LSRIDER

I'm looking for advice for new tires for my LS460. The car came with Bridgestone Turanza EL42. They seem OK, but wear out too quickly. So, I have looked up what's available and narrowed down my choices to Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus and Continental ExtremeContact DWS. I was going to get Michelins, but noticed that TireRack rates Continentals a bit better. I'd appreciate learning about anyone's practical experience with these two tires.

Many thanks!

cmasten

you wont regret the Michelin's, Costco has them for 70.00 off on a set still I believe. Also if they ever get a puncture they patch it right, by taking the tire off the rim and plugging and patching it from the inside. Free rotation for life too while you shop.. Once I bought tires and batteries at Costco, its hard to buy them anyplace else. Last two sets of Contis I have owned wore down really quickly although they were grippy. Michelins are just really good at everything.

Craig B

+1 for Michelin's...

mboverst

Agreed. If you want a quiet, smooth,and nice ride like the LS was designed for then go with the Michelins. Before my wheel upsize that's all I used.

jlawr

Yeah, yeah, yeah -- Michelins are great, but...
has anyone had experience with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS?

They are rated better than Michelin in wear, warranty snow and comfort AND they're cheaper than the Michelins. Only thing 'slightly' better about Michelin is 'corner steering' (on winding roads in the Bavarian Alps).

Can't go wrong with Michelin -- can you go better with Continental?

frotiss

Have any one put and bigger tires on the original wheels

frotiss

Have anyone put bigger tires on they original wheels

LSRIDER

Thanks for the responses!

Since we all have to replace tires within the first 35,000 miles (and many LS460 buyers have to replace tires much sooner) after buying a car, I thought there would be plenty of opinions here on both the Michelins and Continentals. However, strangely, nobody has said anything about the Continentals.

Also, on another forum, someone suggested that the best tire for LS460 in warm weather (i.e., no snow) is Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT. Anyone has an opinion on that tire?

Thanks again.

Craig B

Mine came with Dunlop's and they're terrible. Go with Michelin's...

CEOEngr

Dunlop SP Maxx TT came OEM on my 07 LS460L. I just had them balanced and rotated. At 22,340 miles they still have about 7/32 threads left. I consider them okay for driving purposes, but they wouldn't be my first, second, or even third choice. The Dunlops are getting noiser with time. But the biggest issue I have had with the Dunlops was from the day one and still exists today, a slight vibration at high speeds that the dealer has not been able to rectify even with numerous i-Force balancings. I urged my dealer to have the tires replaced, but they didn't nor did they bat hard on my behalf with the arrogant Mama Lexus. A fact that will not be forgotten when deciding on the next replacement vehicle.

cmasten

The CPO 07 I just picked up in Dec has a new set of the Dunlops on it, I cant complain, its smooth and handles well, but then I dont have any point of comparison.

If I was putting tires on this I would put on the Michelins, since you only have one shot at it until they wear out, but honestly I dont think you will go wrong with either the Conti or the Michelin, both very good tires and once they are on.. you will learn to like it either way :-)

cmasten

I had a similar issue with a GS I owned after several attempts to get the tires changed, I took it to an independent shop that is very proficient in high end wheels and alignments and it turned out to be part of the suspension, nothing at all to do with the tires. Once the part was replaced and the front end of re-aligned it was near perfect.

CEOEngr

Do you recall what that part was? name? This will help me wrestle the dealer again before the warranty expires.

cmasten

I dont have the vehicle any longer, but it was part of the suspension for the right rear shock assembly. At higher speeds it impeded the shocks ability to dampen the vibration as I recall. They also said that it would be wise to perform a 4 wheel alignment, which was news to me, as I have always aligned just the front, but apparently all 4 could be done.

They checked the 4 wheels and tires and found them all to be capable of being balanced just fine so then proceeded to check out the suspension which is where they found the issue. Lexus never looked beyond the tires...

I dont know how similar a GS is to an LS, but it may be worth a try to get them to check out the suspension and verify that all four wheels/tires do balance within spec. You could always take it to a more competent shop and see if they find a similar issue to take back to Lexus.

LSRIDER

It appears that the Michelins are everyone's favorite. At the same time, nobody said anything negative about the Contis. My sense is that there is simply not enough experience with the Contis -either they are too new or their market penetration is far lesser than that of the Michelins. Does anyone feel that buying unidirectional tires (which the Michelin's are) causes a serious disadvantage as it's impossible to rotate them front to rear?