Replacing tires and wheels
 

I have stock 15 inch wheels and 205/65/15 tires on my 97 Lexus and want to replace them. A couple of questions.

If I buy a set of 16x7 or 17x7 rims, will a 225 width tire work fine with that rim width?

I'm also looking at Lexus wheels from other model newer Lexus cars like the IS and GS series. Anybody know if these will match a 97 ES 300 or which ones will match up from other Lexus cars?

see my other post. or check the wheels and tires section, the guys at the tire shack are very helpful

Hi Xfast,

I also have a 97 ES and I have just upgraded my wheels and tyres. After doing quite a bit of research I learnt a lot about the whole process and ended up going with 17 x 7 alloy rims and new Goodyear 225/50/17 tyres. I am very happy with my choice. I can confirm that a 225 width tyre is the ideal size for the 17 x 7 rims. A few things that I learnt from my experience is that you need to be mindful of a lot of things when upgrading wheels/tyres etc..... Here are just a few.........

1. speedo reading - upgrading to larger wheels and tyres will ultimately affect your speedo reading, how much will depend on the wheels and tyres you choose. You need to make sure that what ever combo you go with that the total overall diameter of the wheel AND tyre together are as close to stock if you want to minimise the speedo error. For example I went UP from the 15 inch rims to the 17 inch rims, but went DOWN in tyre size from a 65 profile to a 50 profile. The two changes almost balance themselves out so as a consequence my speedo error is only out by about 1.4% which means when my speedo says I'm travelling at 100km/hr I'm actually going 101.4km/hr. As you can see this is a minimal change.

My choice with the wheel and tyre size also means that I can still use my spare tyre well in the boot to carry my new alloy wheel and tyre!

Here's a great link to a tyre size calculator that I found and used on the net. It allows you to see the amount of error etc when upgrading to larger wheels. You just type in your stock sizes and then enter your new size and you can see what the effect will be. VERY VERY HANDY!!:woot: ( your local tyre shop should also be able to help with this too)

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

2. Ride, handling and comfort Changing wheel and tyre sizes may also affect the level of comfort of your ride - ie the lower profile tyre you choose, the firmer and stiffer the ride MAY become. This will also depend heavily on the brand/type/style of tyre you choose - (that's why I personally chose a 50 profile as its a good balance between look and comfort, and I also chose a specific tyre that was best rated for smoothness and comfort.) You may want to ask some of the other members who have upgraded their wheels and tyres too. :thumbup:

3. Insurance If you have car insurance make sure you check with your company FIRST about what larger rim sizes they will insure. If you don't and end up having an accident, getting you car stolen, or something else they may not honour your claim - leaving you with nothing!! :cry: Where I'm from, my insurance company will not insure vehicles that have a rim size over 3 inches from stock. Always check first, and notify your insurance company of any major changes to your car - I have and everythings ok and fully insured with the new wheels.:woohoo: :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Finally here's a link with pictures of my new 17 wheels so you can see what I've done. (about half way down the page)

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...=270540&page=4

Hope this has helped you and everyone else considering a wheel upgrade! :D LEX ES300

Great info there Lex. Thanks for the input. Looks like I'll be going for either 225/55/16 if I go with 16" wheels, or 225/50/17 if I go with 17's. The difference was .98% on the 16's and 1.4% on the 17's as noted in your post.

Also, good pics, wheels and tires turned out great on yours!

Thanks Xfast,

Only too happy to share my own experience. Whatever wheel and tyre combo you choose will ultimately be up to you, but if you are going for at least some 'appearance' can I suggest that you consider going with at least 17'. The reason I say this is because when I was shopping around for my wheels I tried a set of 16's and because they are were only 1 inch above standard they weren't really that noticable if you know what I mean. (Obviously putting an even smaller profile tyre on help them look bigger, but its at the cost of ride and overall tyre life.) The only down side to going 17 rather that 16 is that the tyres can get more expensive each size you go up! (best to check with the tyre shops first!)

As I also said getting a good tyre is also very important. Larger wheels and cheap tyres are a receipe for a noisy, firmer ride! Each to his own, but I wanted the look AND wanted to keep that super smooth Lexus ride. I made sure I went with a tyre that was specifically designed for quietness and smooth ride. Some of the more 'aggressive' 'V' grid pattern tyres will certainly make more road noise and I personally don't think they are in keeping with the Lexus look! :D

Good luck with your new wheel search! Post up the pics in the aftermarket wheel thread when you have them!

LEX ES300 :thumbup:

I noticed no one mentioned anything about offset.

I don't know too much about it but according to discountedwheelwarehouse their reference for ES 92-97 is High (30, 40,45+)

http://www.discountedwheelwarehouse...._Reference.cfm