teedub21

So, while perusing eBay I come across what appears to be a great deal on a lightly used set of Niche Surge wheels and tires, 22" that just came off an LS460. $1899 buy it now shipped with best offer available. Offer $1700 and its accepted. Wheels, tires, TPMS sensors all 2 months old shipped! Tires are Nitto NT555's in a 255/30/22 and 295/25/22. Not my first choice of brand, but not terrible.

Fast forward to Thursday evening when I get home, wheels have arrived! Go to install them and realize that there are two front "left side" wheels! FWIW, these are a directional wheel that are made in left and right side. Upon further looking, the rear tires are mounted the wrong direction.

Let the seller know, and of course he can't believe it, never noticed it, yada yada yada. Said he bought the set from Discount Tire in Illinois. He will check with them, etc. Look back at the photos from eBay and his car shows the correct wheel on the front passenger side, not the reverse one I received.

So, yesterday I go to my local Discount tire to have the rear tires flipped and to order a new front wheel to be told they can't flip the tires or install the new front wheel unless I remove the wheels and bring them in off the car because the tires don't meet the "load requirement" of my car! Fronts are a 95 rears are a 97 load rating on the Falkens. Seriously? I told him they were on an LS460 but an 07 instead of my 11, he looks it up and says, oh, yeah they're fine for that model, just not yours. Maybe its because yours is a sport model and it weighs more. Laughing I tell him other than the brakes the cars are basically identical. Now, pocket $338 lighter for a new front wheel that I had to order, I have to go home, wrestle these dang things off, put the factory 19's back on and haul the other ones to them to have the work done. What a ***** show.

Any suggestions how to handle the eBay buyer? He isn't offering to refund any money yet, nor have I asked. I obviously paid via paypal, FWIW. I haven't left feedback yet either. Granted now I will have a spare drivers side front wheel, but all this running around, the $338 for the new wheel, the $50 to get the tires re mounted and the rears swapped is cutting into the "savings" from buying a used set of wheels.

The car does look killer however and rides pretty decent! Next I'll be needing an air ride controller!

DJWLDW

If you paid with paypal you are covered. Open a dispute with paypal ASAP. This item was not as listed on e-bay. You did not get what you agreed to buy. Plus if you paid with a CC on paypal you can put a hold on the purchase.

Dennis

GR6RR

^ buyer protection + credit card holder protection.

roadfrog

Those do look AMAZING. FWIW, I run the same tires as yours (Falken FK452). I've run them for several years and they are great tires.

teedub21

Got the seller to refund me $150 so basically half the price of a new wheel. Of course he said ship them back for a full refund knowing I wouldn't pay $300 to send them back. Oh well now I'll have an extra front left wheel.

teedub21

Mistake, the tires are Nitto Extreme NT555's

DriftGirl

iTrader: (6)

Kinda sounds like you invested too much to try and return them anyway. half the price of a new wheel and u get to keep the "spare" seems kinda fair if u dont plan on returning.

Looks really good tho

teedub21

Oh it definitely worked out just wasn't "exactly as advertised" in the eBay ad.

roadfrog

You can likely sell that wheel fairly easily and recoup your loss. His offer seems fair to me as well.

Regardless, get over the "debacle" and enjoy the sweet new look of your LS! I am JEALOUS! Those wheels look sick. I wish I could have found a similar deal as yours. I paid far more for my setup and doesn't look nearly as nice.

Well done and let us know how this all transpires.

teedub21

Oh it's all good now. Love the look and it drives nice. Rears are at Discount Tire right now getting the tires re mounted in the correct direction. Front wheel should be here in a couple days. Should have everything dialed and back on the car by the weekend.

Now have to find an air ride controller.

GR6RR

turned out pretty good. both parties are happy. now you've got a matching full size spare

chuck1022

I typically do not like the way aftermarket wheels look on cars. To me it always looks "forced", that being said with your rims



DAMNIT

that looks amazing

Dr. Jekyll

iTrader: (1)

These wheels look nice, reminds of the Vossens I saw on a white LS460

seanl

The Falkens are indeed a good tire (but not a great tire) and they're the flagship tire of the Sumitomo brand. The 452s have been out of production for at least a few years though.

Right now I'm running the 453 Azenis on my 911 Turbo. I bought the car 20 months ago and it had brand new 453s out back and 1/2 worn 452s up front. The 452s howled loudly at freeway speed, and I mean LOUD. I immediately replaced them with new 453s and all was good, they were quiet and had plenty of grip and I have been very impressed with just how good they are given their low price. Fast forward 5000 aggressive canyon miles and now the 453s are getting loud.

Despite the fact that they have tremendous traction for the money, I'm going to go with something different soon, either Yokohama Advan Neovas or the very sticky Falken RTK615s.

Truth be told, I am very surprised to hear of anyone running Falken tires on a LS460, but I understand everyone has a different driving style and threshold for NVH. My '12 Sport came with Bridgestone Turanzas, which of course are very 'grand touring' oriented which is fine for a daily driver, but I may end up replacing them with something a bit more sporting, but nothing too aggressive, perhaps Contis or Michelins.

Have you contacted ebay about your issues? They are usually great and will step in...

teedub21

I was mistaken in my first post. Tires are Nitto Extreme NT555. When they're done I will likely buy Continentals.