The II supposedly has better wet traction. I find them very similar.

 

On turns if you are pushing the car hard yes, it has the typical sound of large shoulder block tires. Cruising along no it's not that bad, but it does noticeably louden up the LS experience but anyone who don't own an LS/S/7/A8 still thinks the car is exceptionally quiet.

I'll try and make a video with the sound meter and going through turns and at varying speeds to show what I mean that it's abnormally loud for a LS.

 

Dude, you rock! That would be super helpful for all of the Lexus owners out there that might stumble on our little slice of ClubLexus.

 

We will also need SW17LS to post his measurements as a comparison point so it generates useful data since I have a 430 and we will need to establish a baseline of a 06 with primacys vs a 460 at idle and 60mph over good and broken pavement to come up with a % deviation. Then my 02 vs the 06 will give a relative increase in noise from the tires that knowing the % change will allow a reasonable extrapolation to how they would be on a 460.

 

I think all of that is a little more involved than is necessary lol. For one, dB readings dont necessarily show you how you will respond to a specific sound or noise. It tells you what the sound pressure is, but not the pitch or frequency nor how those things will impact your own enjoyment of the car.

Those CrossClimate tires have a reputation for being loud, and I have driven in a car that had them installed and the owner took them back and I rode in the same car on different tires and the difference was significant, I would never even consider putting them on a car like the LS where its something that you want to be as quiet as it can be.

Plenty of other tires out there that have good grip but also have nice soft and quiet riding characteristics.

 

Very true about tone, and also about grip but not so in the cold/snow and that's the party truck of those particular tires. Everything has a tradeoff as always....

 

Hmmmm... I dont think the Crossclimates are that loud. Currently have them on a Hyundai Azera, and zero complaints from me. Only about 4K miles on them though. No quieter or louder than the AS3 on the LS.

i actually felt the Cross Climates were good alternatives to the AS3 and would get them again for non-luxury cars

 

I’m surprised there aren’t more votes for continental tires. The dws06 is supposed to be the cats meow in the snow and all other conditions.
so far the p7 cinturato has the most vouches with 6 favorable, one in between saying it’s noisy (sha4000) and one unhappy owner (lexus2000)
The rest of the votes are pretty scattered with Michelin getting the second most mentions (5 for various models), then one each for general Altimax, ContiPureContact, Sentury UHP, Sumitomo, Vredestein Quatrac, and that pretty much sums it up.

I wonder how Pirelli found its way into the hearts of the community. Fifteen years ago I was waiting at some Discount Tire in north county San Diego to mount two tires on my Supra, when an angry customer came in and ranted and raved to the clerk about his Pirelli tires. He was quite angry. The memory has stuck with me. Here I am fifteen years later, in tire purgatory, agonizing between Pirelli P7s, some flavor of Michelins and Continental’s DWS06. The affordable Chinese tires left the chat a long time ago! And it’s amazing that nobody recommends Goodyear.

 

I wonder how Pirelli found its way into the hearts of the community. Fifteen years ago I was waiting at some Discount Tire in north county San Diego to mount two tires on my Supra, when an angry customer came in and ranted and raved to the clerk about his Pirelli tires. He was quite angry. The memory has stuck with me. Here I am fifteen years later, in tire purgatory, agonizing between Pirelli P7s, some flavor of Michelins and Continental’s DWS06. The affordable Chinese tires left the chat a long time ago![/QUOTE]

Because it is just not about tires.. the Pirelli tires have increased their quality control in last couple years, have done a good job improving the P7's

Biggest reason is the demographic. most of the Ls460 buyer is looking for a great riding, good tread for longevity and a all season tire for all climates.
The Pirelli with V rating and a good tire for a good price strikes the balance.

There not a Michelin but offer a complelling value in the marketplace especially for the owners of the LS460 that is the reason

 

I,m watching the Formula 1 practice session right now and those cars only use Pirelli tires and most of us drive just like those guys so we need the Pirelli !!!

 

For me (and probably others), the thread below made me switch from Michelin to the Pirelli Cinturato. And I have been very happy with the results.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...o-p7-plus.html

As for Goodyears, they are among the most expensive tires out there for our car.

 

Personally I don't care about the brand of the tires. For a car like this, I want the most comfortable riding, quietest tires I can find. If that tire is a known, reliable brand then thats fine with me. So its not that I "like Pirellis" and "don't like Goodyears". If I saw that Goodyear came out with a tire that were more comfortable riding and quieter than the P7s, I would get them.

If you look at the reviews and TireRack tests, these are good riding quiet tires. If you look at reviews you find that overwhelmingly people are satisfied with them, and having had a bunch of sets of them I don't see any reason to go through the hassle of trying something else when I know I like how these ride and drive on the car new and over time. That doesnt mean there aren't other tires out there I would like just as much,

 

I hear and understand what your saying. The P7 is a very good to IMO and they sent to be getting a bit quieter. I now have 2k miles on them and I listen very closely during my commute which is 110 miles round trip. I know the wind noise is playing a factor since there volume is very noticeable at 80-90 mph. Also I just realized that the AC condenser fan is running and it's very loud. That doesn't account for my AM commute when things are cooler and the AC is not in or the temp outside is relatively cool. This morning the sound was definitely less. I forget which model Michelin this car shipped with but those tires were a beast but like I said they are $250 a tire and only rated for like 40k miles or something. I don't think the extra $400 for a set of those over there P7 would be justified.

As you also noted we are in full tire debate instead of recommending cheaper alternatives which the OP asked about. I can't recommend the cheaper alternative because I believe you would not be getting very good LONG LASTING tires. They might be great the first 10k miles and then you'll start to notice the difference. My opinion is based on a set of Kuhmo ecstacy tires I put on the 430 and they were so soft you could feel the lean while trying to go around curves. The Sumitomo AS1 tires I just took off the 460 were a bit shaky from the start, then seemed to do ok but always seemed a bit wobbly. They only lasted 1 1/2 years and 31k on my car. So I would not do cheaper alternatives. Money should not be a factor for anyone even though I know it is at times. I spent $500 on those Sumitomo tires when I could have just coughed up the extra $300 for the P7 and still been riding. As it is I spent $500 plus $800 for the P7. I could have purchased this Michelin tires so it's a lesson learned.

 

I think some of it too is you’re intently listening for noise, so you hear more noise.

 

I think you might be right. Again in my commute this morning I turned the reason all the way down and though the nose was there it didn't bother me as much. I fully believe now that what I'm hearing is a combination of that damn wind noise and the damn condenser fan when I have the AC on during my afternoon commute. It's funny because even though the wind nose has always been there it never bothered me before. Also my last 2 sets of tires have been soft and the P7 sidewalls are stiffer so I figure that would make them a lil louder. Either way these tires handle superbly so far far and that would be enough to cancel out my concerns about a lil noise. Lol I won't complain about them anymore unless something definitive arises. I also dropped the psi down to 31 from 33 so that might have helped.