Postman

I'm looking for all-season tires (205/65-15) for my '91 LS400. I live in the Wash-DC area, driving habits are average and I usually keep it under 75MPH on the highway. With that, here are my questions:

1) Can I downgrade from a V- to an H-rated tire? Would I be looking for trouble? The dealer recommends sticking with a V-rated tire but Tire Rack says an H would be better for my needs. If anyone has done this on their LS how has it worked out?

2) What specific tires would you recommend? In an H-rated, I've been thinking about the Turanza LS-H. Good things about it on the Tire Rack site but not much on this board. Not sure how it would perform on the LS400? For a V-rated, the Dunlop SP-5000 seems to be a favorite here but the 40K treadwear warranty on the Turanza LS-V is appealing. What do you think? Any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance for the help!!!

GS4Will

HR is fine...SP5000.. is good

gs400998

My previous Lexus was a 93 LS400. I purchased it from a non-Lexus dealership and this dealership installed new T rated tires on my LS400. I had no problems with them when I traded my LS400 50,000 miles later. The thread wear on these T rated tires were much durable than H and V rated softer performance tires. IMO, just don't exceed the speed rating of the tires installed on your vehicle.

Vlad_Stein

One of the reasons for putting a V-rated tire on your car is its speed tolerance. Both the H- and T-rated tires would have a lower maximum speed limit, respectively. So, safety (or liability) is a major reason for the tire choice.

V-rating: 149 mph
H-rating: 130 mph
T-rating: 118 mph
S-rating: 112 mph

You can say: "Well, I only drive 75" - But not all the time. Sometimes (even if once) you might drive a lot faster than that.
You can say: "Yeah, may be, but it would still be well within 130 mph (for example)" - Keep in mind that this is a maximum speed under perfect conditions (proper inflation, lots of tread, etc.) Real life is rarely perfect, so I personally would want some extra reserve on my side, even if I was not likely to use it.

As an owner of the car, I think you should be able to have your choice of replacement tires. As a shop owner, I might me hesitant to install improperly rated tire for your car, for the fear of getting sued by you later when you crash, due to tire failure, due to going faster than the tire was designed for.

Hey, if a woman can spill hot coffee on herself in McDonald and sue the company because the coffee was "too hot", everything is possible.

Don't say I didn't warn you....