97 Ls400- 225/60/16 Tire Recommendations!?

[Hybrid-JD]

okie guys i need some suggestion on a set of all season or summer tires for my 1997 LS400. I dont need Z rated hah but H rated would be a must.. something average.. nothing SUPER expensive..

i was told that the Yokohams AVS4's.. Falkien ZIXE ZE 512, Dunlop A2's, and Toyo TPT's H rated .. i'm staying away from the Michelin MXV4's..

anyone have any other recomendations ???

thanks in advance! =)

Jimmy

[1990LS400]

I've been a fan of Dunlop tires and recently bought Dunlop SP Sport 5000's (225/60-16) for my 2000 LS to use in non-winter seasons. I think they are priced well at Tire Rack at $93US where I have all our our tires for many years. They are WR speed rated, all-season to boot and only $5 more than the HR rated Dunlop A2's. They are very quiet and provide a nice ride. Here is a link:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?ti...romCompare1=yes

Last winter I used Bridgestone Bizzaks - incredible traction in heavy snow. Bought them at Tire Rack too including an extra set of relatively inexpensive ($125/ea.) but classic looking wheels - Mille Miglia Bellos.

Although it was just one experience, the Yokohama AVS tires I put on my 90 LS many years ago lasted barely 20,000 and did not provide particularly good handling or ride. I've always gotten at least 40,000 miles from Dunlop 4000's (60,000 on our Camry).

[99lsguy]

Continental Premier Contacts get good reviews:

comes in H & V rated also....

[SKperformance]

Check sam's club they have some pretty good prices on michelin hydro edge which is a very nice tire.

Also try wheels direct in Scarborough

[pstalas]

okie guys i need some suggestion on a set of all season or summer tires for my 1997 LS400. I dont need Z rated hah but H rated would be a must.. something average.. nothing SUPER expensive..

i was told that the Yokohams AVS4's.. Falkien ZIXE ZE 512, Dunlop A2's, and Toyo TPT's H rated .. i'm staying away from the Michelin MXV4's..

anyone have any other recomendations ???

thanks in advance! =)

Jimmy

I bought (3600 miles ago) 4 p225/60r16 fs affinity lh30 Firestone's on the advice of Jason at "Tire Rack" Total cost $284. + $36.92 shipping .I am more than pleased .We had a wet spring in New England so I had many opportunitys to push these tires around wet surfaces and they were excellent in every phase.

If you like a quiet tire these will also fit the bill well within a modest budget.

[ebridges]

I just put on Toyo TPT V rated on my 91 LS yesterday. Although the balancing isn't up to parr yet, the ride is completely different, much better than the H rated Michelins which came on it.

FINALLY it steers like my 96 LS :-). Think I'm sold on the Toyo Proxes TPT. Might be the V rating makes some difference. Price was a total of $403.36 including lifetime balancing & rotations, road hazard, stems, etc.

Can't wait for some big rain puddles.

EB

[99lsguy]

I just put on Toyo TPT V rated on my 91 LS yesterday. Although the balancing isn't up to parr yet, the ride is completely different, much better than the H rated Michelins which came on it.

FINALLY it steers like my 96 LS :-). Think I'm sold on the Toyo Proxes TPT. Might be the V rating makes some difference. Price was a total of $403.36 including lifetime balancing & rotations, road hazard, stems, etc.

Can't wait for some big rain puddles.

EB

EB,

Your not the first person I've read about on this forum that loves the Proxes TPT :D

I'm due for new treads and I'll check them out for sure!!!!

Who handled them for you?

99

[Hybrid-JD]

i have a set of Proxex TPT on my 96 Avalon.. and they've given me alot of trouble!! i've pretty much had to claim like 4 warrranty claims on them!! bad experience.. so i'm trying to see if i can try somethign else! I was thinking just pure summer tires.. any suggestions?

i was wondering if 225/55/16 would fit on the 97 OEM rim.. and would it loook okie? or would it look totally off??

thanks

Jimmy

[SKperformance]

It will look and drive fine also a bit smoother with the slightly wide track and side profile

[LWR]

My requirements are probably different to yours ie no snow but I have Pirelli P7's on ours.They are extremely responsive,ride well,work in the wet and aren't noisy.We had Continentals on before that were very good too.

[ebridges]

Your not the first person I've read about on this forum that loves the Proxes TPT 

I'm due for new treads and I'll check them out for sure!!!!

Who handled them for you?

99

Kaufmann, a chain primarily in the SE and TX, I think. Should be competative however. Toyo offers a 500 mile total money back guarantee and the price above included a $50 rebate

BTW, just finished doing the PS pump flush, solenoid filter cleaning and used ATF from Amsoil. Really appreciated your pics and help. I decided to disconnect the PS reservoir return line (rubber tube) at the other end. Saved a couple of fittings. Just hooked the plastic clear tube to the solid metal line, after disconnecting the rubber return line and rotating it upward. Good to go. And, when the dealer changed the PS pump at 99,000, they DID clean the solenoid filter, evidenced by the chisel marks.

Hybrid JT - What specifically went wrong with your Toyo TPT's requiring 4 warrenty claims??? I understand they were rated very high by Consumer Reports.

EB

[Hybrid-JD]

Your not the first person I've read about on this forum that loves the Proxes TPT 

I'm due for new treads and I'll check them out for sure!!!!

Who handled them for you?

99

Kaufmann, a chain primarily in the SE and TX, I think. Should be competative however. Toyo offers a 500 mile total money back guarantee and the price above included a $50 rebate

BTW, just finished doing the PS pump flush, solenoid filter cleaning and used ATF from Amsoil. Really appreciated your pics and help. I decided to disconnect the PS reservoir return line (rubber tube) at the other end. Saved a couple of fittings. Just hooked the plastic clear tube to the solid metal line, after disconnecting the rubber return line and rotating it upward. Good to go. And, when the dealer changed the PS pump at 99,000, they DID clean the solenoid filter, evidenced by the chisel marks.

Hybrid JT - What specifically went wrong with your Toyo TPT's requiring 4 warrenty claims??? I understand they were rated very high by Consumer Reports.

EB

i had problems with it during the winter season... ran over a small pot hole during the winter and BAM car tire blows up .. thats 1.. second time was a bubble that came about on the rear right tire.. and another time .. it just simply went FLAT.. and there was no reason for it.. brought it back.. and they told me its a defect and they coulnd't find the hole or puncture to repair it... thats 3 times.. the last time i dont rememebr exactly.......... i was quite disssapointed with them since i had so much prblems with them AND i had to pay for the tread that i used.

oh well.... i'm still waiting for some more tire recommendations!!!!

thanks again

Jimmy

[lexusonthelake]

I purchased a set of Bridgestone Turanza LS-H's last summer and have been very pleased with these tires. They offer excellent wet traction, queitness and are a bit wider profile for handling. Would recommend these tires by far!

lexusonthelake

[Hybrid-JD]

bump. anymore tire recommendatiions??

Jimmmy

[ebridges]

Update on my new Toyo TPT's. STILL not balanced properly. Really vibrates. The company, Kauffman, has rebalanced them, indexed them, put them on their "best" machines, but still not balanced. Going to change a few tires tomorrow. Not confidence building.

BTW, the guy who did the balancing and indexing, (spent over 1 hour on my four tires), recommended Bridgestone's Turanza's, when I asked him for his recommendation.

[tansupplyman]

don't think you said if you had chrome wheels; only Toyota hammer ons will work on the chrome wheels--regular ones will sling off--even if it says 'for Lexus/Toyota on box.

I use 'stick ons' done by dynamic[on both sides of wheels].

basically any hammer on will work on the plain aluminum wheels.

Happen to think of this and wonder if you are slinging the weights off---believe me they will go within about 1 mile !!!!! not all at once now.

[blake918]

i'm staying away from the Michelin MXV4's..

Why the hard feelings for the MXV4's?? After reading about them some more on tirerack.com, I see that they aren't so hot in the snow...this why? I have the MXV4 Energy tires on my '95, and I love them. They are great in the wet and dry; I don't know about snow since it never snows down here. The MXV4 Energy tires have been awesome on my LS; they ride wonderfully-perfect balance always, and they wear evenly, ride quietly, and handle well(I've taken some sharp turns at high speeds, and the Energies didn't say a word). It almost seems as though you need to make a guess for your next set of tires since it seems to be a hit or miss thing. For ex., the MXV4's have ratings all over the place-some love them and some don't. They work fine for me but not everyone, so put all of your top picks in a hat, close your eyes, and pick! Good luck!

[ebridges]

tansupplyman,

I have chrome OE wheels on my 91 LS. They did use the stick on weights which I requested. (had Firestone balance them before and in one week, I had a single quarter oz weight remaining... period. 3 wheels had no weights at all. They decided to use the stick on weights and finally got it fairly good.) But alas, those were old Michelein H rated tires which came with the car when I purchased it last Sept.

Has anyone found a good shop that can do a decent job? Looking like a speciality shop might be the next step, if the new tires don't fix the original new ones (TPT). The local shop is "suggesting" I may only be happy with new Micheleins... Lot's more money, and they still need a good balance.

My 96 LS (wife's actually), has Sears Micheleins MXV4 Vrated, but when they were installed, they REALLY felt like a bronco ride. Finally found a person who could balance them at Sears. In fact, after the initial installation, went immediately to NTB and they eventually got them pretty good, after indexing them, and riding with the manager twice. What a pain.

I've learned that there is quite a variety of balancing machines. Guess the Lexus, being the choosy lady she is, just won't be satisfied with anything but "the best".

[ebridges]

Continuing saga of the wheel balancing dilemma. OKAY so far. The dealer was willing to try 4 new Toyo TPT tires and had them ready for me this AM. They decided to give the "problem" to their most experience tech, who had been with them for 5 yrs.

He thought I would have a 50/50 chance of getting an improvement with the new tires. So, he decided try one more time "his way" and to do away with the sticky weights, to try the hammer on kind. He had to slightly modify them and couldn't guarantee that they would remain on. But, the tires are now balanced. The weights are still on the first 70 miles.

The tech's recommendation was to get "Toyota" weights, which apparently of a different shape, but are supposed to work on the Toyota/Lexus chrome wheels.

If/when these weights "fly off", guess I'll have to get Toyota type weights at the dealer. Or maybe just get new wheels, or maybe go to a high performance shop. Any suggestions ???

Hopin' they'll stick...

[tansupplyman]

Hope you are lucky on the hammer on wts--don't hold your breath tho--been there done that.

note that most places will use stick on wts to balance the wheels on a static mode--they just switch the balance machines to static and put the weights in one plane---when this is done I think the wt read outs[L & R] will both say the same number.

anyway--I had go to a different place after the 'big' tire dealer where I got my tires tried to balance them twice with hammer ons. the first time with his wts, the second time with the ones I bought at a wholesale place[they were made for Lexus] and I had to buy a whole box--$14. worth: which I have since GIVEN away!!!!

The wts came off both times.

Then I had to go to another place and PAY for the balance--without getting cash back from the first place since the balance is free when you buy the tires---long story.

again--hope you are lucky.

[lex4me]

I purchased Kumho Ecsta KH11's for my 91 LS from tirerack. They have awesome reviews and the price can't be beat. If I ever get my suspension/steering rack/motor mount/alternator rebuild job done, I'll be able to try them out!

[wmOH]

I replaced Goodyear Eagle (scary when wet) with Bridgestone Potenza 950e from tire rack. First 500 miles where ok. last 2500 miles these tires have been great. I can't remember the last time the Trac Control kicked, even when wet.

96, ls400

dark green/tan int

65,000 miles

[ebridges]

tansupplyman,

I now a "been there, done that" as well. The weights "did" start coming off. I then tried, yesterday, "counterbalancing beads" which are pretty good with truck tires, but they definitely did NOT work on my 91 LS with OEM chrome wheels. Tomorrow, will get that stuff out and try a real balancing shop, I pay too, who does use FNS Lexus specific hammer on weights. Last resort is to go to the high performance shop which charges only $140 to spin on car any speed I need. Yuk.

I seriously considered purchasing the FNS Lexus weights, as you did.

How's your current balance job working out???

EB

[UCF3]

mbpgawest writes:

"I noticed that not a single person went to the Lexus deal to have thier

tires balanced. Why? I have a '97 with Bridgestone Potenza RE33's on

it. I get them replaced at the dealership and have yet to have any

problems with balance. Only complaint that I have with these tires is that

they don't last as long as other tires do. I think it has to do with the

soft rubber that they are made of.

Anyone else have these tires?"

mbpgawest:

Do me a favour. Read through the Visitors and New Members Thread for instructions on how to use this forum.

Thanks

UCF3

Moderator SC and LS Forums

[Hybrid-JD]

i eneded up picking up the Bridgestone Fuzion ZRi's for my 97 lex ls400.. veryyyyyy good tires so far! =) nice and sticky in the rain and dry weather..

Jimmy