RX330inFL

Circumstances have me considering spending some considerable time in the cold and snow of the mountains for a few winters. May need to do this off and on for a couple of years. I have two options if I have to act on this. First, I could just purchase a beater car/truck for my time there. Or, secondly I could bring my RX330 and equip it for heavy snow as needed. Regarding the latter, can anyone recommend a highly durable 17x7.5 wheel I could use to mount snow tires on? Is there anything available in a steel wheel or a heavy duty aluminum that I might find cheaply as a set such as a takeoff from a Crown Vic or Grand Cherokee? I have seen where they have a similar bolt pattern (5-114) though I am not sure of the offsets.

I checked to see what was available from Tire Rack and a few others. There are some inexpensive wheels, however, there are no steel wheels and the ones they have I am not really sure how they would hold up to potholes and regular abuse. My guess is that I would easily put them out of round. Have done some searching here and on the 'net, but I have not seen anything of note.

Am selecting the 17" wheel since the tires would be cheaper and there is room to install chains if needed. I am comfortable with what is available in snow tires for the RX330. Plenty to choose from. Would just like to have the snows mounted and ready to go for when they are needed.

Any input is appreciated.

neelnaik

Here are some threads off of toyota nation that might help.

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/83...ighlander.html

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/12...el-wheels.html

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/12...es-wheels.html

I know a lot of people with the 2nd gen toyota highlander (08-present) run the steel 17s from the RAV4. I know that the rx is not a highlander, but when it comes to wheels and tires we are in the same boat.

joedaddy1

iTrader: (1)

^^ i agree with above.. or the 17" wheels from a rx330

RX330inFL

One concern I have is the bolt pattern. Was my observation that the bolt pattern for the RX330 was 5-114.3 while the RAV4 wheels I have seen are marked as 5-115.

Any thoughts on that?

Plenty of 16" RAV4 wheels around, the base vehicle which included 17" has only been the last few years so they are harder to find... or, so it seems.

RX330inFL

I am going to guess the wheels have been mislabeled as when I research the bolt pattern guides it shows them to be the same.

rcy

You also need to confirm the centre bore is the correct size (or bigger). If you go with a bigger centre bore, you will need to be careful mounting the wheels to make sure the wheel is centred properly, or get centring rings.

Much easier to just find some Lexus wheels (kijiji is fabulous for this, at least in my area). I was using the 17" wheels from a 330 with winter tires for winter use up here in Canada. Just make sure you get the proper sized tires to maintain (as close as possible) the same diameter as the original 18" wheel/tire combo - this would be 225/65/17 or 235/60/17. Of the two, I think the 235/60/17 is closest, but it's a hard size to find - the 225/65/17 is much easier to find. I was using 235/60/17 Blizzak WS60 on mine.

neelnaik

Every Toyota 5 lug wheel that I have ever seen has been 5x4.5 (114.3). As far as I know, the 17s on the RAV4 were standard post refresh, so yes they are a little harder to find. Bore is also a good thing to check, but I would be surprised if the bore was smaller for the RAV4. I personally don't really see the point in centering rings, since car wheels haven't been hub centric in ages.

You might be able to find some used OEM 08-12 highlander 17s or the stock rx 17s for cheap. I know the stock highlander wheels are 17x8 (or is it 8.5? I can check this weekend if you want) even though they are stamped 17x7.

You might be better off just buying some cheap aftermarket wheels if you can't find anything for a good price?

I have heard that tirerack does actually sell steel wheels, but you have to call them and talk to a supervisor to get any info about them.

As far as tires, I have heard nothing but good things about the Blizzaks and the Nokians. I agree that 235/60s are generally harder to find, but if you are planning on buying new tires it shouldn't be a big deal.

RX330inFL

Appreciate the offer. Will hold off for now. At the moment I am just trying to figure out what some of my options are in case things move forward. I hate doing things at the last minute. Really want to avoid having to drop several thousand on a new set of wheels and tires.

Can always revive this thread or PM you if I need specific details. Thanks.

neelnaik

I understand. I hope the info helped. Good luck.

SteveCraig

Once your decision is made, put decent snow tires on the rims you have now. This will get you through the Winter + give you time to shop around for another set of stock wheels to use for Summer.

Where will you be ?
I just fired up the snowblower last weekend to make sure it will go when needed!

RX330inFL

I have the 18" wheels, so will not be putting snow tires on them.

rcy

Really? The centre bore of the factory Lexus wheel fits perfectly over the flange on the hub. This is hub centric. Same on my current Acura MDX and my previous Subaru Outback.

http://tires.about.com/od/understand...ric-wheels.htm

From Wiki..- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel_sizing

Centerbore

The centerbore of a wheel is the size of the hole in the back of the wheel that centers it over the mounting hub of the car. Some factory wheels have a centerbore that matches exactly with the hub to reduce vibration by keeping the wheel centered. Wheels with the correct centerbore to the car they will be mounted on are known as hubcentric. Hubcentric wheels take the stress off the lug nuts, reducing the job of the lug nuts to center the wheel to the car. Wheels that are not hubcentric are known as lugcentric, as the job of centering is done by the lug nuts assuming they are properly torqued down.
Centerbore on aftermarket wheels must be equal to or greater than that of the hub, otherwise the wheel cannot be mounted on the car. Many aftermarket wheels come with "hubcentric rings" that lock or slide into the back of the wheel to adapt a wheel with a larger centerbore to a smaller hub.[3] These adapters are usually made of plastic but also in aluminum.

neelnaik

I said that wrong. My apologies. What I meant is that I haven't seen a car in ages that absolutely requires the bore to be exactly factory (as long as it is equal or bigger). As far as centering rings go, I don't see what impact a thin little piece of plastic is really going to have on reducing stress on the lugs. The effect would be minimal in the big picture. I personally have and have not used centering rings with aftermarket wheels in the past with no noticeable difference either way. Even with lots of abuse (including light off-roading adventures) and lots of miles, I have never had any lug damage or hub damage due to the lack of centering rings, nor have I ever noticed any vibration due to the lack of centering rings. The biggest thing I think is making sure all of the lugs are properly torqued, which one should check regularly no matter what wheels they have on their car.