97LS400

Of course, doesn't everybody?

Like ToyLexmods, I have the honor of taking care of the whole families fleet so shop space, floor jacks, and pnuematic tools are mandatory.

Most local community tire shops will do the rotation for free if you purchase your tires from them. The only problem is they always overtorque the wheels and that will cause brake rotors to warp.

Frank T

I also put a set of Nokian WR's on my LS430 this year. I did pick up a set of new takeoff 16" Factory rims on Ebay ($315 + $75 frt) and went down 1 size to 215/65 R16's. A set of 4 was just over $500 installed. So less than $900 total. They are a HUGE improvement over the 17" OEM All Seasons. In fact I would say the car now is as capable in snow, as any front wheel drive I have driven. Another PLUS is they seem to handle dry roads better than the OEM All Seasons. The car definately tracks straighter and is more stable at highway speeds. I'm not seeing the wear mentioned above. The downside of the Blizzaks is they will wear out the soft outer layer of rubber the first year, and not be very good after that layer is gone. You will get several years out of the Nokians. I do notice slightly more tire noise on the highway, but not enough to hardly mention. I'd go for the Nokians again in a heart beat.

Curt

I live in St. Paul, Minnesota.

I had a front wheel drive Camry before buying my 1990 LS400 with traction control. The LS400 has WAY BETTER winter handling than the Camry.

The traction control gives me more a lot more starting traction and hill-climbing traction than the Camry had, and at highway speed the car feels more secure (possibly due to the weight of the LS400 compared to the Camry).

To say it a different way, the LS400 is the best winter car I've ever had, and I have highly recommend it to my family and friends.

For those asking about the Nokians, I had a set of them a while back. Mine were the Hakkapeliitta's (no studs installed). Mine were all-season tires. Our local newspaper had a big story on them, and said that on ice, they were better than snow tires. In my humble opinion, snow is never a problem -- ice is the only problem. So I bought the Nokians. They wore out faster than I'm used to (I usually buy iron-hard Michelins), but they definitely lasted a lot longer than snow tires. I kept them on year round for about three years or so. One big selling point for me was that the snow-biting rubber foam of the Blizzaks is only on the outer third of the tread depth. So once you wear one third of the tread, Blizzaks are no better than all-season tires. The Nokians used the same rubber and tread pattern throughout the tread.

Curt

kap0ne

i have a 98 ls400 and yes it does suck in the snow but sometimes it helps to take traction control off if you get stuck

telegix

I recently went to test drive a LS430 at the dealership, and all their cars had nokian hakkapeliitta tires on.. This is in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (richmond hill lexu dealership btw)...

I also put some hakkapeliitta on a corolla I have.. These things are amazing.. Trust me, the people in finland know tires better then anyone else around.. Mainly because of all the snow and cold they have..

They also have a 50,000mile tread life warranty.. No other manufactor of winter tires offers tread life warranty on winter tires to begin with... So, that should say something in itself..