is250awdfs

I'm thinking of getting winter tires for my is 250 despite the awd. Living in Ontario in Canada, I do to want to risk it with the wife driving this car. I was told that I could put 17in winter tires, however I have 16 inchers from my old car. they're rated 215 / 60 / 16. could I use these on the is 250 or is it better to get 225/40/17 winter rims and tires? trying to see if I can save some cash vs buying new wheels and tires.

thanks!

corradoMR2

16s will fit and just clear the calipers on the 250, so long as the bolt pattern is 5 x 114.3mm. The only difference will be the height of the sidewall will be a little higher with 215/60s increasing your ride height a little and indicating slightly lower odometer mileage and speed.

corradoMR2

^^^ Did the math to double check the tire size...

Stock IS size: 225/45/17
Overall diamater: 634.3 mm
Overall perimeter: 3985.6 mm

Proposed 215/60/16
Overall diamater: 664.4 mm
Overall perimeter: 4174.7 mm

Ride height increase over stock: 15 mm
Odometer/Speedometer error: 4.7%

Although the 16in rims would fit if the bolt pattern matches, unfortunately, I would not recommend you use those tires after all. I have to take back what I said earlier.

Your ride height will be 1.5 cm taller which will make the ride less stable and your speedometer will be off by about 5% which translates to the following. Because the larger diameter tires cover more ground (perimeter) in one rotation, the indicated speed and odometer will be 5% lower than actual. So if the speedometer says 95 km/hr, you're really going at 100 km/hr and the odometer will record 95 km in that one hour but in actual fact you traveled 100 km. This is too large of a discrepancy. Typically within 2% is acceptable.

You'll have to spend some money here. If you want to save a little cash, get 205/55/16 tires for the 16in rims you own (of course you need to confirm they fit the bolt pattern and clear the calipers). Those tires are within the specs of the stock tire dimensions.

If you want to go with a new 17 in package, go with the stock size 225/45/17.

is250awdfs

thank you so much, I think I'll buy the 17in rims/tires and try to sell my 16in rims/tires on kijiji! it was worth a shot!

thanks again, great community here at clublexus.

is250awdfs

I'm looking for used winter tires and rims in online classifieds. Im only looking at 225/45/17 winter tires. Is there anything I need to keep in mind re the rim size (eg bolt pattern is 5x114.3mm? Hub diameter? Etc)

Just want to make sure if I buy these online I won't be stuck with an unusable tire/rim!

corradoMR2

Besides the 5x114.3mm bolt pattern, for a vibration-free ride, you want to get rims with a hub (bore) center of 60.1 mm. This makes for a perfectly joined centered wheel to the car's axle. Now you can get rims with a hub center that is larger however the fit will rely solely on the 5 bolts which will have a tiny bit of slack. That slack will result in a wheel that is not 100% centered and balanced to the rotational axis of the car's axle. As such, you will likely get vibrations at higher speed (typically 40 mph+). The other downside to this is safety whereby the entire weight of the car rests on the strength of the torqued 5 nuts on the lugs versus the weight distributed as well to the center hub. This is not an immediate safety concern over smooth roads, but over time, rough roads, pot holes, etc can create undue stress to the lugs causing them to crack. I speak from experience years ago on a 1991 MR2 (luckily, the wheel cracked off on low speed just as I backed out of my driveway).

Offset is not required to be precise, so you have a bigger range you can search for: between around +35 mm to +45 mm. Here's a pic to help you visualize this. Good luck in your find.

dashmer

corrado,

Same specs for IS350?

Thanks

Dashmer

corradoMR2

Yep, same.

dashmer

Thank you sir.

dashmer

Was talking to the dealer and they seem stumped with the 2014 IS wheel situation. Apparently multiple customers have bought the car and wanted winter wheels and they could not find a fit. They mentioned that a number of wheels from other vehicles (Rav 4 was mentioned specifically, but others not named were tried) but none fit (i.e. could clear the brakes). You would think they would have tried a 2013 Lexus wheel. Tire rack and others have no wheels listed for the 2014 IS and all the local after market guys say they will need to measure one of the factory wheels or test fit wheels they have in stock to find a fit.

I want to confirm that any wheel that will fit a 2013 IS will fit a 2014. Is this a correct statement?

Thanks

dashmer

Bump. Anyone able to confirm? Thanks.