A car I'm looking at has 19 inch alloy wheels. I have heard two things about these wheels: that they reduce your mpg and that they require tire replacement every 15,000 miles. If either of these are true, that would militate against me getting this car.

Anyone have input on this issue? What's the benefit of 19 inch over the standard 18 inch?

 

Not sure about MPG, but having to replace tires every 15,000 miles is not reality for the vast majority of tire choices.
Pros--> 19 " look better in my opinion.
Cons---> 19" tires are not as available vs. 18 " tire choices.

 

Mpg is dependent on tzhe drivers style of driving and where's he's driving.
You drive short commute, mostly city driving and you have a lead foot ( one who's always first on the next red light. ) then it doesn't really matter whether it's an 18, 19 or 22.

I don't really buy the thinking that the 19 is better looking than the 18s. It depends on the wheel itself. Design wise.

 

19s give a slightly harsher ride, however, they provide better handling.

 

If you search you'll find many threads on this exact topic, including the following I found by searching for '18 19 difference' in the 3RX forum using advanced search


https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...8s-or-19s.html

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...er-wheels.html

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ighlight=19+18

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ighlight=19+18


or '19 tire life'
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...t=19+tire+life

Please try it; instant answers no waiting

 

Interesting idea of asking the dealer to swap out the tires in one of those threads. I do think I would want to switch to the 18s both for softer ride and longer life. My current vehicle has almost 50,000 miles and the tires are original and just fine. I can't imagine buying new tires every 15,000 miles.

 

I have the 19" wheels and the original tires look good after 30,000 miles. The original michelins should last me around 45000 miles at least. I don't think you have any worries here.
Cheers,
Jim

 

I, too, have the OEM Michelins on my 2010 350 and have almost 11k on them with no noticeable wear. I would love to sell them and buy the Michelin Latitudes. I forgot to confirm that they are the 19" wheels.