Tire Lifespan

[Dango]

I bought my SC430 back in March and after $17,000 miles, my tires are wearing funny and are extremely noisy.

I took the car in to the dealer who told me they made a mistake at my last visit and didn't balance the tires properly or check the alignment. They refused to balance the tires now until after I buy a new set of tires. They want $390 a tire, yet online tires are running for about $240-260 a tire.

Has anyone had any problems with the tires from the Lexus Dealer not lasting? What is the normal wear for Run-Flat tires? I've got Bridgestone Potenza RE730 Run-Flats and they are extremely noisy. Has anyone had problems with tires? Where's the best place to go for new tire replacements?

[javadude]

They should replace the tyres free-of-charge

[ricky_is200]

Haven't Lexus stopped fitting the run flats on the SC430 now? I think they have in the UK anyway in an effort to improve the ride.

[Nick]

A characteristic of run flat tyres is that they tend to wear their edges quicker than a normal tyre as there is less "give" as you corner. Driven hard they can last circa 10'000mls so if the tracking was out it would make the problem worse.

[JeffT]

After 20K low impact miles, an attandent at a parking garage noticed that all four flat run tires on my 2002 SC430 were showing a metal band on the interior edge of the tread of each tire. I would never have noticed this as it was only on the inside tread and was only viewable when the front wheels were turned hard. I immediately took the car to the Lexus dealer where I was told it was an alignment problem. I basically had to pop for 4 new tires and the dealer comp'd me on the alignment. I must say that I drive this car like a baby and I can only assume that the mis-alignment must have been a factory issue because I did nothing to cause all four wheels to go out of whack. I'm curious is anyone else has had a similar experience. Other than this, it's been a great car and I love it.

[PSC]

I have now completed 27,000 miles on my orginal tyres (not run flats) and they are still going strong. Can only surmise that runflat are more prone to wear than normal tyres.