06 GS430 and Winter Driving
10-20-12, 03:52 PM
#16
From Chicago and had a GS430 for a few winters with snow tires and it was fine. Just like any RWD car. All this BS about AWD is non sense. RWD is just fine get a set of snow tires/rims, if you can use chains get a narrower rim and find a 17" rim that clears the caliper and you will pass up others.
I bring you this from our member Neurocity in his GS on "all season" tires...yes that's right ALL SEASON.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZfO...w&feature=plcp
so "why" does the OP need AWD???
I bring you this from our member Neurocity in his GS on "all season" tires...yes that's right ALL SEASON.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZfO...w&feature=plcp
so "why" does the OP need AWD???
10-21-12, 01:34 AM
#17
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I bought my 2007 GS450h from Alberta and drove the car back to BC. Well when I bought it last Feb it had over 108k km on it. So you can tell it was a daily driver for the previous owner who also lived in Alberta. The car had the Blizzak LM on it.
10-21-12, 02:16 AM
#18
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You might well be right but I wouldn't necessarily jump to that conclusion, just based on the mileage. My 2006 GS 430 has 115K Klm on it and it has never been winter driven. It usually comes out it late April early May once the gravel and salt have been cleaned off the roads and goes back on the lift end of Oct. Edm Calgary is 700 KLM round trip and Edm GP is over 1100 Klm. Doesn't take long to rack up the miles in this province.
10-21-12, 11:29 AM
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You might well be right but I wouldn't necessarily jump to that conclusion, just based on the mileage. My 2006 GS 430 has 115K Klm on it and it has never been winter driven. It usually comes out it late April early May once the gravel and salt have been cleaned off the roads and goes back on the lift end of Oct. Edm Calgary is 700 KLM round trip and Edm GP is over 1100 Klm. Doesn't take long to rack up the miles in this province.
10-21-12, 09:29 PM
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But the V8 and hybrid version has VDIM, awd doesn't. There are a few posts comparing the two in snow conditions and they preferred the RWD with VDIM over awd as it has better control. Awd only gives you a better traction RIGHT off from a stop. Turning, stopping, control, and everything else is up to the tires and how good the car can manage its traction and control.
10-22-12, 06:50 AM
#25
But the V8 and hybrid version has VDIM, awd doesn't. There are a few posts comparing the two in snow conditions and they preferred the RWD with VDIM over awd as it has better control. Awd only gives you a better traction RIGHT off from a stop. Turning, stopping, control, and everything else is up to the tires and how good the car can manage its traction and control.
I guess Lexus is pretty stupid for offering an AWD system with limited slip diff when RWD with electronic assists is really all you could possibly need.
10-22-12, 06:51 AM
#26
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Thanks for the replies.
SirCrush As to the Blizzaks, have tried them on other vehicles, not my favourite winter tire, find Michellin quite a bit superior. My favourite the last 5 or so years have become the Nokian Hakipilatja and the WR2s. In addition to the set on the 430, also run the Nokians year round on a Forrunner, an Olds and a Dodge 2500 4x4. The Nokian's have equal ice grip, better deep snow grip, and way better high speed, dry/wet road performance performance plus they maintain this for the whole life of the tire rather than just the first 30%. Also, the Nokians last much better than the Blizzaks overall, even running them year round they are getting 50 to 65 thousand miles a set.
twylie
I too am concerned about the clearance too. We get heavy snow dumps, with sometimes two or three days till the roads are all cleared. We also get a lot of ice as salt and the other products they use don't work below -15 and if the roads are wet they just turn to ice.
I tthink you guys have confirmed what I already was worried about. I think I will keep the 430 for a summer car and drive something better suited to winter driving while the snow is on the ground. -40, salt, rock/sand on roads, deep snow and lots of ice is not the right environment for something as pretty as a Lexus 430. Thanks all for taking the time to answer.
SirCrush As to the Blizzaks, have tried them on other vehicles, not my favourite winter tire, find Michellin quite a bit superior. My favourite the last 5 or so years have become the Nokian Hakipilatja and the WR2s. In addition to the set on the 430, also run the Nokians year round on a Forrunner, an Olds and a Dodge 2500 4x4. The Nokian's have equal ice grip, better deep snow grip, and way better high speed, dry/wet road performance performance plus they maintain this for the whole life of the tire rather than just the first 30%. Also, the Nokians last much better than the Blizzaks overall, even running them year round they are getting 50 to 65 thousand miles a set.
twylie
I too am concerned about the clearance too. We get heavy snow dumps, with sometimes two or three days till the roads are all cleared. We also get a lot of ice as salt and the other products they use don't work below -15 and if the roads are wet they just turn to ice.
I tthink you guys have confirmed what I already was worried about. I think I will keep the 430 for a summer car and drive something better suited to winter driving while the snow is on the ground. -40, salt, rock/sand on roads, deep snow and lots of ice is not the right environment for something as pretty as a Lexus 430. Thanks all for taking the time to answer.
With anyone on a public form they should do there homework. Now for a summer tire I'm going Michelin all day. Now, my opinion is bias because my father use to design tires for Michelin. Now you think that I would get a Michelin snow tire. My father even told me they dropped the ball on the design. Nevertheless, if you had a tire work better for you, that's great because at the end of the day I just want everyone to be educated and safe in these crazy winter conditions.
The real thing is to worry about the people driving RWD vehicles with Summer tires thinking traction control is going to save them.
10-22-12, 08:29 AM
#29
Lexus Champion
^ my pic up top with my GS430 covered with snow, that snow storm my stock height was plowing a few snow bank too. I used a bit of momentum to push through and got out to the main road. A few times I was stuck in snow and had to use rocking motion to get going again. Rocking as in put in reverse and go back as far as I can go, than forward again... than go backward again. I believe if I were in an AWD I wouldn't need to do that.
10-22-12, 10:47 AM
#30
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You should be more than ok in Alberta with a good set of winters. I've driven in Edmonton in an old rwd mercedes for over 6 winters on Nokian RSi tires (studless), and the few times i got stuck were all in residential areas before the city got around to plowing because of the layer of ice that forms under the snow.
That being said, i'd probably suggest a set of studded winters to help with the ice that we get everywhere in mid January. Was shopping for tires for my GS this winter and found that there are lots of decently priced studded winters you can run, like the General Altimax Arctic and the Hankook Ipike. If you have the money to spend, the Nokian 7 Studded is widely regarded as the best winter tire period, but they are around $300 each at 225/50/17. Currently running the new Goodyear Ultragrip Ice WRT on my 350 awd, but there hasnt been enough snowfall to really give any feedback about them. Good Luck!
That being said, i'd probably suggest a set of studded winters to help with the ice that we get everywhere in mid January. Was shopping for tires for my GS this winter and found that there are lots of decently priced studded winters you can run, like the General Altimax Arctic and the Hankook Ipike. If you have the money to spend, the Nokian 7 Studded is widely regarded as the best winter tire period, but they are around $300 each at 225/50/17. Currently running the new Goodyear Ultragrip Ice WRT on my 350 awd, but there hasnt been enough snowfall to really give any feedback about them. Good Luck!
Last edited by ktonomura; 10-22-12 at 11:01 AM.