All -- Looking to lean on your personal experience and expertise:

The LE37K comes in 18x8.5, 18x9.5 but in a max +40 offset for both. [Per the Rays site] The official, recommended tire size is 235/40r18 and 265/35r18.

Would it be possible to squeeze 245/40R18 and 275/35r18? I plan to drop a bit but nothing radical. Would it be possible if I rolled the fenders? [This is for a 98GS400]

It would be a good thing to know before I purchased tires.

Thanks for your time.

 

That'll work fine for 'ya... I'd say the 245/40 & 275/35-18 are actually a more commonly used size on the GS than the 235/265 combination.

Yep, you might need to roll the rear fenders just a tad. A +43 on a 9.5 would keep you out of trouble in the rear for sure- but +40 will look nice & aggressive!

Do it to it!

 

Chris,

you know I've got 19 x 10s with 285/30's and I don't rub at all. I didn't see the spec on the Enkei websight, but I'll have to measure the offset next time I pull off my wheels.

Might do that next weekend if I'm in the mood to change my tranny fluid and rear end oil. I'll just keep on staring at those Redline bottles for the moment.

I'll let you know.

Glen

 

Glen,

Nice to hear from you, it's been too long. Lunch? I'll give you a call.

You'd think with the tiny little rims I'd be able to get 245/275 under the fenders, but according to the official channels it will be a tight fit with the +40 offset.

Any decent shops in the south bay that would be willing to work with me?

Chris

 

Speaking of tires, I'm running the yoko AVS sport at the moment and have been pretty happy. But change is good [except for when it's not].

Any thoughts on:

Bridestone S-03
Michelin Pilot sport [more than I want to spend]
Pirelli Assimetrico
Yokohame AVA Sport

Don't have to worry about wet handling [too much] or snow.

 

redgs4?
18x8.5"+40F w/245/40 and 9.5"+40R w/275/35 will be fine and should not rub at all......No fender mod should be required at all!
This is 5mm more fender clearance than I have, and I only rubbed about 1-2mm's.....


RMMGS4??
Which Enkeis do you have? Also, which brand 285/30 are you using, S0-3??
I currently have Eibach springs (1" drop) and 19x10"+41 w/285/30/19 S0-3's and had to do a small inside fender lip shave......

 

Chris,
lunch is fine just about any time. If I should ever not respond promptly, it might mean I'm out of the office (i.e. out of the country), but otherwise, I'm flexible.

S-O3's, don't think you can go wrong for the money (price vs. performance).

Pirelli's are said to have an edge on handling.

I've got Michelin Pilot Sports and as good as they're rated, I still experience road noise on anything but smooth roads. I think its going to 19's that contributes. It's possible that Yoko "DB's" might not even work. The Michelin's are supposedly rated pretty quiet. relative to the other tires in this group and you'd think with many OEM's using them on their sport vehicles, that if this noise were a chronic problem they wouldn't use them. It may be the Lexus quiet interior makes it more noticable to me. Judge for yourself when you come by.

TinyGS,
Pilot Sports on Enkei Phalenx EX Series. This wheel was "MADE" for our cars. I could barely get my pinky between the wheelwell and the tire when I loaded the car with a full tank of gas, 5 people and suitcases to match. I set my Teins to Full HARD and crossed my fingers. Going 80mph in a sweeping turn, I hit a big dip in the fast lane and bottomed out the rear end. When I checked, there was no tire rub or skuff marks at all.

I was quite pleased, plus I might say, the car behaved remarkably well, considering the conditions. Now this is what I expect from a 5 passenger luxo-sport sedan ! ! ! If I did that in my Dad's Caddy Fleetwood, it would of been like trying to keep a raft straight in a Class 3 Rapid.

 

Thanks, just what I was hoping to hear! And I was going to keep asking until someone said it would work.