rebs

I apologize in advance for creating yet another wheel and tire thread, but I've read through almost every wheel and tire thread (including several hundred posts over the weekend) and I'm suffering from information overload.

I recently ran over a nail that is "too close to the sidewall" to be repaired, and so my timetable for suspension modifications have been moved up.

Preface: I don't mind the stock look (including the wheels), but I do think the wheel gap is slightly excessive (and my current wheels have some curb rash). I really want/need to maintain the ride quality; Needless to say since since this is my daily driver, I won't be 'slamming' it. If I do a drop, it'll probably be just the f-sport springs. I know this is contrary to a lot of people's preference, which I totally understand, but I'm asking you to keep this in mind when making suggestions. :-)

Having said that...this is the way I'm currently leaning, and I really could use some advice.

Tires - Hankook V12 or Continental ExtremeContact DWS. I know one is performance and the other is all-season, so it's like comparing apples and oranges, but perhaps someone has run both and can give some advice? I have to admit I'm not excited about having to replace tires every 20k, but in your opinion will I notice a "performance" reduction over the OEM Bridgestone's in spirited *daily* driving if I choose Continental?

Wheels - I love SGM, but I hate it when it comes to wheels. Nothing seems to match or coordinate well, and I just don't think SGM photographs well to begin with, so it's been very difficult to choose a set of wheels. I'm also really struggling on whether to stay on 18" or go to 19". I recently read a Car and Driver article and it compared different wheels (and tire) sizes and their conclusions were that sweet spot for both price and comfort was 17" or 18" wheels. They said 19" wheels looked the best, but ride quality took a serious nose dive. I found that article very interesting. What do you think?

Having said all that, right now I'm focusing on design's first, and then will start investigating quality, customer service, whether they are considered "replicas", etc. I chose the following pictures because of the angles and lighting (not the vendor).

* Wheel Option #1:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/4588697-post488.html (I felt like this design and color was a good mesh between sporty, but still maintaining the "luxury" of a lexus)

* Wheel Option #2 & #3:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/5488596-post114.html (Two different colors. It seems a little more sporty)

* Wheel Option #4: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/4704501-post1.html (Similar to above)

Sometimes I wish there were more choices in 18" wheels (and yes, I did go through the 18" aftermarket wheel thread). If you have any 18" wheels similar to the options I listed above (or fit the semi-conservative theme), please throw your suggestions my way. Unlike a lot of people on this forum, I will be keeping these wheels for quite awhile.

Thanks in advance for your patience and suggestions. It's very much appreciated!

MiiK350

iTrader: (8)

To answer your tire question, I would go with hankooks. The price is great, performance is better, very quiet, and more smooth with my 19''s then dunlops, Bridgestone potenza's and turnaza's, and falkens on my 18''s. In terms of wheels, my favorite color would be your 1st and 4th choice. My favorite wheel choice is choice 3 & 4. With that said, have you considered Smoked Chrome LC818's? The color is similar to your 1st and 4th choice.

With all that said, good luck, and update this thread with pictures of the final result.

llamaboiz

heres a question, whats your budget for wheels? you have LC and Volks, theres quite i big price difference between the two brands.

rebs

Thanks for your feedback; I'll definitely update this thread with my progress! :-) I have considered the Smoked Chrome LC818's , but I can't really find any pictures of it installed. I think people are still waiting on them to arrive, right?

IS25Heaven

iTrader: (8)

I would go for sure with the Hankooks, thats just the smart pick. Great tires for the price.
Now my personal opinion would be the Volks, just because im a Volk guy. They are forged one piece and some baller JDM wheels.

willi3ja

Everyone always blindly loves the Hankooks. The question is what kind of weather will you be driving in? If you're going to encounter snow/ice and don't have a dedicated snow setup then you'll be better off with the DWS. If you won't be driving in any of that, or have a set of snow tires then go with the Hankooks.

We know that all seasons are not the best at any one thing, but if I have to pick one tire I'll take a tire that does fairly well in all sorts of weather, instead of of one that won't get me anywhere when there's white stuff on the ground.

rebs

Good question. Yeah, I know there is a huge price difference between Volks and LC. I'm honestly focusing more on the style and color first. I'm going to evaluate vendors or manufacturer's (using some of the characteristics I mentioned earlier) after I find a couple of designs I like. I know that probably seems backwards, but I refuse to be married to any single wheel manufacturer right now.

I don't know why, but SGM just seems so tough to purchase wheels for. Every other color seems so much more versatile to me when it comes to picking wheels. Just my opinion of course.

I haven't decided on the budget for my wheels yet. Like I said, I'm really trying to focus more on they style and color first. I would say that if I spend more than 2k on wheels then they would have to be amazing quality and a truly original design (not something "modernized" out of an old hot rod magazine).

I apologize for being so long winded with my response; I know it's probably not as simple or direct as you were looking for....

RickJames1

I got sgm too and agree wheel choice color was hard. The black accenting silver wheels like the schwert sc1 is pretty nice. Mesh looks good too on the 2is like the vsxx.

rebs

That's a valid point. Thanks for asking!

After several days of 60 degree temps here, it's snowing today. The snow rarely sticks here in the valley though. I think maybe two or three very short periods (like usually 1-3 days) a year. During those periods, I usually drive my truck.

Having said that, I did drive to work once in beautiful weather (with a beautiful forecast) and when I drove home it had snowed. It had accumulated and then froze just enough to make my drive home horrific (and I'm an experienced winter driver having grown up in Montana).

That experience + the horrible tread-life on my OEM setup made me research all-season tires and that's where I came up with the Continental DWS. I'm still on the fence about this decision (even though they are completely different tires). If anyone else has personal experience with both tires, *please* let me know ;-)

p.s. I've been getting a few PM's today. Thanks everyone! Your feedback during my information overload phase is very, very, very appreciated!

aliu603

iTrader: (18)

if price isn't an issue. check out some work wheels. the xx look great on our cars, and i actually think color choice isn't an issue. here are some ideas

work sc2 (black polish) check out jdmis250's car; looks fricking dope. they'll run around 2500-2700 depending where you get it from

work sc1 (black polish) check out seoulis250's car, also sick. cost is basically the same as the sc2's

work vs-xx (burning black or any of their silvers) i used to have the burning black but didn't really post any good pictures of them. these will run you about 3k

any of the above 3 would work really well, IMO. hope this helped

kickin8

iTrader: (1)

I'm with 19/stock suspension....ride quality is not THAT bad....

p.s. dirty wheels....hahaha

Sffd103

iTrader: (16)

Out of the ones you posted, I like the first Linea Corse. They are in the Bay Area too, so it's in Cali. Tires are up to you, but there are good reviews of the Hancook's on tirerack.com who you can find in the vendor section. Good luck, and buy what you want.

rebs

Thanks for your feedback. The Work vendor is definitely in the running. The only reason I didn't list their styles has to do with the number of quality (non-artistic) pics on Lexus IS's that I could find.

The Work equivalent of the other design I posted (T1s if I remember correctly) are definitely in the running. The sc2 isn't bad. I don't like the vs-xx; They are just too loud for this project and I don't like the "rivets".

I'm really trying to stay close to OEM or fairly conservative on this car. :-) I really appreciate your feedback though!

macmaster

I have SGM too and agree it's a b***h to mod. I wish I had white.

Regarding matching rims, it's very unlikely that any of what we say matters. You are developing your own discriminating tastes. That's good. The best advice I can give you is to keep looking at a lot of pictures (with SGM) to narrow that taste even more, and eventually you'll come to your own best-informed decision. Good luck.

Oh but in case you do want my opinion, I LOVE the first link you provided. I'd go for that in 18s, with a subtle drop like you mentioned.

For tires - Go for the performance tires. If you don't need winter tires or aren't concerned about MPG, it doesn't really matter. (My other car is a Prius and mileage does matter to me, so I have to be a little more picky there)

rebs

It's so hard to quantify ride quality. I guess I need to pull off the occasional Mom and "client" passenger while still feeling that I'm driving something sporty.

I think ...overall...Lexus does a great job of toe-ing that (Luxury vs. Sporty) line, so I'm fairly anxious about going to 19" wheels after reading the Car & Driver report. Having said that, I think all the setups I've really liked have had 19" wheels. /sigh.

P.S. You have a nice ride. :-)