gailevans

I have an 01 RX300 that needs new tires. Does anyone have suggestions for a good tire that is not as expensive as the Michelins that are currently on it? I really hate to spend half of what the car is currently worth on tires if possible. The car is driven mostly in town, if that makes a difference.

salimshah

Non scientific {public opinion] is available on TireRack.
Although you are fine is looking at it from $/sense, but the tires make a huge experience difference. It can also make a significant gas consumption difference [upfront cost vs use based cost].

Regrettably the data is also over the place and you have to choose based on what is important to you.

When my vehicle was tottled, the insurance company gave me $10 per tire although they were pretty new Michelins .

Salim

gailevans

I did look at tirerack.com, but thought I'd check with the owners here to see if they had any recommendations. The shop I take my Lexus to mentioned a brand "Hankook", but I am not familiar with them. My newer Lexus was purchased used, and had a set of Goodyear tires on it when I bought it. They were evidently put on just before selling the car, but were horrible. I had them replaced with Michelins even though they were almost new.

salimshah

You will find many offerings from the same manufacturer at various price points. Hnacook may have bad and very good tires depending upon which one you pick. As long as you are open to getting input from users [non-scientific], TireRack would still be a very good source.

Incidentally, when a user switches from a used-tires to a new tire the immediately like the new and hate the old. They can be the same make/model.

My experience has been:
Goodyear, I rolled off a set when the odd read 4miles. They were OK tires but had a short life. Never blew up, never acted strangely under heat braking and were quiet. They did turn miserable when the tread was down to 1/3 or less .. in about 12k miles.
Michelin M+S Looked awesome on RX. Good under rain, but the tires were noisy for my comfort on long drives.
Michelin [offered by Costco] Bit pricy but overall very good tires. [driving/life/noise etc]

Salim

gailevans

Yes, I put pricey Michelins on my newer car, but it is driven out of town sometimes. I did talk with my Lexus mechanic who recommended looking for a tire with a UTQG rating of around 600 for driving comfort and durability. He said ones on the 800 rating would be stiffer handling, and those in the 400 range would not last near as long. Learned something new about tires today!

ukrkoz

I will fight to death for Yokohamas. I had 520s I believe, on my Highlander and they outperformed everything I ever tried. Never hydroplaned, exceeded tread life by 20K miles.That said, I went through winter driving on those Yokos and they did stellar. I had low rolling resistance set on my Camry hybrid, was same. Absolutely great tire.

itsmwah

I also need new tires on my RX450h. I am looking at Costco Michelins but they have multiple ones. What are Michelin M+S?

salimshah

As I understood it, M+S -> Mud and Snow. The cuts in the tread made it look like small cats paws .. they were not chunky, but still kept their distinct shape.

Salim

ricco750

These are all I run on both my RX and Highlander for the past 15 years. They have never disappointed me.