speedemn

I have a dedicated set of snow tires for the winter for my 2008 RX 400h on their own dedicated winter wheels.

I am considering options for tires for the spring/summer/fall and do not have any experience in the area of tire selection when it comes to SUVs. I know what I would do with my car however I am not sure if the same rules apply for SUVs.

Stock tire size on my vehicle is the 235/55/18 factory up-size on Lexus rims.

(1) Should I consider wider tires and lower aspect ratio for the summers?
(2) Should I get dedicated summer tires or are all-season or all-weather tires okay?

The options that have been presented to me so far I believe are all all-seasons but some are V-rated. The options are as follows:

(a) Michelin NRG MXV4
(b) Michelin Pilot HX MXM4
(c) Bridgestone Dueller HL422
(d) Hankook Ventus RH07
(e) Firestone Destination ST


Can I please get some opinions on questions (1) and (2) above and if all-season is the way to go then a recommendation from the list above?


Thank you.

maseace

Check the survey results and reviews/tests on tirerack.com first. The Pilot HX MXM4 tires are pretty crappy in my opinion.

RX330inFL

The same topic of tires for your RX400h is the same as what has been discussed on a regular basis for the RX330 and RX350 over in the main forum. Such as:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...e-choices.html

Current thinking is to look at one of the following tires to get if you need a 235/55-18 tire:

Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season
Goodyear Assurance ComforTred Touring
Bridgestone Dueler H/L 422 Ecopia

If you are looking for something in line with the hybrid, you will want to look for something with low rolling resistance.

No need for to get just a special summer tire though you can go that way if you want. Many times they have a lower tread life rating. V-rated tires are what originally came on your RX and that is a good criteria in selecting a tire. As mentioned above by maseace, check TireRack to look at the survey ratings. If available for that tire, it will show you what others think of the tire on a variety of criteria.

speedemn

I have read all the survey charts on Tire Rack but some of the tires that are rated high from the list above do not have that much "mileage" on them through the survey respondents. I thought I would put it out to Lexus owners to assess what might be best for the car vs what is the better tire.

I have talked to some tire shops and they recommend the Bridgestone Alenza or Michelin Latitude Tour. I was curious about the Bridgestone Dueler H/L 422 Ecopia however the shop recommended the Alenza over it.

Thoughts?

RX330inFL

I have the Alenzas on my RX330. I like them. Others have reported they are a bit noisy. As good as they have been for me, they are now old technology. The Ecopia would be where I would look if I wanted to stick with Bridgestone as it is a newer technology tire. As for why the shop recommended the Alenzas... I am not really sure. Are they getting a good price on them to help move remaining stock? Assuming they are being honest, they are very good tires in the wet and snow. However, you have snow conditions covered already. With the Ecopia being a low rolling resistance tire I feel it is a good match for the hybrid. It is also cheaper than the Alenza and the Michelin.

The Pirelli I listed is probably the best of the lot when it comes to handling in the wet. The Goodyear is perhaps the quieter of the lot.

FWIW.

aucht

anyone used Continental ExtremeContact DWS?

maseace

I have them on my other car (Acura TL) and they are excellent. I will probably try them on the RX next. They were a bit slippery for the first 500 miles, but once broken in they have not slipped once, no matter how hard I try.

jfreebody

i have 177K on my 2008 400h and have been thru 5 sets of tires as i do a lot of highway driving
1 - the original michelins lasted barely 19k,
2 - Continental Extreme Contact DWS were very good, but noisy on highway, lasted 38k
3 - tried Goodyear Assurance - big mistake - went out of round twice - were crap after 25k
4 - went back to Continental Extreme Contact DWS for another 42K
5 - tried out the Pirelli Scorpion Verde for 44k - good tire, but never quite felt as secure on wet road as the DWS
6 - now have the new Bridgestone Dueler HL ECOPIA and it is by far the BEST, Quietest, Smoothest riding tire for this car !!

smassey321

I have summer tires on my BMW and I would not put them on the RX. The rest of the suspension would not be able to take advantage of the extra grip on dry roads. On wet roads, summer tires are better when it is warm but the advantage is minimal.

I did switch to the Michelin Latitude Tour tires. I was sick of the Energy S8s bad traction and poor wear. The Tours are great and I wish I had switched to them sooner. They are not VR rated but we keep it under 90 and have not noticed a difference on our high speed runs. Noise and MPG are the same as before. Ride is a tiny bit stiffer which is a good thing. The stiffness makes them feel more stable at high speed even though they are not VR rated.

maseace

I'm really interested in the new Continental PureContact with EcoPlus Technology. They have the DWS tread plus low rolling resistance for better fuel economy.

TireRack link

speedemn

Thank you for all the advice. I ended up going with the Ecopias on my wife's RX 400h (I am the OP in case anyone lost that in the thread). :-) We have driven on a 3500 km road trip and about 1500 kms since then... great, quiet tire (although I am comparing to the Michelin snows that came off it).

My wife drives it 95% of the time so I do not have a detailed review of how it performs in dry vs wet. However I am pleased with the overall result.

I will update this thread in the future if there is anything else of interest to report.