Larger Wheels

[christo]

I have a 1992 LS400 fitted with 15 inch original rims and feel these are somewhat feeble given the cars gravitas.

I have been told by my local supplier that I cannot go up to a larger wheel as this would increase the ROLLING

RATIO. Yet I have seen other LS400 of the same year with such wheels that fill the wheel arches.

What can be done?

[ian11]

dont know who your expert is,but its easier than that. Up the wheel size and you need to lower the tyre size to compensate,so by keeping your speedo etc the same,lowering the tyre profile does effect the ride quality though,which if thats your reason for owning the LS, is well worth thinking about. this link lets you experiment with various wheel/tyre sizes and the resulting differance to the rolling radius.

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

I went up to 17,s fitted with 235/45 X 17 and saved the originals for the winter months,and I do notice the road noise more with the lower profile tyres on,plus it tramlines more on motorways than with the factory fitted wheels. looks the biz though !!!

So you pays your money and takes your choice as they say.

good luck with your choice. Ian

[maneesh]

fitting bigger wheels alone will not fill the arches, as your tyres will be a lower profile.

if you want to fill the arches, you need to fit 18s and LOWER the car also.

personally, going up from 15s to 16s is a complete waste of money. if you're going to upgrade your rims, go up to 17s or 18s. remember your car will be slower due to heavier wheels, and your ride quality will decrease

[v8rick]

hi my first lexus ls 400 was a mk 1 model originally on 15" wheels but the previous owner had fitted some 5 spoke 16" alloys and they looked brilliant compared to the original wheels .

rick.

[JellyBean]

remember your car will be slower due to heavier wheels

This is an extraordinary assertion. And who will be able to notice?

[Alex JB]

I fitted 18's with 235x35 tyres and my speedo is still 4mph @ 70mph above the GPS reading.

With the correct offset (ET45 I think) there is no rub in any situation I have found.

Manees is right though, to really fill out the arches you would need to lower, but I didn't want to sacrifice any more ride qualirt that I already did by fitting the 18's.

[maneesh]

remember your car will be slower due to heavier wheels

This is an extraordinary assertion. And who will be able to notice?

haha - have a read of this then.

bigger rims

[JellyBean]

remember your car will be slower due to heavier wheels

This is an extraordinary assertion. And who will be able to notice?

haha - have a read of this then.

bigger rims

Pah!

[ian11]

Touche !!!! How you lot remember the links and info and where to find it amazes me sometimes,thats what makes this site differant,have a problem and bingo,here's a link on how to fix it,where to buy it and who's the cheapest supplier, oh , and some of the banter makes for enjoyable reading some nights ;) ;)

and while we are at it,anyone seen or have one of those electronic control units that plug and plays into the air suspension,giving more positions and super low etc ? does lowering it affect the geometry or comfort,been watching one on e-bay,£190 posted from australia,seems a good price but dont want it if there's serious drawbacks. over to you. Ian

[Alex JB]

Also adding to Maneesh's point, lighter is better in general, race cars pay a lot of attention to the weight of wheel/tyre along with any component that is road side of the suspension, lighter the components the better, as the suspension can react faser and aid traction.

big shiny wheels look nice though :winky:

[maneesh]

I don't think Mr Jellybean drives fast enough to notice performance increases/decreases. :winky: