Tyres

[baby_lexus]

Hello all,

My IS200 sport ( Y reg ) needs new tyres. Currently it has Dunlops fitted.

Do I stay with Dunlops or is there an alternative ?

And what is a fair price ? My dealer quoted 140 pounds each, however I have had other quotes much less than this. One was around 100 quid each. One assumes that they are the same tyres !

Cheers.

[ColinBarber]

If you stay will Dunlop then get the proper Lexus OEM ones.

What are you looking for in a tyre? Performance, wear, noise?

[baby_lexus]

I guess all of what you mentioned.

If I stick to OEM, would I get a better trade in at a Lexus dealer ? I am aiming for an IS300 in 6 months, but my tyres are getting close to the legal limits.

[Wayne3940]

I guess all of what you mentioned.

If I stick to OEM, would I get a better trade in at a Lexus dealer ? I am aiming for an IS300 in 6 months, but my tyres are getting close to the legal limits.

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You can pick up the bridgstones for the IS200 as fitted by lexus for around £100 if you shop around inc the fitting and balancing. Lexus Newcastle charge £120 for them.

[ColinBarber]

If I stick to OEM, would I get a better trade in at a Lexus dealer ? I am aiming for an IS300 in 6 months, but my tyres are getting close to the legal limits.

Quite possibly.

You can get the Lexus version of the SP9000 tyre from anywhere, just need to ask for it - normally about £10 more than the standard SP9000. I paid £100 each for OEM ones.

[Parthiban]

If you stay will Dunlop then get the proper Lexus OEM ones.

What's the actual difference between the normal ones and the Lexus ones?

I'm on the Dunlops too but going to need to have 3 tyres replaced soon so considering switching brands, are the Goodyear Eagle F1s as good as reviews and awards seem to imply?

[Lexus Jim]

I'm running the F1's gsd3's on the front and will be getting them for the rears very shortly, £96 each fitted. Used to run pirelli P-zero nero's but they wear down very quick £120 each fitted

[necromax]

Lexus Jim: I assume you're happy with the performance of the GSD3's then? as you're buying two more...

I had them on my Impreza, was very pleased with them, they were quieter than the Proxes T-1S and better wet grip. The Reifentest.com tests rate the SP9000 well, particularly for wet grip, noise, wear and comfort. The other issue to be aware of is that according to my local tyre guy, the SP9000 is due to be replaced very shortly. This may be wrong, but thats what he said.

[aido]

I have to admit I have the Toyo Proxes T-1S and they are superb in the dry, but in the wet at times I can feel the car sliding under extreme circumstances - they were a lot better in the snow than I imagined for a summer tyre however - if the tyre place had carried the Goodyears I would have gone for them due to the excellent reports - the Toyo's are superb but if you don't like the idea of the car sliding at times then maybe they're not for you.... Don't forget though that my car is fairly heavily modified which would affect performance in the wet and snow however - the Toyo's may be spot on in the wet on a normal car......

[necromax]

I did like the Toyos, I think you get a lot of tyre for your money with the T-1S.. have you seen the new T-1R ? They have made some changes to improve their wet grip, make them quieter, and stop the shoulders wearing so quickly! Don't know anyone who has tried them yet though

[aido]

I wanted the T1-Rs but the local tyre place didn't have them yet, they are supposed to exceed the T1-S in every way - one thing I do like about my current setup is that you can feel the car the instant it starts to break away and therefore take remedial action - in a way the car is safer now as you know when she starts to break away so you can respone instantly. Before when the car was on standard suspension and lost control you would have no idea what was about to happen until the back end broke out....

[necromax]

Agreed, I remember that, they do give you great feedback, you can feel exactly whats ahppening on the road. Made them quite fun in the wet sometimes ;)

[Kremmen]

I note the comment about the Lexus SP9000's being readily available anywhere.

I recently had a nail in one and in West London not one of the five of six places I phoned could get one within a fortnight. More worryingly was their lack of knowledge that the IS had it's own dedicated version of this tyre.

The most common reply was that there were non to be had from their suppliers but they were on 'back order'.

In the end it cost £148 all in (balance & VAT) from a Lexus dealer who had them in stock.

However, what was good news was that even after 8500 miles the one that came off was hardly worn so I am expecting high mileage from these (barring another nail or 2).

[necromax]

Ouch! £145!! Thats a lot for one tyre.... I think I am more tempted to give the T1-R a try or go back to the GSD3 in that case! I have noticed that tyres have crept up in price over the last month or so. Even www.mytyres.co.uk have put them up

[Chewy]

Just bought two new tyres myself and went for the top Michelin boys as they have the best wear rate and they were not much more expensive than the Pirreli's which wear out as if they were made of Blue tack.

I have 18" 225/40's which were quoted at £170.00 each but found a place that did them for £145.00 a piece fully fitted.

Pirreli's were only a tenner cheaper - Thats the P zero's thingy, but wear quick.

Hope that helped.

[Parthiban]

Putting cost aside, are the GSD-3s as good as they seem to be in terms of noise, comfort and grip?

By the way, I don't think I've paid anywhere near £145 for the dunlops, was closer to £100

[eddiea1]

I just got new tyres on my IS300 last week, after I nearly lost control of the car in the wet a few times. Its got 18" tyres so Id been dreading the time I would have to change them for some time now.....

well the Lexus had done 17,000 miles (mostly motorway) on them which is pretty good but I knew that the rears were pretty bald so Id better get them changed

I was running the Pirelli Pzeros 225/40 18s but after reading the tyre tests in Autocar a few weeks back I decided to switch to Goodyear Eagle F1s. Apart from the look of them they knocked the sh*t out of every other tyre for wet weather performance and noise levels.

Only downside is the cost - they ended up costing me £745 fitted for 5 tyres. However the improvement in noise levels is worth it. Apparently they are a harder compound than the pirellis so should last even longer. Dunno how much they will be for the 16 or 17s - quite a bit less than the 18s but they are worth looking at

But having spent so much on tyres I now have to stay in at home and just live on soup for the rest of the month.... oh well the things we do for our cars.