I just bought one of these cars and it has the 17" rims. It is a premium model with a sticker on the door panel that indicates 18" rims. So i'm wondering why it would include 17" rims, their age appears to be legit for the mileage.

also i know the ride is softer on the 17's, but

1) what are the consequences on MPG?
2) what are the consequences on the odometer?

 

The tire size for the 17" rims is 215/55R17, while the size for the 18" rims is 225/45R18. According to the calculator at http://www.paspeedo.com/calculator.htm, the 18" tire is 3/10ths of an inch (.3") less in diameter than the 17" tire. Such a small variation in tire diameter will have virtually no effect on speedometer/odometer error.

Since the 18" tire is about .4" (10 mm) wider, this should improve handling but at the cost of increased fuel consumption (due to more rolling resistance). I imagine that the amount of increased consumption due just to tire width would be impossible to detect outside of a laboratory.

BTW, I've got 18" rims on my Premium w/Sport Package.

 

you better take your car back to where you got them from and ask what happened to your 18s?? the 18s are worth alot more in value.. somebody did something shady over there..

 

i called the dealer and he said the previous owner came back to the dealer complaining of ride comfort at 3000 miles. The dealer happily traded with the owner the 17" for a straight exchange.

The previous owner obviously didn't care about money, this car is loaded with everything, the premium package and the tech package along with every option. the windows sticker showed a price of 48k. Obviously money and a 'fair' trade was not the determing factor, but rather ride comfort.

I would have to agree, although i didn't spend the same amount as the previous owner, i did test drive a premium car with the 18" and i found the ride MUCH rougher. The ride of the 17" with the heft of the premium / tech package is closer to the GS to me.

The dealer also confirmed that the odometer is not a problem.

 

I well understand about the previous owner bringing the car back and complaining about ride comfort - I test drove a "base" model and then purchased a premium model without realizing the difference. The deterioration in ride quality was immediately noticeably - in both quietness and softness. Not that the ride was great on the base model.

But here is the deal. The high performance tires used on the 17" wheels have an estimated life of only 15,000 miles. And that is only if you check (and correct if required) the tire pressure daily, and rotate the tires every 5,000 miles. The estimated life of the high performance tires used on the 18" wheels is a slightly better 20,000 miles but the ride is not good.

I have no idea what is so "high performance about these tires, maybe somebody knows the reasoning behind Lexus using tires that provide a ride that is so poor and mileage that is so limited. The only reason I can think of is getting the EPA as high as possible. You might want to consider these matters before investing in 18" wheels. In fact I have already asked a local tire dealership to look for a high quality set of 16" or 17" Wheels that fits the HS along with tires that provides better service. I have no interest in the 17" Wheels used on the base models because of aesthetic reasons. I believe that this automobile would indeed have a very nice ride with a better set of Wheels/tires. I would suggest you keep your 17" wheels and replace the rubber with a tire designed for longer life and smoother ride. Like maybe a Yokohama (assuming they have a tire for the HS) - they used to manufacture tires that provided excellent ride characteristics. Be aware that your mileage will be reduced. I would not put the 18" wheels and tires on this car. The original owner changed them for good reason.

 

I think Lexus chose these tires cause they have a very low rolling resistance thus a bit better on the miles per gallon... haha,, I myself want to put 19s on this Lexus.. We bought the HS not for the mpg.. we got it cause it was a bit bigger than the IS250. the Interior of this car looks very nice with the bigger navi screen a more special looking cockpit/dashboard layout.. the Hybrid part was basically a bonus.. and the main reason was the good deal we were offered for this car.. $34,500 for a near $42k stickered car.. not bad if you ask me..

 

Michelin Primacy MXV4's will fit the 17's (not 18's), and they are excellent touring tires with 30,000+ life. Smooth, quiet, low rolling resistance, decent grip but not sports-car like. Very well behaved when you exceed their limits. I've run them on multiple european sport sedans.

Soon after buying my HS Premium, I was tempted to do the same thing as this owner - swap the 18's for 17's. The HS suspension is designed for the 17's, so the 18's on the Premium aren't matched to the suspension (only the base model with touring package has a stiffer suspension to match the 18's). But I saw the 17's on a car, and didn't like the looks.

Letting a few psi out of the 18's does make them more comfortable - I dropped them from 38 to 34 psi. But I'd still rather have a 17' version of these 18's, shod with MXV4's.

 

I talked to the service manager at Lexus and he said the premium and the base model suspension is not tuned differently. Only the Touring comes with the tight sports suspension. He also said that the more rubber, the softer the ride. So if a car is designed for up an 18" tire, a smaller tire with more rubber would give the car a good ride. He actually said for the most comforting ride, the best and an exact fit is the 16" with 195/65 tires. He's done it for special customers based on the camry hybrid rims.

I tried the premium with the 18" and the touring model, and while the touring was the worst Lexus like ride, the premium with the 18" was not a whole lot better to me. I like the current setup and decided to not change it. I love this car and all its wonderful gadgets.

 

I like everything about the HS except the wheel/tire combinations also. One aspect of this car that is outstanding, that no one ever mentions, is the 59 1/2" roof height and 19" seat height. With the Entry/Exist Assist option on the Premium models, getting into and out of this car is a joy. Older folks will love it for this reason only. For myself, I bought this car to get around Cincinnati - into and out of parking garages and parking lots. It is great for that purpose. I had an automobile with a 56" roof height, 14" seat height and it wrinkled my clothes flopping in, and wore me out, pulling myself out of that car.

I can live with the 18" wheels. however there is simply so much potential for ride improvement by changing to smaller wheels (16" as mentioned, sounds ideal). And it might not cost a lot cost to do so since the 18" wheels seem to have a good market. Furthermore, IMO, the smaller wheels are more attractive. The 45 (and lower) series tires look out of proportion on the larger wheels.

I have also found that several other Lexus wheels fit the HS, but I haven't yet found a smaller wheel that fits and is as attractive as the 18"ers. Does anyone know of a list or a method of determining interchangeable wheels?

 

I would love to drive the Touring to compare.

Any Lexus wheel will fit except LS 460 wheels, the bolt pattern is different. Most Lexus wheels are 114.3 x5 and the HS has tiny calipers so no worry of brake clearance. As I've reported I much prefer the ride with the 17s then the 18s. We also were not thrilled the 17s are Michelins and the 18s Toyo.

There is tremendous space for a fatter tire so will likely go with a 50 series 18" Michelin when its time for a change. Michelin SuperSports are coming this year.

Design wise the HS has a huge front fender/overhang so even the 18s look small. Lexus seems to insist on low profile 45 series tires with 18s. Some companies use 50 series tires with 18s. The Porsche Panamera squeezes a 45 series I think with a 20" wheel

 

technically, you'd need to go to a 40 series on the 18 to get a wider tire and keep the same diameter...a 50 series would either be thinner than the stock 45's or you would be going to a taller tire and need to mess with speedometer gearing.

 

1SICKLEX, I suspected that many wheels might be interchangeable on the Lexus cars based on many references from customers that have mounted different wheels on their cars. Even here we see that the Toyota Camry wheels will fit. This is a plus IMO, because I do not believe this is the case for other brands. However, there are so many other variables to consider, I would not invest in any wheel/tire combo without first getting an OK from the Service manager - and I would bet the Condo he will have little intrest in supplying that info. Here are the variables (with my understandings) that need be checked.
1)First and foremost would be the Tire Outside Diameter. That would = wheel Dia. + 2(tire series x tire width) This OD must be very close to the Dia. of the Base car. For the HS250h with the 17" wheels that Dia is 17 + 2(.55x215/25.4) = 26.31". The HS250 with 18" wheels will have an OD = 25.97 ( 1.3% smaller). Changing tire dia. will effect the Odometer and related functions. I believe the ONLY combination of Wheel Dia and Tire width that will work is the 17"x215mm and the 18"x225mm. A 50 series tire on an 18" wheel will NOT work unless the tire width is 210mm (regardless of rim width). I don't think anybody makes one.
2)Bolt hole pattern, must be 5 hole. with a BC = 114.3mm
3)Offset - determines how far out the tire sits. I do not know the offset of the HS250 wheels. I have searched for this info in vain. It is very near 42mm based on data of third party wheels that are made to fit the HS250. I believe a small variance is OK, and if the offset is smaller than factory, you can add spacers.
4)Bore, I believe this must be 60.1mm machined. I do not think you can have a larger bore and run on the mounting bolts alone, like you used to be able to do with steel wheels.
5)Wheel width - might be about anything that works.
6)Tire width - I believe most tires will mount on wheels over range of wheel width. For the 225mm tires used with the 18" x 7.5" wheels, the tires could actually be mounted on any 18" wheel between 7" - 8" wide, likely even more.
7) the design of the wheel (as mentioned) must allow clearance for the brake calipers. Most wheels have the spokes flush with the outside of the Wheels in order to allow as much clearance as possible - but there are wheels that have the spokes mounted further in and the clearance is a problem. I have never seen any numerical data for wheels that supply this measurement. For the HS250h the spokes are (about) flush with the outside of the wheels, are (about) 1"thick, and results in (about) a 1 3/4" clearance between the inside of the spokes and the calipers.

The number of permutations and combinations is so large that you really need to try them or get guarantees from the dealer. And like I mentioned, I doubt anybody at Lexus is going to take the time or assume the responsibility of giving that info, unless you have a legitimate claim like the OP.

 

since i have changed tires from 18" to 17", and my sticker on the door is for 18" tires, For 17" owners, what is the recommended tire pressure for the 17"'s.