ahxks1

Has anyone found a way to give the SC430 a true Lexus quality soft ride? Anyone ventured to try 17, 16 or - dare I say - 15" wheels to get a nicer ride on the SC430 (with pics?)? or try a suspension upgrade that didn't involve emulating Formula one racing? I know most threads discuss attention grabbing 20" wheels, but I'm not interested in that. I just want to cruise down our potholed Long Island roads in relative comfort.

LexBrett

I have invested a lot of time and resources into softening the ride quality of my sc430. The 2002 is notorious for harsh suspension. You can read lots of other threads that have discussions about the unpleasant ride.

The first thing I did was take off the run flat tires. That made a huge difference. Over the past six years I have experimented with several tires. The Michelin Pilot Super Sport are the best for for ride quality and performance. They make a huge difference over the the Continentals and Pirellis I had previousely. The Michelins are expensive but worth every penny in my opinion. You can read the reviews on Tirerack, and they are rated number one for summer tires.

I am also investing in new suspension. I feel like the engineers of this 2002 sc430 model didn't get anything right. The suspension is not stiff enough to be a sports car and avoid body roll, but not soft enough to be a luxury car.

I just bought Tein Comfort Sport adjustable Coilovers the other day. I have done extensive research on these Coilovers, and emailed about a half a dozen Club Lexus members who own these and read numerous threads.

Of the people I have reached out to, and the threads I have read, most people say that Tein Comfort Sport is the best suspension item you can purchase for the 2002 sc430. I have not installed the Coilovers yet, but I will make sure to put a detailed thread once they are installed.

Hope this helps.

ahxks1

I have read the suggestions on here before about the tires. I have an '03. I just replaced my Pirelli Zero RFT with the Michelin Pilot Sport AS3 Non-RFT. Didn't make one bit of difference. The car rides just as poorly as before, $900 later. So I learned the hard way that tires do not make a difference. I'd be interested to know if anyone has good information about suspension differences between model years. I would also be interested to see if anyone has pix of 15, 16 or 17" wheels that they installed on the SC430.

I know little about the coilovers. I look forward to your thread after you get them installed though.
I need to drive someone else's SC430 for comparison.

I wish there was a local SC430 club that meets up in the NY area.

LexBrett

I'm sorry to hear that the Michelins didn't help. I know that's so frustrating when you spend lots of money upgrading and get nothing. At least in my case, the Michelins made a world of difference.

I have read that the sc430 recieved new suspension in 2006. If you search threads you can probably confirm this.

As soon as my Tein CS Coilovers are installed, I will make sure to do a good write up describing pros and cons.

ahxks1

I've read about the suspension upgrade in '06 as well, both on here and loads of car reviews. But I've not come across what the upgrade entails. Anyone know?

tromly

I can't believe taking off the RFT did not improve the ride.

MDames2

iTrader: (1)

There must be something very wrong with your current suspension if the change from runflats to non-runflats didn't noticeably improve your ride. My wife has a 2003. When we changed out the runflats for the Michelin non-runflats, it made a world of difference. Going from a very stiff sidewall to one that flexes has to make a difference unless your suspension is really bad.

LexBrett

I agree that there must be something very wrong if changing from Run Flat Tires to Michelin Pilot Summer Tires did not improve ride quality. Sorry, I did not understand in the original post that the author went from run flats to non run flats. Michelin pilots are just so much softer. Even if the suspension was messed up you still should feel a big difference. Did AHKX1 have the shocks checked for leaks?

mrblister

There was also an upgrade on the shocks i n the 2005 year model

ahxks1

I can certainly look into the shocks.

In the meantime, has anyone tried a smaller diameter wheel? and if so, do you have pictures?

bacardi11

iTrader: (1)

what your looking for is a bigger tire they have them and not 40 series. go with a 45 series.

Prasha

225/45/18 may work

thombiz has Michelin MXV4 Primacys 225/55R17 and a pic in this thread.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc-...periences.html

MDames2

iTrader: (1)

I recall reading a post where the owner said he has 17" wheels, and it gave a better, softer ride. This makes sense since you could go with a taller sidewall, thus providing more cushion between you and the road.

ahxks1

Thanks for that. I contacted the guy with the 17" wheels to see if he'd post a pic on here, so we'll see.

There are many different driving characters that go with the preference for 'comfort' suspension. So
I should clarify that my SC rides beautifully over smooth surfaces and it drives quietly too. The car doesn't bounce and it's not modified in any way. It's the potholes that makes the car a chore to be in (and there are many potholes on Long Island). I try to keep in mind that I am driving a convertible with sporty pretensions, while I am using an LS430 as my daily driver, which raises my expectations for Lexus comfort suspension.

The Michelin Pilot AS3s did not make a difference, perhaps because the old Pirelli RFTs weren't as bad as I thought to begin with. They were very quiet and the car ran beautifully over smooth surfaces. Short of running 17s, I don't know what other remedy there is. I am unfamiliar with this after market air suspension that I've read about, except that the 'airbags' fail after a period of time. Whether 'period of time; means 2 years or 10 years, and how much they cost, I don't know either.

LexBrett

I think I am in the same boat. I used to own an LS an my expectations for a Lexus were more comfort related. When I bought my sc, I was surprised at the stiffness. I also thought about air suspension, but finally chose to go with Tein Comfort Sport Coilovers. Once these are installed I will write a detailed review. I'm very excited. Tein comes with a computer controller that can adjust the stiffness from inside the car..