smackman

Is it "feasible" to change the Rims on the Rear Tires to match the Tire size on the front of our 2011 IS Convertible 250?

NOW before I get plastered, I AM NOT Going to do this. I bought this Car knowing the rear tires were a wider tire.

My Convertible has 225/40R18 Front and 255/40R18 on the back

What are the dangers involved here if any?

Thanks; Just trying to learn. We love our Convertible.

zig@tr

It appears there would be some options for a having matched wheel and tire front and rear. It's not quite as odd as you might think, this is a preferred winter setup. Also some people choose to do this type of a setup to be able to rotate the tires. You're losing some performance both in look and practicality but it could be done.

smackman

Could you elaborate on my best options to do this? My concern is the life of the Tire. No Rotation = short tire life. I doubt very seriously the wife or I would notice a difference in look.

It looks like there is approx. 1.18 inches different in width between the 225 and the 255. Would I need to change Rims on the rear OR What would be my best option?

tfelsky

You can buy 2 more front wheels and put them on the back with matching tires. But this will cost more than simply replacing them a little earlier due to uneven wear. There is no danger beyond reduced handling at the limit but I don't think you intend on driving like that?

smackman

We are "normal" drivers. All Highway miles generally at speed limit.

Are you saying for 100,000 miles as a example that it would be more expensive to buy rims to have matching tires that can be rotated than replacing tires frequently due to no Rotation?

zig@tr

I can't verify the fitment of the front Lexus wheel on the rear, but if I had to guess usually the offset on staggered vehicles will be a little different at each end. meaning the front Lexus wheel may be tucked under the the vehicle a little more than you would like in the rear, making the vehicle appear as though the rear track of the vehicle has been shortened a bit. If you were to do this I would suggest 4 wheels with a slightly more aggressive offset than your current front wheels, by doing this you would slightly widen the front track and keep the rear track closer to stock. If you just simply moved a set of fonts to the back in could look like the fender is hanging out past the tire a bit too far. Again, I agree though the money you will spend on new wheels will be far more expensive than replacing the tires in closer intervals.

smackman

Thanks for the info. I will keep the Car the way it is and replace the Tires as needed. It currently has Bridgestone Turanza EL400 tires.

These tires get a crappy rating on tirerack.com but a lot of it seems to be winter driving. I live in North Louisiana and we have little to zero winter weather. I hope they last but.....

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

Um, there is one problem with this guys... the ABS and VSC computers are calibrated for a larger diameter tire in the rear... if you change that to match the fronts, then you risk VSC and ABS not working properly... they will still work, most likely, but they won't work the way they were designed and could actually cause some serious issues with drivability in adverse conditions...

you HAVE to keep the same ratio of diameters front to rear, or at least close to it...

smackman

Valuable information! Thanks a million!