Modeler

He's probably just referring to the noise level only. There's nobody who can say that run-flats have a "soft" ride, compared to ANY high-performance tire out there. Yes, on good asphalt surface the ride is very soft, but it's very harsh on bad surfaces.

BUT I can attest to the fact that the Dunlop 5000 run-flats all-season tires that come on the 450h are VERY quiet. I was surprised to find my new Continental ContiExtremeContact to supply way much more drone on smooth surfaces than the Dunlops. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised: the new Dunlops have vast expanses of flat portions of the tread, while the Conti's are all ridges and grooves to provide great wet traction.

I'm also pretty sure the Conti drone will go down substantially after a couple thousand miles. I've had that happen before with other tires. But I don't mind it too much because the ride is way more comfortable now.

Argelius

Since the GSh has such a small trunk, where does the spare tire go?

Argelius

Hey,

I am picking up my new 2007 GS450h tomorrow
which comes with all-season runflats.

I currently have a BMW330xi with runflats Which I have found to be loud and rough (I think) -- not sure how much is due to the runflats and how much is just characteristic of the BMW "road feel".

Anyway, my concerns with the GSh's run flats are:
[1] How loud/rough they will be. (Hard to really tell from just a couple of test drives). I am looking forward to a more smooth and quiet ride than I had (which I am sure Lexus will deliver with or without runflats).

[2] What my winter performance will be. I know in the ideal world I could buy a second set of wheels and tires for winter (Lexus dealership will store and mount them free of charge), but that just seems like a hassle anyway.

I'm a car nut, but I know NOTHING about tires.

If I wanted to get a good set of (non-runflat) all-season tires, any idea if I could get the dealer to credit me something for the brand-new runflats?

I know I should probably just take the car with the runflats and see how they work for me, but I really want my "thrill" with this new car to be as great as possible immediately. Seems like the only downside to no run-flats is getting a flat tire and having to change it...

Phxlexusgu

Curious, my 2007 GS450h came with Bridgestone Turanza Runflats, not the Dunlops. (They have been pretty good so far, but I am looking to move on.) My GS450h does not have a spare and the tire guy said he could not legally place non-run flats on a car with no spare. What gives?

The G Man

Tell him if he doesnt sell you those tires, you can find someone that will, or you can always buy a dount off him.

Modeler

You can buy the spare kit for your 450h at the Lexus dealer for $500. Or you can buy the correct size spare and some jack on E-bay for about $100. But you can certainly get a spare to this car, as you should before putting on regular tires.

B.Diddy

iTrader: (1)

Thats a pretty interesting thing to say. What makes a GS all that mightier than an ES, that its OK to throw "cheapo" tires on it but an all might "GS" must get an overpriced $300 tire? If you think a GS is your ticket into the kingdom of elite car ownership, all I have to say is HA... HA...

I have run inexpensive Kumho Ecsta MX tires on my Supra as well as on my Turbo IS300, that can outperform tires 3x their price.

What tire do you suggest we run then? I am pretty content with my Dunlop 225/50R17 run flats.

The G Man

Run flat does not mean its a better tire. You can get a pretty good tire for about $140.

Rexus300

iTrader: (1)

After having the number 1 rated Bridgestone Potenza Pole RE960A/S for 4 weeks, I got rid of them and got the Continental ContiExtremeContacts replaced free at discount (30 day try out policy). The bridgestones were the worse tires I have ever had in my life on any car. They were stiff and flatspotted horribly in the morning. The steering felt numb in the center, and the tires had intermittent vibration on highways varying from cement to blacktop. After several balancing and even Force balancing and rotating the tires after 3 weeks, made it better, but still lousy tires. They could not suppress simple road irregularities and transmitted everythign to the steering wheel and passenger chair. I change PSI from recommended by Lexus to a higher one and a lower one, never got a smooth ride.

The Continentals are heaven on wheels! They are smooth and have better stability and absorb bumps very nicely especially on highways. The contis might be slightly noisy, but not that bad at all. They are softer compounds, so a higher PSI of 37-38 will balance it out and make the car feel nimble, sporty, without compromising the ride. GO for ContiExtremeContacts. I had these on my SC430, and should of gotten these for my car when I replaced my ContiProCOntacts back in January. Bridgestones are cheap, dangerous, and unstable. BTW, I have the 18 inch GS430 wheels.

The G Man

Continental's conti series are great tires for the price. I had them on my last car and they were great. How is the ContiExtremeContacts in the snow?

shlinmd

Mine came with run flats stock as well.

Rexus300

iTrader: (1)

They are amazing in the snow! Very predictable tires with the AWD. No slipping or sliding as much as the Bridgestones. I highly believe these tires are the best and should be number 1 or 2 on tire rack ranking instead of the bridgestones being number 1 since they really are lousy tires. I don't know why people say they are good, but I have had extensive experiences with tires given my big line up of cars at home and conclude that Michelins, Pirelli, and some of the top Continentals are the best while Dunlops and Bridgestones are the worst.

Nauticalx

Runflats are a joke...kudos to you for dumping them!

The G Man

The conti have a very good deep snow rating from tire rack, I am glad to hear they are good in the snow in real world driving as well. What speed rating is your Conti Extreme Contact. I only saw the Z rating on tirerack. Do they come in V rating as well. I believe you have a 350AWD just like me which have V rating.

Rexus300

iTrader: (1)

They only come in Z rating. The Lexus dealer recommends these tires for the GS line up in addition to the IS and SC. I got these tires from discounttire.