I couldn't agree more with the above posts.

The harsh ride could be due to higher tyre pressures for whatever reasons:

a) the dealer has put in more air, e.g. on leaving the lot when new
b) the driver has put in more air following others' advices
or c) the driver is in search of a more sporty ride like in european cars.

Once you lower the tyre pressures to the recommended level, you would get a more comfy and quieter ride, albeit much less responsive, and with worse fuel economy even.

One trade off to increased tyre pressures, like with larger rims, is increased suspension wear and tear. N.B. Re: the broken rear strut mentioned in the forum.

Somehow Lexus has never achieved a sporty comfortable ride like what BMWs had (gone soft lately), which car enthusiasts yearn for. Lexus vehicles are very comfortable, very Lexus-quiet (not lately, and worse with the even more quiet interior- wind and suspension noise! :-) ) cruisers that are good on mostly straight roads when new.

If only they could improve on the ride and car (shape) design: the suspension design and specifications, weight distribution, suspension travel, tyre choice/design and tyre pressure specifications at each corner, etc, then we'd hit a sweet spot.

In the mean time, you would have customers complaining of a jarring, noisy or imperfect ride, with many trying to find solutions to it by themselves.

(Are the Korean ones better than Lexus in some areas? Worth trying lately?)

Lexus engineers, are you listening? If yes, please also fix the still disconnected erratic throttle/pedal, and the ever more numb steering.

If comparing today's cars to music evolution, it's like a concert pianist trying to play a performance on a digital piano (rather than a Steinway or Fazioli).

 

HK, excellent points. I have to admit, regardless of how beautifully, precisely and controlled my german cars handled (and let me tell you, they could carve up a road like nothing else, at least the BMWs), they never rode harshly at the recommended tire pressures. I don't understand why Toyota can't develop the same thing--and those cars didn't have adjustable suspensions either.

The fact that I have to run under the recommended air pressure to make the ride acceptable is a little dissappointing. While I suspect that would cause increased tire wear and lower MPG, that's a small price to pay vs. having to deal with the other option. I had a 98 LS that rode so much better compared to this car, but of course couldn't take a turn if its life depended on it! HAHA. I kind of wonder what 17 or 16" rims would feel like--but I understand 18 is the smallest because of the brake caliper size.

 

so in your opinion do you think the poor ride quality was due to the size of the wheel or the tire choice/tire pressure?

also when you say now its an absolute pleasure to drive, what wheel size are you running?

i'm really having a hard time trying to decide what wheel size to go with (as is prolly pretty obv by the nature of all my posts/threads).
i really want something that looks nice, but my number one priority is ride quality.

 

I think it was first due to the wheel size (which in turn resulted in less sidewall, ie low profile tires) then to tire pressure. I'm sure sure a 16" or 17" rim would have already been more comfortable (esp if it wasn't running the awful stock tires--which were apparently notorious for bad ride comfort, I think it's the bridgeston Turanza EL42, or something like that).

 

what size wheel are you running now?

 

When I first purchased my 2007 LWB 460 with Air Suspension this spring. I was very disappointed in the ride quality. The 2006 that I had before without Air Suspension on a set of new Michelin MXM4's was far superior. I had ridden in another 2007 LWB that had a much better ride quality.

I suspected there was probably something wrong with the suspension. Sure enough the rear struts were defective and the dealer replaced them under the extended warranty that came with the car. The tires had excessive wear due the bad struts, so I put on a set of new MXM4's. The ride still was not quite what I it should be, and I was getting a vibration at 72MPH. I took it back to the dealer and had them do the full alignment that should have been done when they replaced the struts. Also, they noticed that the tires were 35psi instead of 33psi.

After all this was done, the ride now exceeds the ride I was getting from the 2006. Very smooth and quiet.

I have concluded that if the suspension is in good shape and the tires are good quality with the proper amount of air, then the air suspension ride quality should exceed the older Lexus LS models.

 

i have an 09 with the factory tires replace with same kind,awd and air suspension, rides great , just a little floaty in standard and confort mode.

 

Yes,
when I purchased the 460L I thought it was going to be very quiet and a smooth ride. Quite the contrary. Granted this is my first lex...and I don't want it to be my last. The tires are dunlop 19". Going from comfort to sport does not help matters any...I can still feel every single pothole and bump in the road.

 

Mine always ride very smooth and comfy when in the comfort mode and with the right tire pressure range, as good or better than any other car I have been in as a driver or a passenger ......

 

I have 24s on my ls460 best ride ever it squeaked then they tighten my struts and never had the problem again he also said the rubber was bad on them whatever that means

 

You have 24s and it's the "best ride ever"? So that means you had OEM wheels before correct? And you're telling me the 24s surpass that ride and level of comfort?

 

Let me clean that up its the best ride with the 24s my factory tires were crap well factory (pirelli) but much road noise these 24s are quiet they dont shake they dont vibrate none of that... so for the sizing of wheels 24X9.5 with perfect offset they tuck under the fender... it rides damn near stock no complaints im in Houston streets are bad but im pretty selective on streets I take ������ but overall I love them The guys at the dealer take pics and customers ask hella questions lol but its a nice ride on 245/30/24 lexani LX-9 no mods at all to suspension

 

Pics please.

 

I'm using 20's (20x9 front and 20x10) and the ride is so much quieter and better over the bumpy stuff than my 18inch stock wheel. Of course my handling is as wonderful as you're going to get in a 4k car. The stock wheel is one of the updated michelins and the custom wheel have Continental DWS...there is no comparison between these two tires. The Continentals are that good. Put a 275/35/20 on your Lexus and then tell me the Germans are better

44psi

 

I'm confused, I'm trying to determine how 24's could possibly be more comfortable than the OEM setup regardless of the tires used. I can't imagine sidewalls that short giving the best ride for an LS460 but maybe that's just me.