daryll40

Can someone explain to me why one would want a 20 inch tire versus the standard 18 inch tire. As as guy who likes cars but not exactly an "enthusiast", bigger tires just sounds to me to be bigger replacement costs later. What am I missing?

bootman

They come standard in some packages vs customers ordering them individually.
So if you want the 18" stick with the base model. (no luxury or f-sport)

daryll40

I got that, but WHY? What's better about the 20" tire versus the standard 18 incher vs the 19incher offered but not standard on the 3GEN RX? Vs the olden days with 15 inch tires?

bk1334

Looks are one reason. Some people like the look of the larger wheel. Also you can get slightly more wear from the tire because it makes fewer revolutions per minute than an 18" wheel going the same distances because of the larger circumference of the tire.

bootman

http://bfy.tw/4FHW

Some good info there if you look.

daryll40

Looks? Why doesn't Lexus just offer different style wheels if they want offer upgraded looks? Why change the tire side? Previously 15 inch were standard and 16 were the upgrade/looks. Then they kept upping the size to today's 18 and 20. I wish SOMEONE could explain the REAL reason anyone would want bigger tires?

bootman

why don't you read through the links?
The F-sport's suspension was designed with the 20's.
The luxury is for looks.

It really is as simple as that.

RXOwner

I think the larger wheel also give better handling and performance though smaller wheels might give a softer or more comfy ride.

16RXSD

Its not that people want bigger tires. They want bigger wheels and you need bigger tires to fit the bigger wheels. Bigger wheels look better especially on a car as big as the rx the 18's look too small like they don't match. Over time things get better if you look at those old suv's you're referring to they look pathetic compared to the new rx.

dchar

Well the bigger wheels fill out the wheel wells better. They compliment the lines of the new designs better. They also provide better handling, but sacrifice a bit of ride comfort.

JellyBean

Fashion. That's all there's to it. It's all about fashion, not reason or logic. And that's why many of us who don't understand and always underestimate the power of fashion will never get rich. BTW, since you like cars, you're an enthusiast.

JB

ycnibrc

if you comfortable driver stay with 18 if you want performance better handling then go with 20 or 22 since you can put fatter tire and fatter tire grip the road more

mcomer

Some of us recall the slang phrase "Big Wheel" referring to a rich
and powerful person. The expensive cars driven by such folks
usually had larger wheels and a more commanding presence on
the road. Think Duesenberg or Packard.

The downfall of the modern interpretation of this style is that the
overall rolling circumference need to stay about the same for all
the gear ratios and ABS brake calibrations to work. A larger
wheel needs a shorter sidewall tire which brings compromises.

Scott007

[QUOTE=dchar;9365230]Well the bigger wheels fill out the wheel wells better. They compliment the lines of the new designs better. They also provide better handling, but sacrifice a bit of ride comfort.[/QUOTE

Exactly, tires are really a compromise. It will never do all things well. I will take handling over comfort because an SUV needs all the help it can get.

bk1334

It diffinitly effects ride. A friend has the 18" wheels on his new suv and the ride seems to be better than my 20" wheels. Don't know about handling yet because my RX350 is only 6 weeks old and I have not been in situations where handling is real important.