diablo1

Hello,

I have read all the threads about getting winter tires for the IS, but I wanted to start a thread specifically about all-seasons. I know a lot of people here are swapping their tires out twice a year, at the beginning and end of winter. This probably is the best solution if you don't mind doing it, but I really would prefer to find a tire that I can just use all year.

My question is - will all-season performance tires be noticeably worse than the summer tires for driving in good weather? I really have no idea about this since this is the first time I have ever owned a car with performance/summer tires. And conversely, in bad winter driving, are all-seasons much less capable than dedicated winter tires? If it doesn't make too much of a difference, I'd like to get all-seasons, put them on permanently, and then sell the other tires on eBay or on this site. That would save me the twice-a-year tire change hassle, as well as the expense of buying new rims and pressure sensors for the second set of wheels.

I know this topic has been discussed a lot, but for us out here in the northeast, it's a big concern. Thanks everyone!

mkorsu

Diablo, for the most part, all-season radials will have less performance than a dedicated snow tire in winter and less performance than a dedicated sport tire in summer. But, you can't deny the excellent "middle of the road" you'll get with them. Low-Profile sport tires are ridiculously bad in the snow. Dangerous even. Snow tires will be noisy and uncomfortable during the summer months (along with much less performance than the sport tires). The all-seasons will afford you the best of both worlds. That combined with responsible driving during snowy conditions will get you around with now problems.

picus

I've never used All-seasons, however most of my family does and they are incredibly popular around here for obvious reasons - most people don't want to have their tires swapped every 6 months. I think if you get a solid set of all-seasons (do the research) you'll probably be fine in all but very serious winter conditions (very high snow, slick ice, etc...). I can't speak for summer performance, but I'd imagine it's another one of those areas where if you're just driving the car as a daily driver you'll never notice. I take my car to the track a lot in the summer which is why I have summer tires. But most folks probably don't need them.

jlin101

All-season tires are a good compromise between the all-out performance of summer tires and the snow tractions of winter tires. They also have much better wear than summer tires. If you have 18" wheels, your selection may be limited (The Tire Racks has two in oem sizes).

Goldglv

diablo,
I have 18" all season tires on my IS350, I think you'll like them. They are a good mix of traction and performance. I didn't want to switch out tires every six months so I just went with All-Season tires. I asked the dealer to put them on instead of the summer tires. He agreed. We just had some snow here in NJ (not much but a little) and the car was fine.

kensteele

What ever you go with, you won't have to live with it forever. If you're like me, tires of all types wear out pretty fast. If you don't like your all-season, you can get a summer/winter combo the new time...and vice versa. I expect to go thru 5 to 7sets of tires before my IS350 goes to the junkyard.

NotFatBoy

all season tires are noticeably worse than a dedicated summer or winter tire imo

its for people with camrys

upbull340

What did you end up with? Contis or Michelins? I'm thinking of doing the same. Wish there were more tires available. I'm running Toyo Proxes4 UHP all season on 18's and love them. Wish they made tires to fit the 350.

ES3

I'm actually thinking about going with all seasons too, which tires did you go with? DId youleave the stock 18 rims on? Was the car SERIOUSLY okay in the snow with the all-seasons?

Thx!

Goldglv

Yes, I stuck with the 18" factory rims. The dealer just swapped out the tires for me. I didn't get a choice on what All-Season tires I wanted but he put on the exact set of tires I planned on buying anyway, so it worked out. I really didn't want to put on very expensive tires like the Michelin's, but that's just me. These tires got pretty god reviews on tirerack so I went with these: Continental ContiExtreme Contacts

Yes, they were fine in the snow, I didn't lose traction at all. But like I said, we only got a few inches, it's not like we got a foot of snow. But so far I really like these tires.

mkorsu

Continental makes some very good tires. I have ContiTouring Contact on my SC. For an all-season tire, they work very well.

diablo1

Ya I think I will get the ContiExtremes too. Should I order them from Tire Rack and have them shipped directly to the dealer, or should I use one of those "recommended installers" from the Tire Rack website? Since the Dunlops that come with the car are pretty expensive, do you think they would let we swap them out for free? Or maybe I should sell them on eBay?

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Diablo and others considering ordering items from the Tire Rack,

Please use the link below when you order - it doesn't save you any money in this case (Tire Rack doesn't offer discounts beyond what it has listed to anyone) but it does help keep the Tire Rack signed up as a supporting vendor for ClubLexus which keeps us up and running.

Thank you!

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=117642

If you ever need to find this link later when you order, it's a sticky at the top of the Tire and Wheels forum.


Edit - can probably try to sell your tires here on CL in our classifieds (free of charge)

diablo1

Placed my order with Brandon at Tire Rack, our Club Lexus contact:

Qty. Size and Description Availability Price Each
2 225/40WR18 Continental ContiExtremeContact IN STOCK $125.00
1 CONTINENTAL WARRANTY PACKET IN STOCK N/C
1 CONTI/GEN REGISTRATION CARD IN STOCK N/C
2 255/40WR18 Continental ContiExtremeContact IN STOCK $165.00
1 CONTINENTAL WARRANTY PACKET IN STOCK N/C
1 CONTI/GEN REGISTRATION CARD IN STOCK N/C
Items Total: $580.00
Shipping: $32.78
Order Total: $612.78

He said the Michelins are better, but the Conti's are better in the snow, so I ended up going with these. Also around $400 cheaper. Maybe I'll get Michelins next time around. Install will happen at Autobahn Service Center on 91st and 1st. I'll let you know how it goes...

upbull340

The guy at TR is right. The Conti's are a better snow and rain tire and the Mich is a better summer tire. I think you made the right decision. Let us know about the ride and noise. In early Contis there was a lot of road noise. Hopefully by now they have improved the tire.