Tires For Ls430

[Richard Hewitt]

Looking for QUIET tires for '02 LS430. Can't stand Michelin hydroedge.

[SW03ES]

The only tires I'd put on the car are Michelin Primacy MXV4's. The Hyrdoedges are VERY loud, the Primacy will be a huge improvement.

[Mike Floutier]

I've used Kumho Ecsta SPT KU31, they are very quiet and about half the price of the Primacy tyres over here.

I recently had to replace a tyre quickly after a puncture and had to take what they had in stock. It sounded as though there was a serious problem - wheel bearings or something, but it was just a noisy tyre. I put on my spare, which was a Dunlop SP270 which I keep at home due to propane tank in the tyre well, and quiet was restored.

Tyre selection certainly makes a huge difference, I found it hard to believe.

[SW03ES]

Makes a HUGE difference on the Lexus.

[PilotguyPA28]

I like te Primacy, too.

[Lexus1-2]

I just had a set of Continental ExtremeContact DWS all season tires put on my 2005 LS430 and am very plased with performance and noise level is better than the OE Bridgestone Potenza performance summer tires. Check out the performance ratings, tests, reviews and buyer surveys at tirerack.com for a great overview of tires.

[AttilaTheHun]

I will be shopping for new tires on mine as well. Seems like a lot of drivers like the Michelins Primacy's

[jainla]

+1 on the primacys. Much better grip in the wet and quieter than the Toyos the car came with. Sometimes you'll find them at Costco or someone's having a sale somewhere.

[natey2]

Dealer had installed new tires on my 05 LS430: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Hankook&tireModel=Ventus+V12+evo+K110&partnum=445YR8K110XL

[rickslex]

Michelin Primacys are great tires.. check out Bridgestone Serenity Plus... Bought them for my 400 and they are quiet, smooth and they grip! Look at TireRack ranking: http://blog.tirerack.com/blog/docs-advice-on-tires/looking-for-a-smooth-riding-all-season-tire-remember-the-word-serenity

[AttilaTheHun]

Great feedback. Thanks everyone. Right now I have Dunlop signatures and I may have another 10k left on them but they are getting a bit noisy.

[BlackLex]

just put on cooper cs4 touring tires on my LS 400 ... I love them so far . fairly good traction in snow and ice . but there are very quite,smooth riding tire..nice looking also. best tire I have ever had on this car . I,ve had Dunlop 5000 sports.bridgestone Potenza sport e90, bf Goodrich traction ta... coopers are great and reasonable priced.. and they are the only tire manufacture that are American owned......

[VBdenny]

Looked for a long time for replacement tires for my 90 LS400. After stalling for over a year I finally ordered a set of Fusions from tirerack.com. I was really hesitant because they were so inexpensive but I went ahead after reading all the reviews. Wonderful and very quiet tires. My beautiful LS 400 drives like new. Ran them up to about 95 (on 95) and still very smooth and stable. My brother said he has had 3 sets and they have all been great. Spend more if you like.

[VBdenny]

Oh yeah, forgot this part

4 tires delivered + mount and balance $380

Bet some people paid more for just 2 tires.

[lcdubin]

Problem with tires leaking air on 2001 LS430?

[alexsteininger]

I am looking for some feedback on tires. My son has a 98 LS400 that he purchased from my brother, who bought it new. They both swear that this car rides so much nicer than my 2006 LS430 and I am trying to figure out why.

One of the things I looked at was the size of the tires. The LS400 has 225/60 -16 tires, while the LS430 has 245/45 - 18" tires. I am thinking besides the suspension maybe being softer on the 98 LS400, the lower profile tires on the LS430 may make it rider more firm.

I drive for comfort first then performance next, so a less aggressive tire is fine for me.

I have a company car that uses Pirelli Four Seasons P6 Plus tires in a 225/55 -18 tire and right now I have 79,000 miles on the tires and they still ride nice and have some decent tread left. However I can't seem to find the Pirellis in a 245/45-18, so I am wondering if the 225/55-18 would work on the LS430 and give me a little softer ride??

Also looking on feedback on Nitto tires, as the Big O Tires where I live swear up and down that the Michelins are no good, but the Nittos are a great tire. I have my tires force balanced at this store and he tells me that Michelins are hard to force balance as they are out of round. I am currently running Michelins on my car.

Any opinions??

[1990LS400]

Why, oh why did were 245/45-18 tires and 18" wheels ever made optional on the LS430. If your car has the sport suspension option then you are further screwed.

Your LS430 would ride very much like that 1998 LS400 if it had the same 225/60-16 tires on 16" wheels like the 98 LS400 which was the same size tire/wheel standard on the 2001-2002 LS430.

225/55-18 would be a poor choice - too large diameter. You can do the calculations yourself with one of the many online calculators like at http://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator/

The Big O Tire guy just wants to sell you tires - he's full of $#!+.

As an experiment, switch the tires and wheels on your LS430 with the tires and wheels on your son's 98 LS400 and see how you like the ride in your LS430. Set the tire pressure at the minimum recommended and enjoy the pleasant ride.

My personal opinion is that the standard 16" 2001-2002 LS430 wheels are nicer looking than the 18" LS430 wheels but most people seem think that the bigger wheels look better. There are plenty of companies that sell used/refurbished 2001-2002 LS430 16" wheels.

[SW03ES]

I'm not a fan of 16s on the LS430. They look fine on the LS400, but the LS430 has a bigger body look, and the 16s really look small on it IMHO. I also really dislike that original 16" wheel, I think the later painted adaptations of the 00 LS Platinum wheel looked better.

Really and truly though, going from the 18s just to 17s will help the ride a lot. My Dad had a 98 LS400 and went to an 04 LS430 with 17s and the 430 rode incredibly. Both the cars had air suspension. I noticed the cars with the 18s don't ride as well when I was shopping for a CPO 06 LS. Oddly enough the LS460 rides better on 18s than the LS430.

If you get a set of the 17" wheels with Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires, it will ride as good as your son's 98.

[adele]

Back in 1988, BMW launched the M3 with a high-revving four-cylinder
engine even though the top non-M 3 Series model was equipped with an
inline-six. The reason: the little four-banger weighed less. The
power-dense 2.3-liter four produced 197 horsepower, which was enough to
make the original M3 one of the most sought after performance BMWs of
all time. Two successive generations of M3 stepped up the cylinder count
to six and provided a nice bump in power, and the M3 that came after
them was equipped with a screaming V8. The M3's x431 iv history dictates that M
cars aren't about staying the same - they're meant to push limits - and M
Motorsport engineers decided that the new M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe would
push limits best with a twin-turbocharged inline-six.

[jainla]

I agree the original 16" wheels look chinsy. I think for 16"s the 1995 era ones are my favorite; especially if you get the matte/chrome blended ones.

The 7 spoke 17" alloys are much better; they are in fact I think my favorites on the LS430. I briefly considered upgrading to an '06 and would probably have taken those wheels with me. The Gen II 17"s are a little less nice; the 18"s I think sometimes look gawky.

17"s are a good choice; as the rest of the rubber bits in the suspension age I notice the ride getting a little firmer. I think with 18"s it would be rock hard by now.

I'm not a fan of 16s on the LS430. They look fine on the LS400, but the LS430 has a bigger body look, and the 16s really look small on it IMHO. I also really dislike that original 16" wheel, I think the later painted adaptations of the 00 LS Platinum wheel looked better.

Really and truly though, going from the 18s just to 17s will help the ride a lot. My Dad had a 98 LS400 and went to an 04 LS430 with 17s and the 430 rode incredibly. Both the cars had air suspension. I noticed the cars with the 18s don't ride as well when I was shopping for a CPO 06 LS. Oddly enough the LS460 rides better on 18s than the LS430.

If you get a set of the 17" wheels with Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires, it will ride as good as your son's 98.

[alexsteininger]

I just purchased a new set of Michelin Pilot Sport AS3 tires and love them !! They were a few dollars cheaper than the MXV4s, but are rated 500 AA A. They made the drive between Columbus, OH and Indianapolis, IN seem like a short ride. I had them road forced balanced and they rode so smooth and quiet..............Hopefully, I can get good mileage out of them as they were replacing a set of MXM4s

[PilotguyPA28]

Primacy

[dvclark]

Seems many have had good luck with Primacy MXV4s on cars like my 2005 ls 430 with 125,000 miles. I currently have those (H rated) with about 5/32 remaining, but they seem somewhat noisy. Was thinking about getting new MXV4s with V rating, not H. A good choice? Might they be quieter? Thank you in advance.

[1990LS400]

Seems many have had good luck with Primacy MXV4s on cars like my 2005 ls 430 with 125,000 miles. I currently have those (H rated) with about 5/32 remaining, but they seem somewhat noisy. Was thinking about getting new MXV4s with V rating, not H. A good choice? Might they be quieter? Thank you in advance.

My experience is that all tires have gotten a little noisier as they have worn down.

Other than snow tires, the H-rated MXV4's I bought several years ago for my 2000 LS400 are the first tires with less than a V-rating I've put on an LS in my 24 years of driving them.

I went with the H-rated MXV4's this time hoping they would last longer, be quieter and ride a little softer. My MXV4's still seem very quiet and were at about 7/32" when I stored them for the winter last November. They are certainly the most pleasant riding tires I've bought - ever. Handling is very good although not as sharp the Z-rated ultra-high summer-only performance Bridgstone RE750's I used before the MXV4's. The RE750's were fun but they were noisy, rode rougher and were worn out by 20,000 miles. And I decided that maybe someone in their 7th decade of life shouldn't be driving that fast anyway!

My understanding is that V-rated tires use softer "rubber" compounds which is why they don't last as long. The longest a V-rated tire has lasted for me has been 40,000 miles and at that point they were worn to the point of being unsafe in rain.

So ... my recommendation would be to stay with H-rated tires, rotate them often and have your wheel alignment checked at least every time you have new tires installed. I rotate tires every 5,000 miles with the first rotation being at around half that when they are new.

[sailwindtwo]

+1 on the primacys. Much better grip in the wet and quieter than the Toyos the car came with. Sometimes you'll find them at Costco or someone's having a sale somewhere.

+1 on Michelin Primacy, they cost a bit more but I got mine at Sam's Club and saved $ 400 over my usual tire place. I then went to my usual tire place and bought a life time rotate/balance and flat repair for $65 and still came out ahead. I went to my usual tire place for that because I can be in and out in 20 minutes where as at SAMs it takes a long time.