26Gator

Thanks for that info Paul as regards to the tire matching prices. I'll certainly make those inquiries when tire buying time arrives.

Welcome to the LOC Raymond. Thank you for the excellent information and keep on posting in the future. One other thing about finding good pricing on tires. My Lexus dealer offers a price match guarantee for any advertised tire price whether local or online from say "Tire Rack" or out of town vendor. I have bought all my tires this way for all my Lexus and Volvo and never spent a nickel more than Costco or anyone else and it is a lot more convenient to have it done while I wait in the "comfy" lounge. Check with your dealer. Paul

Maybe this is an old post and you've gone past the issue, but I did not see anyone suggest fuel injector cleaning. I just sold my 1995 LS400 with 129k and it was still getting 19/24 city/hwy mileage so your's should be close to that - perhaps 17/20 with the 200+k miles. I was having some mild smoking with startup after the car sat for a few days. Service advisor suggested that I spend the money to have the throttle body and injectors cleaned before worrying about head gaskets, rings, cylinders and the like. Sure enough, that took care of the issue. Surprisingly, I did not see much of a drop in the mileage although some months we did some hwy driving and other times just town driving. I try to always get good filtered gas (Costco) or one of the Top Tier gas fillups when I'm on the road. (Shell, Texaco, Chevron typically). I'm also assuming you do use Premium gas and not skimp on the detergents and octane with 87-92 octane gas. The higher compression engine burns the higher octane with its higher detergent content much better than using regular and/or poorly filtered gas. These comments are NOT provided with any degree from Mechanical or Automobile Engineering - only personal research and discussions with "those in the know".

Another tire option for your LS430 is Hankook. Your model series and mine (LS430 2006) should ride similarly with good tires. I had Michelin MX4's on my LS400, another of the same model series and they rode softly and quietly as well. (You wouldn't be as happy in a 2007 or newer LS simply because they radically changed the series going forward trying to compete with BMW, Mercedes, etc with the sportier/stiffer suspension. We did not like the ride in the 2007 even tho it was also close to our price point for the auto upgrade). These Hankooks were on the LS430 when I recently purchased it. They are EVO V12 Y rated (189mph) and Lexus rec's 33 psi. I tend to add 1 lb to allow for inevitable leakage throughout the month. My Michelin's on the LS400 were purchased at Costco and they use N2 in their tires. The N2 tends to keep the pressures more stable. Some claim that N2 makes the ride smoother but I seriously doubt that claim. Hopefully, the wear factor on these Hankook's will be decent but even brand new they do NOT have a tread wear warranty only a failure warranty. Although you shouldn't precisely compare Tread Wear ratings between different brands of tires, the Michelin's were rated at 400 while these Hankook's are 280. TW is a measure of durability and somewhat related to ride comfort. I really doubt I'll get 60k miles with the Hankooks. More like 30k+. The Hankooks are 245/45/17 and have a very unusual diagonal/arrow groove pattern with a central ridge. The diagonal tread pattern is supposed to get water off the tread better and markedly reduce hydroplaning - a must for cars in Florida where I found the vehicle. They are definitely a summer/rain tire and not a snow/ice tire. Bet I'll be looking at those Michelin's again when the time comes. Can't beat the prices on the Costco tires though. Biggest difference this year with the "discount" at Costco is the fact that you don't get the tires discounted, you get a $70 Visa debit card to spend elsewhere. Pricing is not cheap and the real discount would be a lot better for the consumer IMHO. Michelin is counting on those folks who toss the card in the drawer and forget about spending the cash! Coupons and cards are a pain!