Hey LS400 nerds, I get on here cus this is where the real advice is. I have a 95'LS400 with 225 60/16 Bridgestone Turanza Quiettracks on there now. I need two for the rear because the alignment bolts were seized and they burned up in 6 months. Got that fixed at Lexus so now I need two of these tires. I really like them because they're affordable, good quiet tires with a good side wall performance. Right now in Arkansas, I can't find them anywhere because of a Bridgestone shutdown as well as a Firestone agreement to only sell them there. My local Firestone has some but they are 215 60/16 instead of a 225. Since these are slightly skinnier, will that offer the same ride and performance? Or should I just get another brand in the 225. Thanks.

 

good question. i would get the same size tire even though they are a different brand, if you're really limited in selection. if you have some time, i would try to find the matching pair online and have it shipped to you or your tire installer. tire rack is one decent seller who has good selections.

going with the smaller tire is also fine but keep in mind it will be smaller not only in width but in height. the width is negligible but the height will throw off your speedometer. for instance when your speedo reads 60mph, you'll be actually only going 59mph. it's minor and it's up to you to determine if that's worth the matching tires.

more, use the tire comparison to see the difference between the sizings:
https://tiresize.com/calculator/

 

Click click ship...

 

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...rtnum=26HR6TQT

Tires are currently on backorder on tirerack in 3 different distribution centers I checked, including Shreveport, LA. No ETA given.

I'm going to assume OP has checked other online distributors, and I'd imagine that the supply issue is somewhat distributed across most stores.

Those smaller tires will have a 129mm sidewall vs. 146.25mm for the stock tire size. I ran a 245\45\18 tire for a summer which has 110mm of sidewall and I can assure you, you'll feel it.

As for whether or not to run the smaller tire - I personally would run a different brand\model of tire rather than a different size of tire. Way less unknowns doing it that way. It isn't just your speedometer that will be inaccurate, the handling characteristics of the car will be different. I'm not sure how the car will react to the different size only in the rear.

And finally, those tires are not really affordable @ $140\ea - that's Michelin pricing. (or maybe the price is unusually high because they're limited availability, idk).

I personally have bought Michelin and Continental for my cars - but everyone has their brand preference.

 

My suggestion would be to buy the right size in a brand that meets your wallet and tire performance characteristics that matches as closely to what is on the car. I've had mixed ties on the commuter and it is not a night day difference. What I can tell is when there is an odd ball single and more so on the front. I had one tire develop a bulge and I was fortunate that model was still available to replace/warranty. However the other tires had worn about 40% so that fresh tire did have some subtle differences. Replacing two and keeping them on the same axle will be fine. You'll be rotating front-back so it will still feel good.

In that one instance of the single I bought a new one some months later because that way I would maintain a similar wear pattern and replacement schedule. I aged out the tires so ultimately I wound up replacing all 4 so it self corrected.

 

I have Bridgestone Ecopias EP422s on mine, get about 32mpg hwy on my most recent trip from MI to AZ.

 

What speeds were you traveling? Out west there are 75\80mph speed limits and cruising in the 80's I only see at best 27 to the gallon.

 

65-70mph from MI to Indiana, when I went higher, around 80mph, I got about 29-30. Car was also loaded down with a couple panes of glass from an entertainment center too.

 

Hmm, I'm a couple ticks lower than you are. I wonder what's in the chain to drop my econ figures. You were going west too which is a headwind which should drop economy.

The best I've ever seen I think is 28.something @77mph going east with a tailwind.

 

How the hell are y'all getting such high mpg? I'm at 18.4 and that's the best I can get. I hear most people get their mpg in the low 20s at most and that's what's expected?

 

It must be that 70-80 MPH tornado of a tailwind following his car while he's going, what was it, East? What's your mileage on a calm day with no wind going North? Or South?
MPG depends on a whole lot of things, like a perfectly running vehicle, driving habits, road surface, tire pressure, speed, weight in vehicle. But I don't think a tailwind for a couple seconds at a time will raise your MPG even by 1.

OP; I would stick with the same size tire, brand doesn't matter for now if you're tight in the wallet. When you rotate just go front to back and keep each set of two together. As long as you can get an alignment now you will be good to go.

 

I've got Denso Iridium TT spark plugs vs. regular Denso factory ones, and a newish coolant temperature sensor. Other than that, its just an Ohio 155k mile 99' LS.