Fitting Bigger Alloys

[Jefflex]

Hi. i'm in the middle of tyres and rims!

There is a lot to choose from. I was wondering if there is anyone here that have put 19" rims on their cars.

For the little extra from 18"'s it's doable price wise but will they fit ok? I've seen a lot of Golfs and other cars with 19's on them so I'm guessing 19's on a lex would be ok, but I'd sure like to talk to someone thats knows for sure!

Jeff

[ManicMark]

Hi cant see why 19s wouldnt fit seen 21s on a mark 3 but you would have to go 40 profile possably lower to get the same rolling raidius, your ride would suffer .

[Mr Mole]

Hi I have got 19" alloys on my IS200 with 35mm profile tyres on.

But I did need to get my rear arches rolled, only time you notice any difference in ride quality is when you go over a pot hole, and there is not many of them from where I am.

[Jefflex]

hi. thats it I dont want the belly of the car to drag n the road. well there is a balance but.. I need to to keep to a profile that'll work. On an 18" I'm looking at 245 or 255/45/18 that''ll keep the rolling radius to about right with the speedo. Proberbly about the same diamentions with a 19". I just need to know if it'll fit.

Yea, I've seen some nice rims on IS series car's. It's more of a young persons car. Old codgers tend not to pimp their rides :)

Jeff

[kroebje]

Well Jeff, this is a link to a (German) wheel dimension converter. Put in the original size, then the new one, and it figures out exactly

- rolling circumfence; difference thereof

- track / tread

- chassis clearance

- deviation of speedometer reading

I am sure there are similar converters on the net that speak English.

As for the rim - just browse for a tire configurator, such as this one (German again; go for Lexus - LS - F2; choose from 50 different 19" rims; or even more 18"s). If you stay within the prescribed offset you won't have to do any extra work on the body. Standard tire size for 19" rims is 245/40.

I have 18" rims on my '98 LS, and I'd say that's way enough. It does impair ride comfort! Standard tire size for 18" rims is 245/45. 19" rims aren't so much more expensive than 18", it's rather the rubber that runs down your budget over the years.

Click here for some pictures of my car with 18" TTS GrandStand rims (original suspension, no lowering).

Good luck, good taste, and good sense.

[Jefflex]

Hi kroebje. Those rims look great. Nice rims can really lift a car.

Yea the rubber don't come cheap. Those tyre makers must be making a killing for sure.

I've dug deep into this subject now for my choice of tires. I never meant to. I just seem to have wandered onto a knowledge path about a subject I knew very little about. This is because I needed to make an informed decision.

I've come to the conclusion that much of the hype of the "Premium brand” tyres is a bunch of crap and little more than just sales retric.

Dig deep into this site (below) and you'll see what I mean. Top brands trashed by folks that have paid top dollar for a "top rated"? product. Some totally disappointed. Like with many other things we tend to buy and pay more because we recognise a brand name. Rarely do we stop to think if we are really are getting a better product, but because we know the name paying more seems ok. In my life experience the answer to that is often times we do not get a better product at all and I feel sure the same applies here to great extent.

It's true sometimes we do get a better product because we pay more but I am totally convinced that this is far from the case with tyres.

This review site clearly shows this. Also with tyres, so many factors apply that can influence an opinion, but many of the reviews do seem quite "savvy". I've also come to understand that while some tyres don't suit some cars they might do better on others.

On my Lex right now I have Avon ZV3's. When I spoke to a bloke in a tyre shop on the phone the other day he totally trashed my Avons. He mumbled on about how Avon are a rubbish brand on par with the budget tyres and way down the list of "quality" tyres. I got a just a little upset at him and told him they work really well as a 225/60/16 fitted to my car. I guess it was at that time I realised he just wanted to sell me the most expensive rubber he could.

Well just my 50cents worth!

Tyre size calculators:

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

http://www.alloywheels.com/tyrecalc.asp

Review site: Happy reading people. Simples!

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk

Jeff

[kroebje]

Hi Jeff. My car has Hankook V12evo tires on it. They are superb in sound insulation, but at the same time they are reading the blacktop surface like braille writing. Tell if they are sporty, I cannot, for the LS dinosaur is the wrong car for assessing G force.

The V12evo wears down rather quickly (despite my leisurely driving), and they develop a nasty resting spot which causes the car to slightly rumble during the first few miles of a ride.

As for your cheap / expensive argument I do not have sufficient experience. But I surley wouldn't buy any of those LingLangLong Chinese tires that hardly master the high speed test. And since longevity ranks high on my list I will consider Michelin next time. If they are on par with Nokian, Hankook, Semperit and other mid-price rubber in other criteria, I do not know, and neither do I care.

Have a nice Sunday.

[Jefflex]

Hi Kroebje. You are right I would not go for the cheapest of the cheap either. After talking to sales people in a more than few tyre shops quite a few seem to favour the Dutch tyre Vredestien Ultratrac Sessanta. The Sportrac 3 caught my eye in the reviews at first but they only go to 17".

Jeff

[gsportcars]

Just make sure that the wheels you choose will fit over the LS400 brake calipers. I have the LS400 calipers on my IS and the choice of wheels is limited.

For average driving budget tyres are fine but certain brands should be avoided completely for eg Nankangs etc etc.

[John Lawley]

Preilli P6000 last a long time but not greatest grip in world, Toyo CF1's have nice grip but i killed a set to bald in 7k on my seat cordoba diesel.

Yokohama are quiet nice, you can get super soft or more conventional, but they can wear out quickly if driven hard and wet grip can be pants on some tyres.

Make sure you get high enough tyre rating i think my MOT station fitted wrong rear tyres to my LS they are V rated which i've heard is only 149mph so no autobahn for me :)

[Jefflex]

It's true what the bloke said on the phone. "Fitting new alloys to a LS400 is a pain in the butt".

The issue is the front wheel callipers. They are bloody huge!

I learnt this yesterday first hand when I drove to the shop, chose my wheels and then tried to fit them onto the car. We knocked off my right front right wheel in the bay. Tried to fit with a regular 5mm spacer and lightly tightened the wheel nuts and tried to turn the wheel. No way would it move. The wheel had locked onto the caliper.

This means that practically any wheel you are going to want won't fit. Well it will, but it's going to cost you a bit more. About £100 more in fact because you are going to need a wheel hub adapter to offset the wheel. These are used to push the wheel out beyond the calliper. I could have got by with a 10mm spacer, but all I could find was 15 up to 60mm. So 15 will have to do.

To add to the cost (just for fun, moan, splutter) I figure, I'll have to set up the front wheel geometry too because the offset.

Jeff

Here's an example of what one of these hub adapters looks like. You'll see the adapter is bolted to the original studs and the wheel is bolted to the new adapter.

http://www.ezaccessory.com/PhotoGallery.as...ode=5450%2D5450

[Bladefire]

And dont forget the added cost of your insurance!!

[garethr]

Here's an example of what one of these hub adapters looks like. You'll see the adapter is bolted to the original studs and the wheel is bolted to the new adapter.

http://www.ezaccessory.com/PhotoGallery.as...ode=5450%2D5450

If you must use spacers, don't use those, use hubcentric spacers which have a spigot to locate the wheel, and fit spigot rings if required.

The wheel should locate on the hub, as designed by Toyota, it should not be located only by the studs.

[sparkyhx]

Here's an example of what one of these hub adapters looks like. You'll see the adapter is bolted to the original studs and the wheel is bolted to the new adapter.

http://www.ezaccessory.com/PhotoGallery.as...ode=5450%2D5450

I wouldn't go for them - they don't say they are not hub centric - none hub centric can cause issues with wheel wobble.

I'd go for the H&R spacers - best ones out there - thats if they make them for the Lex. They cost more but they are worth it.

What PCD are lex hubs 114?

EDIT

just checked and they are 114 and 61 for the LS400 according to a site I've just seen

[Jefflex]

And dont forget the added cost of your insurance!!

Bladeboy. New alloys just like the LPG on my car don't affect my premium. I spoke to my insurance co and they wern't bothered. I got some new quotes and the best ones still came in under £400 fully comp & protected NCB.

[Jefflex]

Here's an example of what one of these hub adapters looks like. You'll see the adapter is bolted to the original studs and the wheel is bolted to the new adapter.

http://www.ezaccessory.com/PhotoGallery.as...ode=5450%2D5450

If you must use spacers, don't use those, use hubcentric spacers which have a spigot to locate the wheel, and fit spigot rings if required.

The wheel should locate on the hub, as designed by Toyota, it should not be located only by the studs.

No, no they were just an example. The ones on my car now are Eibachs. They are hub centric with a 60mm bore.

Jeff

[Jefflex]

how do i plant a pic here???

[kroebje]

how do i plant a pic here???

First, upload your picture to one of the common pic hosters (e. g. www.imageshack.us). I. e. your pic must be on the net.

Then get the pic's URL (right-click on the pic: Copy image address).

Then write your post here, and click on the "sunset" icon above. A small input window opens.

Paste the pic's URL into it.

Click OK - et voilà.

Click on the Preview button to check if the picture comes through.

There must be a sticky note in the General section on how to post pics, right?

[sparkyhx]

And dont forget the added cost of your insurance!!

Bladeboy. New alloys just like the LPG on my car don't affect my premium. I spoke to my insurance co and they wern't bothered. I got some new quotes and the best ones still came in under £400 fully comp & protected NCB.

slight aside.......I got £80 off my insurance for going LPG - which was a nice surprise.

[Jefflex]

how do i plant a pic here???

First, upload your picture to one of the common pic hosters (e. g. www.imageshack.us). I. e. your pic must be on the net.

Then get the pic's URL (right-click on the pic: Copy image address).

Then write your post here, and click on the "sunset" icon above. A small input window opens.

Paste the pic's URL into it.

Click OK - et voilà.

Click on the Preview button to check if the picture comes through.

There must be a sticky note in the General section on how to post pics, right?

Thanks!

[Jefflex]

:) Job done! Phew :)

I did get them into this site but they were cut down and looked bad so I put them on Picasa

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/herenthere0/MyLexus#

Jeff