I feel our 2006 LS430 is very smooth on the road, even with the stock 18" rims shod with Michelin Pilot Super Sport 3+. Today, I was able to ride in a Benz for the first time in my life. It was a 2000 S430 and belonged to a colleague that was borrowing it from his brother because his own E-Class was in the shop. I must say, for a 16-year-old car, the S430 suspension ironed out every road imperfection. It was my first time in any Benz and I was duly impressed with how composed and super smooth the ride was. I felt the 16-year-old S430's ride surpassed that of our LS430 -- I was simply shocked and didn't expect the level of refinement from the Benz.

Once we reached our destination I was curious what size rims we were riding on. Turns out they are 16-inchers. Makes me wonder if our LS430 will ride that much better if I downsized from 18-inches to 16-inches. Now, the S430 wasn't as quiet inside as the LS430 and I was sliding around on the S430's slippery leather, but I did wish our LS430 had as much legroom in the back as the S430. Of course, I know the Benz is much more expensive to start but I do have a newfound respect for the level of ride quality from an S430 with 220,000 miles on the odometer. I don't know if the Benz had air suspension or not. Still loving our LS430 and wouldn't trade it for anything, but I do want to recognize the 2000 S430 for having exceptional ride quality (albeit a little underpowered).

 

16" has a lot of sidewall cushion. 01-03 LS has 16" but they are ugly. But they do provide maximum comfort. 18s look awesome but may ride a bit hard. That's why most will compromise with the 17".

 

Thanks, yoitskenn. I recall someone posting that 16s will also fit 04-06 LS430s. I wonder if anyone has experimented with such a combination, despite the trade-off in appearance. When searching for an LS430 we only focused on 04-06 and the ones I test drove only had 18s. We don't have a need for a separate set of winter rims in Cali but I wish I had a set of 16s to compare ride quality with. If I ever see a used set for sale I may grab them with some tires to experiment. Are there any special requirements for 16s to fit an 06 430?

 

All levels of the S Class have air suspension. It does tend to wear out, but replacement parts are way cheaper than those for the LS430 air suspension.

 

Oh, wow, S430 A/S parts are cheaper?!? Did not know that. Thanks for the info, Anthony.

I searched around earlier and it does appear that the OEM 16s will fit the 04-06 430 just fine and clear brake calipers, and apparently rims from the 2000 LS400 Platinum are said to also fit. Debating between a set of 16s or 17s. My goal is a supreme ride over style...at least I think so...I do really like the look of my current OEM 18s. Decisions, decisions...

I would consider the 17s as others have for the "best of both worlds", but the 17s would only add .5 inches to the sidewalls. I wonder if that is enough to notice a difference in ride quality compared to the 18s. A set of 16s will give a full inch of extra tire sidewall cushioning. Right now I actually like how well the 18s grip the road in corners. I don't want to give up the handling if 17s only provide a minor increase in ride comfort. I want to make sure I can feel a real difference if I'm going through the effort to swap wheels and tires. What experience have others had downsizing their wheels and tires?

 

I'd find a LS similar to yours with 17" wheels on it at a dealer and go test drive it ("I'm thinking about getting a second LS" ) to get an idea. Or find a CL member in your area with one...

I've had 18s, aftermarket 19s and now 17s on my 05 LS and by far prefer the 17s for ride quality. 18's aren't a bad compromise, but 17s are distinctly more comfy IMO

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with different size rims, Dave. That's a good idea about test driving. I'll make an appt to do so at a local CarMax. I usually don't like to test drive and waste someone else's time if I'm not seriously in the market. But in this case, I actually am looking for another LS430 for my Dad. He saw how nice ours is and wants one of his own. Perfect reason to test drive some models with 17s and maybe even 16s if I can find it on an older 430.

 

There's a reason that Lexus chose 17" wheels on the 04 LS430. Change to other sizes at your own risk.

 

Can you be more specific, jayclapp? Did they change it due to market pressure or an engineering requirement?

 

I noticed a small change in ride comfort when I went from 17-18s. But my 17s had bald tires. The 17s were 7.5 wide. I went with the 3GS 18 which are 8" wide.

I'm sure my 17s would have ride a lot better if I had better tires on them

I'm sure the 16s will fit the 04-06 but why would you kill the appearance with those wheels.

 

The 16 inch rims from the 1998-2003 cars all fit the 04-06s.

I also got some 16 inch rims from discount tires that work just fine for my snow tires. They were $100/each IIRC. Personally, I would never run anything larger (or make the car lower for that matter) but I'm not about the VIP/Stancenation life.

If the Mercedes had ABC, you won't ever get that ride quality out of an LS430. But the 16 inch rims help - especially when the roads suck.

 

I've driven on OEM 16s, 17s and 18s. The 17" wheels are the best overall compromise for ride comfort and appearance IMO. While only slightly lower profile (1/2"), the 18s are much firmer on all road bumps.

 

Yea, I really hate the trend of bigger and bigger rims. Especially since 99% of it is driven by cosmetics.

And people that are into that "scene" go aftermarket anyway. So why make the rest of us suffer?
19"+ rims are becoming fairly standard on luxury cars these days.

I'm not saying we go back to this, but my ES300 with 15" rims rode incredibly smooth, better than my LS on 17" rims. Most people want a smooth, quiet ride on a luxury car and affordable replacement tires. Not big '"Dubs" to impress their friends.

 

Thanks for the DiscountTires suggestion, airchomper. My colleague didn't know much about the S430 since it belongs to his brother. However, I don't think it had the Active Body Control because our LS stays much flatter in turns than the S430. The S430 leaned enough that I would slide across the leather in the front passenger seat. However, on straight portions of the same road I commute on the S430 seemed to just glide over everything. I only registered bumps when we went over speed bumps. Impressively smooth and I want to see if the LS with be the same with 16s.

 

16's on my LS may not be as pretty, but it is smooth as butter and whisper quiet