rim and the road give the RX a very stable feeling in hard cornering. The body roll is still there, but now it is entirely manageable since it has been separated from the tire sag. The OEM tires were like walking on water balloons and these tires are like walking in a good pair of running shoes.

Steering wheel input is crisp now. No more lane wandering or under steer issues during lane change or slight curves in the freeway. The RX goes where you point it and like the Supra I used to own, the RX now has that intuitive feel to the steering wheel. It's like you mearly need to will it and it responds. Nice.

Road feel is greatly improved and power-steering over boost is subdued. You can feel the grooves in the roadway so there is a connectedness, but the heavier feel compensates nicely to avoid the tram way effect. Very good balance now. Emergency maneuvers are quick, solid, and do not throw the car beyond where you need to be to avoid the obstacle. Very well controlled.

And quiet. Normally, to get this kind of improvement to a cars handling, you would need to suffer teeth rattling stiffness and transmission of every pavement defect directly into the cabin, but not with these tires. With all the great improvements described above, the cabin is just a quiet as an RX should be. In fact I would say the cabin is even quieter, but that could be just due the fact that these tires are new.

The one drawback is that these tires are heavier and therefore have more inertia. This takes its toll on the HSD and so far seems to want to force it into ICE operation sooner that is used to. This will affect the MPG.

It also seems to impact the throttle response. Those bigger tires take more effort to get moving. But since I've always felt the RX was out of balance between throttle and steering response, these tires bring that balance to much a better place.

The only better choice to get the steering without losing the throttle would be the

Yokohama ADVAN S.4. (245/50 VR18) [performance tire, expect ~20-30K]

But you will pay a lot more and replace them a lot sooner.

Everything in life is a trade. But at least I hope this helps someone facing a tire choice to better understand what s/he is trading and what they are getting in return.

[angie7824]

I just bought my BF Goodrich tires from Costco in Marina del Rey here in Southern California for my RX300. Costco now has a special of $60 off a set of four Michelin tires until September 2nd.

I went on line and specially ordered my tires from Costco.com. They notify you when they come in, which is only 3 to 5 days. The tires for the Lexus trucks run from $93 to $200 each. Costco has more of a selection on-line. At the store they only had two types for my truck. They cost $145 and $175. Those were the Michelins. That's not including the additional discount for 4. The mounting and balancing is $10 per tire. They told me to bring the car back after 25 miles to tighten the lugs.

Costco tires come with a 50,000-mile warranty and free tire repair if you should get a nail in your tire.

Angie

[skyfish400h]

I just bought my BF Goodrich tires from Costco in Marina del Rey here in Southern California for my RX300. Costco now has a special of $60 off a set of four Michelin tires until September 2nd.

I went on line and specially ordered my tires from Costco.com. They notify you when they come in, which is only 3 to 5 days. The tires for the Lexus trucks run from $93 to $200 each. Costco has more of a selection on-line. At the store they only had two types for my truck. They cost $145 and $175. Those were the Michelins. That's not including the additional discount for 4. The mounting and balancing is $10 per tire. They told me to bring the car back after 25 miles to tighten the lugs.

Costco tires come with a 50,000-mile warranty and free tire repair if you should get a nail in your tire.

Angie

Hi Angie,

I see you are a new member. Welcome.

In my option costco is really the best way to go for price, access, customer satisfaction etc... just not for selection.

Since in my case I wanted to deviate from the factory tire size, costco would not support that.

BTW, you do realize that you are not posting in the RX300 fourm, right? This is for the hybrids...

[RXREY]

Yes, I was one of the unlucky GY tire recipients....so after one year,my Good Years were balding so I went with TOYO. I simply love my TOYO Proxes S/Ts....they are amazingly sporty,ride great and look like a million bucks...I paid under $600 total,installed...total...they are great. I got the 255/55 so they fill the wheel wells better and no change in MPGs that I can tell. Rey

[RX400h]

Well, it seems like this is the direction in which some of us are heading with tires. Honestly, I hope I am wrong, but the trend has already started........ <_<

22" Delta Force Wheels on 285/35/22 BFG KDW

[RXREY]

I didn't like that at all...those 22"s are too big...I just added a half of an inch to the circumferance and I did it without realizing it and I do like it better but wouldn't like it if it were more...but then to each his own. It's why we all get different shoes. Rey

[RX400h]

Hey, you said you wanted to fill the wheels wells better.....

Seriously, traditional SUVs and 4X4 trucks have always had large fender gaps, and for good reason - off roading. But that's the SUV/4X4 "look", if you will. I have to chuckle when teens used to "slam" their trucks to get rid of the fender gap and make the truck handle better. I understand they really wanted a low-slung sportscar but couldn't afford one. I admit to lowering my Corvette to reduce the fender gap, but hey, it's a sportscar and should look low-slung. My SUV? I'm going to keep it looking like an SUV, but with semi-low aspect ratio tires for decent handling (no 22-inchers!) and a fairly large fender gap!

Of course, as you say, "to each his (or her) own!"

[skyfish400h]

Well, it seems like this is the direction in which some of us are heading with tires. Honestly, I hope I am wrong, but the trend has already started........ <_<

22" Delta Force Wheels on 285/35/22 BFG KDW

Of course these size tires will not fit on the RX

http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculato...p?action=submit

They fall outside the 3% rule given on the website AND the 5% rule generally practiced by tire shops.

It's my opinion that the RX was actually designed for 255/55R18 tires as the car handles much better and looks much better with this size tire. After several days fo agressive cornering practice :) I can say that the difference is profound.

There is evidence of a slight bit of rubbing going on behind the drivers side rear tire. The contact is with a flexible plastic liner inside the fender well.

[RX400h]

There is evidence of a slight bit of rubbing going on behind the drivers side rear tire. The contact is with a flexible plastic liner inside the fender well.

That, alone is evidence that the RX400hs were not designed to have larger diameter tires. Besides, the larger the diameter, the greater the rotational mass and the slower the acceleration/braking. In addition greater sectional width tends to increase fuel consumption. Granted, the adverse effects may not be noticable or significant to some people. However, I want to emphasize that many stock-sized tires provide very noticable handling and perhaps, ride improvements over the OEM tires.

The only way to know whether the tires you chose are much better than say, the Bridgestone Alenzas would be to test them back-to-back. The huge improvements you feel may disappear when comparing your tires to highly-rated 235/55/18s.

[Gryphon]

Well, it seems like this is the direction in which some of us are heading with tires. Honestly, I hope I am wrong, but the trend has already started........ <_<

22" Delta Force Wheels on 285/35/22 BFG KDW

And the bumper sticker reads, "Pimp My Hybrid Ride."

Tom

[skyfish400h]

There is evidence of a slight bit of rubbing going on behind the drivers side rear tire. The contact is with a flexible plastic liner inside the fender well.

That, alone is evidence that the RX400hs were not designed to have larger diameter tires.

Or, that the flexible plastic liner was installed slightly out of place... I can move it with my finger. I may take it out and put it back in again just to see if I can "mislocate" it.

Besides, the larger the diameter, the greater the rotational mass and the slower the acceleration/braking. In addition greater sectional width tends to increase fuel consumption. Granted, the adverse effects may not be noticable or significant to some people. However, I want to emphasize that many stock-sized tires provide very noticable handling and perhaps, ride improvements over the OEM tires.

What you say is true, of course. I have no way to tell for sure how much of the improvement is from the Responsedge and how much I could have achived from the only stock size choice, Bridgestones.

But this much I can be sure of... There is no way the Bridgestones could provde the SAME level of improvement. Having experienced it first hand for several days now, I would not give up one bit of it. (rubbing or no rubbing).

Today these tires paid for themselves in a flash. In heavy traffic going over 50mph, my lane was backing up (brakelights ahead). I signaled for a lane change, glanced at my blind spot and when I looked forward again the car directly in front of me was engaged in a panic stop with the tail of his car end jumping up. He must not have been paying attention to the traffic ahead.

Having only seen the last split second of his panic, and having already started a lane change, my reaction was to avoid the car in front of me by yanking hard on the wheel.... maybe more than I should have.

Now being new to these tires and used to the Goodyear RS, I was more than surprised by exacly how fast the car changed lanes. These tires grip! So I yanked hard the otherway to avoid going into the 3rd lane. Throught all of this there was not so much as a twitch of or hint of lack of control. The stability control didn't even kick in.

What could have been a serious accent was avoided by the excellent response of these tires. What struck me most as the adrenelin washed out of my blood, was how stable the maneuver was. I am certain that I could not have made it thru on the OEM tires without fish tailing or possibly losing control altogether.

Best $800 I ever spent. True story.

[RX400h]

I'll bet if you had the Alenzas, you would've been just as amazed. I can't even get mine to screech around high-speed corners. They are truly amazing and at $600, a steal!

[Jim Nazium]

I have had my ResponsEdge since January, and installed them in March. I was AMAZED. What a difference. Total Transformation. I have approximately 6500miles on them so far, and they drive EXACTLY like the day I purchased them. I am due up for an oil change and will rotate them accordingly.

Smooth, extremely quiet (be it rough roads or smooth roads), managed a best ever average of 34.1mpg with them as well.

Dry handling and wet handling are fabulous. The suspension for the 400h is not set up like say an X5 or even the previous generation Pathfinder, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. This SUV drives now like if it has an active suspension.

My only grief has been two tire punctures (drywall screw) that were expertly repaired by an extremely competent Good Year Tire Centre (I went there since they have always had the most "bleeding Edge" equipment, they were the 1st in my area back in the early 80's to offer "on the car wheel / tire balancing" etc..) where they used a vulcan tire patch/plug (needs to have the tire unmounted and installed from within).

I know these tires use two new fangled technologies, kevlar sidewall reinforcement and "stay black" sidewall rubber. I can honestly say that if I were to drive my 400H shod with the ResponsEdge and were not aware of these tires on the SUV, I would NEVER, EVER would of believed Good Year could produce such an Outstanding Tire.

I have gone through more tires than I care to remember, Pirelli, Bridgestone, Yokohama, Continental, Michelin, and have never skimped out on cost (price being never a deciding factor). I always factored in all the other factors, and if the tire I wanted happened to cost $ XXX.XX then so be it. From a price point, I was a little leary of the Good Year ResponsEdge given the average cost from the Big Boyz (Pirelli, Bridgestone, Yokohama, Continental, Michelin) cost over $200 per tire (especially Michelin). I have to tip my hat to Good Year, because I never considered Good Year Tires, capable of offering what was most important to me in my decision for my 400h. QUIET ride, SMOOTH and Compliant, and didn't look like a 4x4 offroad tire found on a Chevy Pickup truck.

Cheers,

MadloR

[skyfish400h]

I'll bet if you had the Alenzas, you would've been just as amazed. I can't even get mine to screech around high-speed corners. They are truly amazing and at $600, a steal!

I bet I could get your Alenzas to screech

Besides, you cannot get them for $600 any more. They have become very popular and their prices have been raising rapidly. When I last checked, $805 if you buy em on line to $996 at Big O Tires.

[Jim Nazium]

Tire Rack

As you can see, they can be had for $159.00 plus you get a $40 gift card at the moment. Back in January, I paid the same amount.

Cheers,

MadloR

[RX400h]

I'll bet if you had the Alenzas, you would've been just as amazed. I can't even get mine to screech around high-speed corners. They are truly amazing and at $600, a steal!

I bet I could get your Alenzas to screech

Besides, you cannot get them for $600 any more. They have become very popular and their prices have been raising rapidly. When I last checked, $805 if you buy em on line to $996 at Big O Tires.

Remember, I have an 01 Corvette and have been known to activate the active-handling while traversing tight mountain corners. Unfortunately, I tend to forget what my cornering limits are when I am driving the RX. However, I am VERY impressed by the Alenzas' ability to take corners without screeching.

Yes, the $600 I paid was probably an introductory price, but there is good reason why they are selling so well - they perform extremely well and the word is out! Hopefully, it will be quite a while before my Alenzas are worn out, but so far, I am very happy with them.

[skyfish400h]

Tire Rack

As you can see, they can be had for $159.00 plus you get a $40 gift card at the moment. Back in January, I paid the same amount.

My $805 (out the door) price is based on $152 ea, so if you can take advantage of the gift card, then you could get them for just under $800. But then there is the "hassle factor" of dealing with the on line purchase.

YMMV

[Jim Nazium]

Tire Rack

As you can see, they can be had for $159.00 plus you get a $40 gift card at the moment. Back in January, I paid the same amount.

My $805 (out the door) price is based on $152 ea, so if you can take advantage of the gift card, then you could get them for just under $800. But then there is the "hassle factor" of dealing with the on line purchase.

YMMV

Zero Hassle. Never had with the Tire Rack. They drop ship to one of there many authorized tire installers. I show up, they install, and I drive off. Have done so for the last 8 combo tire purchases in the last 10 years.

Cheers,

MadloR