Sam Khoury

If I end up putting the stock 17" wheels on my new GS300, a friend recommended that I go with 245/45 instead of 235/45. Will this work? and will this make the sidewall stick out a little farther which will better protect the wheels. I had the 235/45 on the 17's on my 1999 GS300 and I scraped the end of the wheels on the curb a couple of times (ouch!).

GS4Will

245/45/17 would be just fine

Johnny Mo

I have them on mine. Tirerack was backordered on the 235/45/17 so they sent the 245/45's instead. I called and they said it was okay, no issues. Works out better for us NYers and the crap roads, a little bit more sidewall never hurts.

KILLERGS4

I just got 225/40/18 and they look thinner (looking from behind) than my previous 225/55/16 stock tires? Why is this so? (again I had no money for 245F stagger 275R)

GS4Will

K..

at an overall diameter of ~25" for 225/40/18(this is for the IS300 fittment), you will see much less tyre visually. for the GS, you need at least ~25.75"( 225/55/16) in diameter...

why not 235/40/18?

KILLERGS4

I'm sorry, I'm still lost? The 225 is still same as stock, and I don't understand why my tires look thinner from behind.
I'm not talking about the tire visually from the side???
Maybe what your saying is... since the overall diameter is smaller, the width ratio of 225/40/18 is actually thinner than 225/55/16? Is that it! (Is this going to effect the speedmeter)

GS4Will

K..

225/40/18 is ~2.5% smaller than stock, still ok within the +/- 3%..

hmm, how do i explain this without you present...

tyres and wheels are round, 3-D object, though you kept the width the same, you took away quite a bit of "mass" or tyre by going from 55 to 40 series...usually we do this by going with "wider" tyres, say 245s to keep everyt factor in the equaton constant...so visually and numerically, you lost quite a bit of "presence"...at ~2.5% under, the speedo might be off slightly....very minimal..

lastly, not sure what tyre you got now, but sometimes aggressive V-shaped tread pattern will make the tyres looked "wider"...

gottahaveit2

Ok I need some help along these lines:

'94 LS400 currently 16x7 and 225/60 16 which are about 26.8 OD.


Switching to '02 LS430 17 OE rims, 17x7.5

What tire size? '02 LS430 OE is 225/55 17 (26.9 OD) but I'd like to go wider if possible, I know the 245/45 17 (25.9" OD) works as mentioned above but that is way shorter (1") than the OE OD.


Should I stick w/ the proper OD and go skinny 225, or go for the shorter ones and wider 245?

Good resale value and ride are important to me...

Thanks

GS4Will

personally i would stay as close to original OD as possible....esp on a large car like the LS

also sounds like you will not be lowering the car(for resale value and ride quality too), 245/45 would make the car look funny with skinnier sidewall, even bigger wheel gaps...and overall smaller OD

KILLERGS4

gs4will, I got Pirelli, P7000 Supersport, Ultra high performance year round. I finally get what you're saying, thanks! In actuality my new tires are not thinner, Right! Just looks it because of the overall appearance.

engin_ear

iTrader: (1)

Sam Khoury:
I agree with Johnny Mo, similar story. 245/45-17 OK. The sidewall is a bit taller, overall diameter is 0.3 more in my case for Michelin Pilot Sport A/S, and believe it or not, it is noticeable.

lexguynj

Hey guys the 235 Michelin Pilot Sport A/S are still on backorder with no expected delivery date.

I am really thinking about going to the 245s like some of you have (they are in stock), but there is another thread out there - link below, that mentions having 245s up in front may mess with the steering somewhat, since more surface to contact? Pulling to one side, not feeling aligned?

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=61323

Are you guys with 245s on your 17's experiencing any steering annoyance or problems or do you feel that the steering is even better?

Thanks! Your help is much appreciated!

LexFather

Yes, you can. We put 245/45/17 on the stock GS rims and put them on my moms coupe. There is some additional sidewall, nothing serious though.