Is It Normal To Replace The Stock Tyres After 15K?

[Stormfront]

Hi Everyone,

Newbie alert so apologies in advance.

I have a 2008 IS250 SL bought 2nd hand at 4000kms and have only just reached 15000kms. Took it to Sydney City Lexus and they have reported the need to replace the 4 tyres (stock 205/55/R16 Potenzas).

Is this normal? I drive a couple of kids around so don't really drive hard like the younger days anymore.

I'd appreciate some recommendations on where to get a new set in Sydney south.

Or should I really be tempted by going up to 18's or 19's?

Regards,

Stormfront

[Atlantis]

I've had my '09 IS250 since new... just on 2 years old and the tyres are still 80% tread left.

I have the 17" option wheels. I don't drive like a grandma, nor do I thrash the car.

Perhaps the previous owner chewed through them for you?

[k2sty1]

um, thats seems REALLY fast

i drive pretty hard all the time and i have the stock 18's and even my tyres last 30k kms

have u checked the tyres urself? dealer may be trying to just get u to change em

but if you really do need to change tyres, get some 18's or 19's!!!

15,000kms seems really short, unless the guy before you did burnouts 24/7

[imoo6170]

That does seem a low amount but if the alignment is out they could have worn unevenly. As K2sty1 said check them out yourself, you will need to get down on the ground to make sure you check out the inside tread.

[Stormfront]

Thanks guys, I feel like an idiot not to have close look myself. Even the Bob Jane guy on the phone sounded surprised when I called to ask about prices.

He told me the RE0002's were the equivalent replacement but pushed the Michelin P Sports or Pirelli P7's as cheaper options.

Lol k2sty1, the previous owner only drove it 4000km in 2 years as her backup car. No, I didn't ask why one needed a backup car either :)

Cheers,

Stormfront

[Bluey]

Check the tyre size as well. The 205's in 16" only come on the Prestige not the SL.

The SL should have 17" if standard and they are, from memory, 225 front and 245 rear.

[Lexus Nerd]

Check the tyre size as well. The 205's in 16" only come on the Prestige not the SL.

The SL should have 17" if standard and they are, from memory, 225 front and 245 rear.

Good point.

And if they really are 16", it's clear that the wheels have been swapped ... Possibly to accommodate the preferences of the second owner, but perhaps deliberately sold with worn, but barely street legal, tyres.

[Stormfront]

OK, now I'm getting worried.

I went and had a look at the tyres and the front left outer edge is quite worn and the right side much less so. Rears are more evenly worn.

I measured the rim diameter at 44cm (17.3") for each of the rims. Is this right for 205/55/R16 Potenzas on a SL?

I've attached a picture of one of the tyres.

Regards,

Stormfront

[Natroth]

That is not a 2008 sport luxury rim. Those wheels have been swapped

[p0c1]

That's a 16" Prestige Alloy Rims..

Pardon me for asking.. is your's a Prestige or a Sports Luxury model?

You can tell it straight away, if the interior got some of the wood panel trim or just a normal grey(metalic) trims..

anyway.. by the photo, you could tell it straight away.. that's a Prestige wheel..

2006-2008 model,

Prestige -> 16"

Sports -> 18"

SL -> 17"

[Stormfront]

The car has Mark Levinson audio, rear camera (EMV pack?) and moonroof. No wood trim.

Oh dear, have I bought myself a Prestige advertised as a SL. :(

[p0c1]

Yup.. It's a Prestige with EMV pack..By the look of it,

The SL model, has the interior wood trim panel, Memory seats and steering wheels positioning, Adaptive Xenon headlight, electric rear sun blind, etc..

If i were you, I'll be looking this chance to upgrade the wheels while getting set of new tyres as well..

Maybe 18" or 19"

(if you have the extra cash..)

Good luck..!!

[Sapphire Cam]

Back on the tyres.....that's appauling!! No matter how hard you drove the car (legally, ie no burnout/cricle work), you should at least get 25-30k out of Potenzas at WORST. I got 45k out of mine (now on Pirelli P7s just to try them out) - they are a soft tyre (the Potenzas), but Id be thinking anything in the 35-45k range would be satisifactory. If anything, perhaps give Bridgestone a call - maybe their customer service hotline or something and mention it to them. Grab any identification numbering you can find on the sidewall - maybe there was a bad batch where the compound was even softer than normal. Bad batches of tyres can happen (rarely) from time to time (according to my friend who's manages a national tyre franchise). Also perhaps you've had your tyre pressures consistently low as well.

Remember to check your tyre pressures COLD.

[Stormfront]

Thanks everyone for your input but I had to make a decision. The worst tyre started throwing off chips and looked much worse than last week even though all I've done is drive the 10 minutes to work and home each day.

Took it to the local Jobsons's Bridgestone and took their offer to replace them with four 205/55/16 ER300 Turanzas for $600 fitted and aligned. Manager was pretty surprised at the wear considering the low km's and put it down to the wheel alignment which was quite out apparently.

I think I will run on these until I make a choice on new rims in the future. Feel a fool for believing I had a SL as per the carsales advert instead of a Prestige. A lovely car nonetheless.

Thanks again for the assists, guys.

Stormfront

[Sapphire Cam]

Turanzas are a really good all-round tyre. You should get at least 50k out of those. Bridgestones do have a tendancy to go a little hard on the sidewalls after a couple of years, so if you're doing lots of kms, no dramas, but if you're not doing a lot of kms you might notice it later on.

[defnk]

The car has Mark Levinson audio, rear camera (EMV pack?) and moonroof. No wood trim.

Oh dear, have I bought myself a Prestige advertised as a SL. :(

Was it a private sale? Did you pay SL prices for an optioned Prestige? You could have a case for false advertising here...

Though buyer beware is the old adage...

[Natroth]

It's not a happy conversation to have but there is quite a lot of technology missing between an optioned up prestige and a sport luxury, enough to make a difference in the buying price, starting at the 16" wheels.........

[Stormfront]

It was a dealer (not Lexus) and although the Carsales ad specified and dealer SAID Sport Luxury, the paper work just says "IS250".

Sadly I am now painfully aware of what I'm missing Natroth. The car has been a pleasure to drive and own and apart from the tyre issue, has given me little trouble. A salutary case of "Caveat Emptor" and I hope it helps someone else to read this thread.