Looking For Super Stick Tires!

[BentBrain]

Hello all!

I bought my 90 LS with new tires already on it. "GREAT!" I thought until it rained and I gave it mild throttle at the end of an exit ramp. These tires suck big time in the wet and are not all that great in the dry. I figured I would just suffer through them for as long as the lasted but today I drove over a self tapping screw and it punctured my rear tire. I plugged it for the time being but it seems like a good enough excuse to buy some nice super stick tires!

I ran toyo proxes4 on all my smaller fwd cars and I loved em, super grippy and great in the wet. However the dont seem to make them in my size and Im not so sure how well they would handle the extra weight.

curently Im looking into(in no specific order):

- General Altimax HP

- Pirelli P4

- Kumho Ecsta LX (KU27) or ASX

- Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position

- Goodyear Eagle GT

- Toyo Versado LX II

- Yokohama Avid ENvigor

Anyone running these tires or have an other suggestion???

Im looking for a Maximum performance tire I could care less about wear and noise.

Something with lots of grip that can perform in the wet just as well.

Thanks I have read the threads from searching but seems like most are over a year old and figured more tires have been used since . Most were also looking for a quiet tire which is not something Im interested in (couldn't hurt but I really dont care).

THANKS!!!

[stufadrummer]

those are all good tire choices and cost a pretty penny i am currently running nexxen n3000 on my is300 and i love them not to expensive and have awesome traction and good tread wear you should look into them

on my ls400 im trying a newer company i hadnt heard of called Duro so far i like them, the tire shop i got them from said they compare to azenis but i think he was just trying to be a salesman but they cost me $115/ea in a 235/35R19. There are a lot of good inexpensive tires out there that will perform the way you want mostly depends on personal preference.

good luck

[BentBrain]

Thanks!

FYI i currently have Starfire zs-t on the car, don't get them!

Had the falken's on my maxima and they weren't all that great so your not missing out on anything.(they weren't azenis but the ones below)

[SRK]

Michelin Pilot Sport AS - great tire in the dry or wet, excellent wearing. I'm getting another set soon for my GS. The only tire on your list I would consider is the Bridgestone, but for me it's still Michelin.

[BentBrain]

Michelin Pilot Sport AS - great tire in the dry or wet, excellent wearing. I'm getting another set soon for my GS. The only tire on your list I would consider is the Bridgestone, but for me it's still Michelin.

They do look like nice tires but they don't make them in my size or for any 15" rim if I'm not mistaken. I also never met a Michelin that handles like a performance tire. Maybe those are different.

If you have a suggestion that fits my rim (205 65 r15). I'm all ears.

What would be on your list??

Have you tried any of the tires on my list? I'd like to know what you didn't like about them.

[1990LS400]

the Bridgestone Potenza RE750 summer tires I used to have on my 2000 LS400 were the best handling tires I ever used on an LS but they were worn out by a little over 20,000 miles of total use. I use true winter tires on separate wheels in winter so using summer only tires wasn't a big deal. I would not recommend driving an LS400 in snow without snow tires. I drove a 1990 LS400 from new to 13 1/2 years and can tell you that it is not very good in snow even with snow tires and nothing like the 98-up LS400 with VSC, and more advanced ABS and traction control.

Part of your traction problem is the small contact patch of 205/65-15 tires which is also why it's braking distrance from speed is so horribly long.

Instead of the standard size tire, consider a "plus zero" setup - use your current wheels with 225/60-15 tires. I did this on my 90 LS 20 years ago and the car felt substantially more stable on the road. Braking was incredibly better with 225/60-15 tires although the ride was noticeably harsher - my wife complained and I went back to the standard size tires. Handling on the 90 LS was also substantially better with 225/60-15 tires but "breakaway" was more sudden - much less tire squeal before the tires lost contact with the pavement during very hard driving. You have to be more careful when driving an early LS hard - no VSC to save your !Removed! like the 98-up LS.

Review the customer ratings on http://www.tirerack.com before deciding on a tire to keep from buying a set of "stinkers". And plan on buying snow tires and maybe extra wheels for them if you plan on driving your 90 in winter. Or use your OEM 15" wheels for snows and maybe get some used 16"-7" OEM wheels from a later model year LS for the rest of the year. There's almost always used Lexus LS wheels on Craigslist where I live.

[SRK]

I also never met a Michelin that handles like a performance tire.

Really? The Corvette ZR-1 uses Michelins - pulls over 1 g on the skidpad. Guess what brand I'm putting on my ZO-6 next?

[1990LS400]

I also never met a Michelin that handles like a performance tire. Maybe those are differen.

To add to what SRK said, the Michelin Primacy MXV4 all season tire is perhaps the single most popular tire for the LS400 and LS430. I have them on both our 1998 Camry and 2000 LS400. The ones on our Camry V6 are the same 205/65-15 size that came on your 90 LS. Primacys are really wonderful .... handle well, low noise, very nice ride and long life. The Primacys are not in the same "ultra high performance" category as those Bridgestone RE750 summer tires I mentioned but they are much more pleasant for every day use and they will last far longer.

[BentBrain]

Not worried about tread life at all. I'll happily trade traction for tread life. I plan on running dedicated snow tires if I even drive it in the snow at all. Those will probably go on some supper cheap steely's or another set of OEM rims if I come across some cheap. I want GRIP not the most popular tire (even if Chevy has a deal with Michelin and I have no taste for vette's. The huge contact patch the vettes have is what gives so much grip any tire in that size is going to be a grip monster)

Not looking for a *BLEEP*ing match but I'm not looking for standard tires at all. I have no problem having the rear break loose with the trac off and controlling it. I want somethig that will hold like glue in the heavy twisty hills I carve up. And something that doesn't fall on its face in the wet. The proxes I had on my AE92 were the same wet or dry. That car didn't weigh much and was fwd so it's a different ball game.

[BentBrain]

the Bridgestone Potenza RE750 summer tires I used to have on my 2000 LS400 were the best handling tires I ever used on an LS but they were worn out by a little over 20,000 miles of total use. I use true winter tires on separate wheels in winter so using summer only tires wasn't a big deal. I would not recommend driving an LS400 in snow without snow tires. I drove a 1990 LS400 from new to 13 1/2 years and can tell you that it is not very good in snow even with snow tires and nothing like the 98-up LS400 with VSC, and more advanced ABS and traction control.

Part of your traction problem is the small contact patch of 205/65-15 tires which is also why it's braking distrance from speed is so horribly long.

Instead of the standard size tire, consider a "plus zero" setup - use your current wheels with 225/60-15 tires. I did this on my 90 LS 20 years ago and the car felt substantially more stable on the road. Braking was incredibly better with 225/60-15 tires although the ride was noticeably harsher - my wife complained and I went back to the standard size tires. Handling on the 90 LS was also substantially better with 225/60-15 tires but "breakaway" was more sudden - much less tire squeal before the tires lost contact with the pavement during very hard driving. You have to be more careful when driving an early LS hard - no VSC to save your !Removed! like the 98-up LS.

Review the customer ratings on http://www.tirerack.com before deciding on a tire to keep from buying a set of "stinkers". And plan on buying snow tires and maybe extra wheels for them if you plan on driving your 90 in winter. Or use your OEM 15" wheels for snows and maybe get some used 16"-7" OEM wheels from a later model year LS for the rest of the year. There's almost always used Lexus LS wheels on Craigslist where I live.

Thanks for the info but I don't want to run a lower profile tire or change the overall diameter of the wheel. Unless I'm misunderstanding you and the diameter woulld be the same. If i could run fatter tires with the same sidewall size I'd be interested but I'm sure it would be better to just run slightly wider rims instead. I would really like a tire with AA heat rating but they seem to be unavailable in my size.

[1990LS400]

Thanks for the info but I don't want to run a lower profile tire or change the overall diameter of the wheel. Unless I'm misunderstanding you and the diameter woulld be the same. If i could run fatter tires with the same sidewall size I'd be interested but I'm sure it would be better to just run slightly wider rims instead. I would really like a tire with AA heat rating but they seem to be unavailable in my size.

Sorry, I made a "finger check". Our 98 Carmy has 15" wheels and I have 205/65-15" Michelin Primary MXV4 tires on it. In fact, our Camry's wheels are interchangeable with the 90-92 LS400 wheels - I once switched them to see if they would fit.

The diameter of 225/60-15 tires are almost identical to the diameter of your current 205/65-15 tires. Your OEM wheels are 6.5 inches wide. The minimum wheel width for 225/60-15 tires is 6" so you are well above the minimum with your OEM wheels. The sidewall height of 225/60-15 tires is virtually identical to 205/65-15 tires - that's why the common term for this type of size substitution is called "plus zero". "Zero" changes except better braking and handling but with a slightly harsher ride.

Since 225/60-15 tires will spin on average about four fewer revolutions per mile and all speedometers by federal regulation read slower than you are really going, 225/60-15 tires will actually give you a more accurante speedometer reading than 205/65-15.

I actually thought my 90 LS400 was borderline unsafe with its skinny tires and poor braking because of them ... might have been one reason 225/60-16 tires were used on the 93-up LS400.

Here is a comparison for the 1010 Tire website calculator.

[BentBrain]

Sorry, I made a "finger check". Our 98 Carmy has 15" wheels and I have 205/65-15" Michelin Primary MXV4 tires on it. In fact, our Camry's wheels are interchangeable with the 90-92 LS400 wheels - I once switched them to see if they would fit.

The diameter of 225/60-15 tires are almost identical to the diameter of your current 205/65-15 tires. Your OEM wheels are 6.5 inches wide. The minimum wheel width for 225/60-15 tires is 6" so you are well above the minimum with your OEM wheels. The sidewall height of 225/60-15 tires is virtually identical to 205/65-15 tires - that's why the common term for this type of size substitution is called "plus zero". "Zero" changes except better braking and handling but with a slightly harsher ride.

Since 225/60-15 tires will spin on average about four fewer revolutions per mile and all speedometers by federal regulation read slower than you are really going, 225/60-15 tires will actually give you a more accurante speedometer reading than 205/65-15.

I actually thought my 90 LS400 was borderline unsafe with its skinny tires and poor braking because of them ... might have been one reason 225/60-16 tires were used on the 93-up LS400.

Here is a comparison for the 1010 Tire website calculator.

Thanks for the education!

I will have to see if there is more available in that size.

[BentBrain]

Apparently there are even less tires available in the 225 60 r15 so that option isn't looking great.

I doubt any of my choises are really all that bad. I may have to just see which of them is available locally easier so I can take a look in person. Probably won't get em for a few weeks because I'm busy as hell right now but I will post my results.

Unill then, any experiences you may have had would be great to read!

[VBdenny]

I use 225/60VR-15 Goodyear traction TA tires on my 90. As previously mentioned, that size is getting really hard to find. I think only BFG and a few others are available. My tires are pretty much shot but I haven't replaced them since I can't find something I like. I want at least an H rated tires and would prefer the V rating. Everything now is 17 18 19 and "city" tires.

[fsuguy]

My choice is the Michelin Primacy MXV4, "V" series, 205/65/15. It is an excellent tire and I can say it is a hell of a lot better than the tires that came with the car from the showroom - Goodyear Eagles!! The "V" series are a performance rated tire (150+ mph), compared to the "H" which the shop may put on the car if you are not discerning! The price difference is only about $15.00.

Just my 2 cents!!

[LSPaul]

I'd second the Tire Rack surveys and recommendations, but do also shop Discount Tire's tires.com site (if you live outside an area that they serve retail), as free shipping does make a considerable difference.

I've been through enough tires on my other cars (typically a set per year on my Saab 9-5--due to miles driven, not anything else). The early LS size is getting pretty limiting with tire choices, as you've already discovered. The Altimax lines are worth checking out, and TR's reviews on the Eagle GTs are pretty decent. I personally was very disappointed in the Kumho ASX (wear, grip, noise), and the LX will probably too too hard for your taste, given your desire for grip (usually an inverse relationship b/w grip and wear). The Pirellis aren't that impressive, either. Bridgestones usually work well, and I don't know enough about the Toyos to have an opinion. Also, there usually IS a difference, grip-wise, between H-and V-rated tires, due to construction.

I would also second Jim's suggestion of finding a set of 16 or 17" OE rims. There are many more choices available in the '93-on 225-60-16 fitment.

Best,

Paul