robocam

I've been trying to decide on new tires for my TL and I'm considering alternatives to my original choice of the Potenza G019's.

I got a set of Michelin Primacy MXV4's for my wife's Camry and they seem pretty nice. I took a look at Tirerack and they're rated highly, #1 actually.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey....jsp?type=GTAS

But the closest size that might fit my TL is 225/45R17. The worn Turanza EL42's on my TL make driving in the rain a scary experience. I've never hydroplaned like this before. I imagine a 225 section width would reduce hydroplaning.

The Michelin's also come with a 60,000 mile warranty (just a tad better than the 50,000 mile warranty that comes with the Potenza's). And they have lots and lots of sipes which is probably why they're rated as having good wet traction.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/BigPic...l=Primacy+MXV4

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/BigPic...nza+G+019+Grid

The thing I'm worried about is that the smaller diameter tire might make the wheel well gap look too big. I know it's a small change, but I read here that someone did that on their 2nd gen TL, and it made their car look like an SUV.

I'm also wondering if there would be a noticeable reduction in ride quality. I'm more for comfort than steering response. A shorter sidewall might make things bumpier.

Does anyone have any pictures of 3rd gen TL's with 225/45R17's on them?

I'm leaning slightly to the Potenza's because then I wouldn't have to drive to two different places every time I need a rotation. I bought one of those lifetime alignments from Firestone. Plus, I wouldn't have to worry about the store giving me trouble about the warranty because if Firestone checks the alignment every time I get a rotation, they can't blame it on that.

But then I guess I could just try the Michelin's. It's not like I'd be stuck with them for life. Oh, what to do....

robocam

And then another size I'm considering is 225/50R17.

With that size, I can get Goodyear Assurance Tripletred's. Highly ranked as well.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...ireSearch=true

And they come with an 80,000 mile warranty! The Michelin HydroEdge even goes a step further by offering a 90,000 mile warranty!

At 25.9" they're just half an inch taller than the stock 25.4" diameter.

Anyone take this route and have pictures?

tlmaster1

i got 255-45-17 and thats the only way to go. best handling in rain & snow.. bfgoodrich g-forces all-seasons

BDoggPrelude

A 225/45/17 has .2" less sidewall than stock. A 225/50/17 has .2" more sidewall than stock. Personally, I'd rather have a little more sidewall than a little less. Better for ride quality, tire life and all-season traction. As for the tires that you're looking at...I wouldn't choose any of them because they all fall far short of the OE W-speed rated tires. Keep in mind, the TL's suspension, ABS and traction control were all designed around a W-speed rated tire. The Hydroedge is T-rated, MXV4 is H-rated and the TripleTred is V-rated. Going down one performance rating to a V-rated tire is one thing but something like the T-rated Hydroedge is way off the mark IMO. BTW, the TripleTred is closest to stock in performance rating out of the tires you mentioned and is basically the best rated A/S tire for snow traction but it is a very noisy tire. My personal choices for the TL are the Bridgestone Turanza Serenity and the Potenza RE960 A/S PP. Being in the tire business I'm usually very Michelin biased but I'm just not too fond of the particular Michelin tires that are made for our cars.

robocam

Thanks so much for the info. Is that 0.2" increase in ride height noticeable in terms of appearance? I assume filling the well would make it look better, but I don't want the wheel to look too much smaller or the sidewalls rounder.

I was also recommended a Falken ZIEX model. What's your take on the Falken, the Firestone Champion HR, and the Potenza G019 from a rain traction and comfort perspective (all in stock size)?

robocam

Oh, and what about these two?

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes

iboon04

iTrader: (5)

im running 235/45/17

BDoggPrelude

There isn't all that much of a difference either way if you ask me. It all comes down to your own personal preference really. Check out this website. It might help you better visualize what the difference would be be in these tire sizes:
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
^^^Best tire calculator on the net IMO.

As for Falken Ziex, or any Falken tire for that matter I'd recommend steering clear of them. Falken is a subsidiary of Sumitomo, neither of which company makes great tires. In my experience Falken tires just don't wear very well. Their directional tires especially which are extremely prone to excessive edge wear. A little bit more dough will get you a set of Yokohama tires which are infinitely better in every way.

Firestone is a subsidiary of Bridgestone and produces tires of a lower quality than comparable Bridgestones. I always recommend Bridgestones over Firestones in almost every application, especially on cars.

The G019 is a pretty high quality tire but being H-rated still falls a couple performance ratings short of the OE tire specs. Along with that, they're not Bridgestone's quietest or smoothest riding tire ever and are lacking in snow traction.

Again, I'm not fond of the Michelin tires available for our cars despite their top-notch build quality. The Pilot Exalto A/S is H-rated and just isn't quite on par with the TL's needs performance wise. The Pilot Sport A/S is a great tire in terms of dry, wet and light snow traction but I've gotten many complaints about them concerning ride quality, noise and they're tendency to wander a bit on the highway. Also, Michelin's directional tires, (both of these are directional BTW), are prone to center wear on the tread. I always have these tires come back into my shop with the center of the tread at the wear bars and still tons of rubber left on the shoulders. You could try to run a little less air pressure in them to combat this center wear but IMO it's a design flaw in Michelin's directional tires and there's no need for you as the consumer to have to deal with having to run less than optimal tire pressure just to make up for their short-comings. For the amount of money you pay for a tire like the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S it should just work the way it's supposed to. The Pilot Sport A/S was just recently replaced with the Pilot Sport A/S Plus. Supposedly Michelin made changes to avoid the excessive center wear with this newer version but it hasn't really been out long enough to see for sure. It does come with a longer treadlife warranty than the old version so...

While I do always recommend Bridgestone and Michelin products the Continental DWS is quickly becoming my recommendation for those who are on a stricter budget. I put a set of them on a customer's 06 TL on Saturday right before Denver got hit with a foot of snow. She came back on Monday to get the wheel locks that we ordered in for her and told me that the Conti's did exceptionally well in the snow and was very pleased with the overall ride quality so far too. Great tire for the money IMO even though I've never been a big fan of Continentals. Of course it's a brand new tire and only time will tell how they wear and such. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any more questions.

robocam

I noticed that the 960 has an AA traction rating. Does that tell us anything about the tire's wet traction ability?

Does it also mean that the tire compound may be softer so it will not last as long?

BDoggPrelude

Yes, that rating pertains to the tire's wet traction ability. It has nothing to do with dry handling characteristics. It doesn't necessarily mean that the tire is softer though. The treadwear number is usually a better way of determining how soft a tire's rubber compound is. A tire with a 400 treadwear rating such as the RE960 is proven to last twice as long in a standardized test than a tire with a 200 treadwear rating. Of course, a tires longevity is affected by more than just how soft/hard its rubber compound is but that is one of the biggest factors for sure.