now that i got ur attention....why does evryone want 18s on there car. r 20s on an ls that bad? does ur speedometer mark incorrect with 20s. i dont plan on lowerin if i get 20s? 245 35 20 series tires shouldnt look bad on an ls....should it? if not lowered...will those tire fill the wheel well or raise my car. will rubbin be a prob? so many questions. ahahhhhhhh! thanks!

I think it's mostly ride quality. With 35 profile tires, they lose a lot of cushion. I personally like the look of a 45 profile tire more. Not too much sidewall, but not too little either. Remember that this is all opinion. You prefer 20's, while some other people on this site might still be riding on the stock 16's because they like them.

some other people on this site might still be riding on the stock 16's because they like them.
thats what i'm doing :Beer

from what I hear you lose alot of the magnificant handling that the car provides and there are also some rubbing issues

something about my stock rims I like...there real classy

i have 20's and 35 profile tire and they look awesome to say the least. I haven't had any problems with rubbing. The place that put them on said that it may rub if I am making a turn and I run over something at the same time, but that doesn't occur too often. I recommend gettin the 20's. I have no regrets whatsoever. I have been breakin so many necks that it is starting to get annoying. go for it. :dj:

i have 20's and 35 profile tire and they look awesome to say the least. I haven't had any problems with rubbing. The place that put them on said that it may rub if I am making a turn and I run over something at the same time, but that doesn't occur too often. I recommend gettin the 20's. I have no regrets whatsoever. I have been breakin so many necks that it is starting to get annoying. go for it. :dj:
i want 20s i want 20s i want 20s!

i have 20's and 35 profile tire and they look awesome to say the least. I haven't had any problems with rubbing. The place that put them on said that it may rub if I am making a turn and I run over something at the same time, but that doesn't occur too often. I recommend gettin the 20's. I have no regrets whatsoever. I have been breakin so many necks that it is starting to get annoying. go for it. :dj: got any pics of ur ride wit wheels n all?

my black 20s should be ariving on thursday :) cant wait. hope i like em

my black 20s should be ariving on thursday :) cant wait. hope i like em
u best post sum pics!

One other thought to keep in mind. Potholes.

If you hit a pothole in 20s, you are way more likely to dent the rim than you would if you had stock.

My last car had 255/50R17s stock from the factory, normal tire size for the econo model of that car were 235/70R15s if I recall. I hit a pot hole one day. TWO rims got dented on that side. Repairing dented rims is not cheap.

I like the low profile look, but unless you live where the roads are in excellent condition, you may not like the ride and it may cost you some dent repairs everyonce in awhile.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

no pics yet....i just got them on 4 days ago...but i am workin on it....i will post when i do.....mikedeezy, get them 20's, you wont regret it

i want them doobies. potholes in l.a. area arent that bad. the roads r pretty decent. i just gotta worry bout keepn em clean. haha. thanks for the input though. keep.em.comin!

i want them doobies. potholes in l.a. area arent that bad. the roads r pretty decent. i just gotta worry bout keepn em clean. haha. thanks for the input though. keep.em.comin!

I think 18's look just as good with 45's without compromising hardly as much ride quality with 20-35. Run over a pebble and you will feel it.

Your never going to get a major census on this forum. The folks who don't like the idea of big rims on cars will always talk about how much its tacky and how it sacrifices ride quality and how the rims are soo much more vulnerable to potholes. I wonder how many people who actually have 20s on their cars will complain about how it makes the LS lose ride quality and stuff. If you look at previous posts, most of the folks who talk about how bad the ride quality is are not riding dubs. Hmmmm, if you don't drive a LS on dubs how do you know that the ride quality is soo bad?

On the other hand, if you like the idea of dubs then you will make certain adjustments in your driving habits (i.e. you will avoid potholes...). And, if you are riding dubz you probably won't be as inclined to drive like Speed Racer. These sacrifices won't really bother you if you are going for the 20" look. So you have to ask yourself, are you more about the show or the go. Show = 20's and go = teens.

Just my 2 cents.

Your never going to get a major census on this forum. The folks who don't like the idea of big rims on cars will always talk about how much its tacky and how it sacrifices ride quality and how the rims are soo much more vulnerable to potholes. I wonder how many people who actually have 20s on their cars will complain about how it makes the LS lose ride quality and stuff. If you look at previous posts, most of the folks who talk about how bad the ride quality is are not riding dubs. Hmmmm, if you don't drive a LS on dubs how do you know that the ride quality is soo bad?

On the other hand, if you like the idea of dubs then you will make certain adjustments in your driving habits (i.e. you will avoid potholes...). And, if you are riding dubz you probably won't be as inclined to drive like Speed Racer. These sacrifices won't really bother you if you are going for the 20" look. So you have to ask yourself, are you more about the show or the go. Show = 20's and go = teens.

Just my 2 cents.

i like ur opinion....
i trynot to speed n ewayz. i like the way the dubz r soundin...or better yet....gonna b lookin.

BBoyd pretty much hit the nail on the head! If you're not ridin on 20's, then you really can't talk about ride quality. I can tell you that my Mark VIII rides great on 245/40/20s.

And just as a correction, it is possible that a 35 series tire have MORE sidewall than a 40 series tire since the sidewall is a percentage of width. A 285/35/20 is 99.75mm (35 percent of 285mm), whereas a 245/40/20 is 98mm. Lots of people run bigger tires in the rear. I'd be running 305s if I could find a wheel with enough offset.

Kale

I HAVE 20'S ON MY LS WITH 255/35/20'S AND YES THE RIDE QUALITY MAY BE A LITTLE DIFFERENT BUT NOT REALLY AS NOTICABLE AS PEOPLE MIGHT THINK. i LOVE THE LOOK AND SO DO THE PEOPLE THAT ARE AT THE CHIROPRACTOR GETTING THERE NECKS RELINED. FROM RUBBER NECKING LOL.

Your never going to get a major census on this forum. The folks who don't like the idea of big rims on cars will always talk about how much its tacky and how it sacrifices ride quality and how the rims are soo much more vulnerable to potholes. I wonder how many people who actually have 20s on their cars will complain about how it makes the LS lose ride quality and stuff. If you look at previous posts, most of the folks who talk about how bad the ride quality is are not riding dubs. Hmmmm, if you don't drive a LS on dubs how do you know that the ride quality is soo bad?

On the other hand, if you like the idea of dubs then you will make certain adjustments in your driving habits (i.e. you will avoid potholes...). And, if you are riding dubz you probably won't be as inclined to drive like Speed Racer. These sacrifices won't really bother you if you are going for the 20" look. So you have to ask yourself, are you more about the show or the go. Show = 20's and go = teens.

Just my 2 cents.

Show and go=Teens

and thats all I have to say about that....

Hmmmm, if you don't drive a LS on dubs how do you know that the ride quality is soo bad?
Because I've driven an LS with 17s and it was bad enough the mere thought of 20s makes my ass sore. 16s > *

bboyd again u hit the nail on the head. its all personal preference and what style and look theyre going for. like i say about girls u cant knock it until u try it, so if u havent rode 20s u cant knock the quality until youve driven on them.
MIKEDEEZY u seem like my type more look that speed or performance, go with the dubz. it seem like it will suit you more saying "theyre 20s" not "theyre 18s".
BBOYD ive been trying to say what u said for a while u really nailed it. DONT KNOCK IT TILL U TRY IT

I have never driven on 20s, so yeah the guy has a point. But I have ridden in cars over the past 30+ years with profiles from 85 down to about 40. Could just be my imagination but seems like the lower the profile the worse the ride when comparing apples to apples. Of course you get used to it after awhile. Then if you change back to a higher profile, suddenly you discover how much quieter and smoother the car rides, who'd a figured. I have done this on several cars over the years, and in every case the higher profile tires rode smoother, but maybe did not handle as well.

Also sometimes you cannot avoid potholes. In many years of driving, I NEVER got a dented rim. Then one day diving less than 20mph, speed trap, so no Ricky Racer stuff here. I got into a situation where I was unable to swerve in the lane because some pita other driver hogged the road on the other side. It was dark and hard to see, but suddenly there was a nice juicy pot hole with no shoulder to pull onto. Yes I could have slammed on my brakes, and got a ricer enema from the guy behind me but I figured, I could make it. Wrong, Hit the hole with both tires on that side. Dented both badly enough to cause leaks. I drove that road every few days and the pothole was brand new so I would not have known before I got to it, to avoid it.

Tires are a compromise. High profiles are for good road feel and mileage, low profile are for good handling and looks. All the technical articles I have read in various auto mags seem to confirm this and mention the harsh ride on low profiles. Yes you can have a taller sidewall even with low profiles, but you do get limited on width by the wheel wells so in general you will be pretty close to the same width and only change profile. For handling you want stiff side walls, short makes it easier to do.

I just bring these comments up because they are things to consider as part a purchase decision. The LS is not known for cushy ride even with standard rims. So lower profiles will probably not improve things. But then we didn't buy the LS for a limo ride did we.


Like I said before I do like the looks of low profile tires and have owned a few cars with them. I enjoyed the tremendous handling improvements of the low profiles, but sometimes I missed the smooth quiet ride and until I got below 55 profiles, I never had a problem with dents.

Enjoy the new rims, but pay more attention to holes. The one that dented my rims was maybe 3 inches deep with a vertical edge because it was fresh. I think the sharpness of the edge has more to do with damage than how deep.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

Tires are a compromise. High profiles are for good road feel and mileage, low profile are for good handling and looks.

Mileage? does ur gas mileage decrease with 20s? y is that?

ive been going with the 20s look for 2 summers now and personally i am getting sick of driving "careful" with them on and what little rubbing they do when you hit a bump or something... it seems like your braking aint as great with these big things on and the steering wheel shakes a little at high speeds... i mean it was great in the beginning, i felt like a million bucks with everyone starin at me with their jaws hitting the ground, but its getting old with me... so if you want some dubs you can buy mine MikeDeezy

here u go

well i have 20s.. and before this i had the stock 17s' ... 20s look awesome but yea you have to be a little more careful than with stock tires... curbs and dips can damage them... the ride for me isnt really any stiffer than it used to be... what i can notice is that acceleration is a bit slower.. because of the heavier rims obviously...i have a 245-35-20 tire and yes it does rub.. well it used to in the back..and this would only happen if i had more than 3 people in the car and if i hit a bump or turned sharply.. i put some coil spring boosters and there is minimal rubbing now.. if you dont mind driving a little more careful and having a slower car then yea get some 20s ... if you want to maintain performance.. and not have any rubbing issues then go smaller.. i just posted some pics above.. sorry my car was dirty that day :)

Tires are a compromise. High profiles are for good road feel and mileage, low profile are for good handling and looks.

Mileage? does ur gas mileage decrease with 20s? y is that?
Because of the added weight. They will make the car slower and hurt your mileage, as well as making the car harder to stop and putting additional wear on other suspension components.

I HAVE 20'S ON MY LS WITH 255/35/20'S AND YES THE RIDE QUALITY MAY BE A LITTLE DIFFERENT BUT NOT REALLY AS NOTICABLE AS PEOPLE MIGHT THINK. i LOVE THE LOOK AND SO DO THE PEOPLE THAT ARE AT THE CHIROPRACTOR GETTING THERE NECKS RELINED. FROM RUBBER NECKING LOL.

Are those akuza creepin wheels? if so how much did you pay for them? and is your LS lowered? it seems like you have no gap in the back.

Wheel size is a matter of personal preference, but it does have performance impacts.

When you go to a larger wheel size, you're increasing the car's unsprung mass; if you do not otherwise compensate for it, you will pay for it in increased braking distances, decreased ride quality/increased NVH, and shorter supsension life. A vehicle's suspension and brakes are designed for a certain range of unsprung masses; once you go outside that range, you're asking the suspension and braking systems to do things for which they were not designed.

If you'll go to AutoWeek's Web site and search their back issues, you might be able to find an article they did within the last year or two on this subject. They actually quoted suspension engineers (I belive they were the ones who designed the suspension on the Dodge Ram, but it's been awhile) who talked about what a bad idea the big wheels were. I don't remember if the article had a pro or con conclusion, though.

please find it, i would love to know the exact difference, and what theyre final decission was

Wheel size is a matter of personal preference, but it does have performance impacts.

When you go to a larger wheel size, you're increasing the car's unsprung mass; if you do not otherwise compensate for it, you will pay for it in increased braking distances, decreased ride quality/increased NVH, and shorter supsension life. A vehicle's suspension and brakes are designed for a certain range of unsprung masses; once you go outside that range, you're asking the suspension and braking systems to do things for which they were not designed.

If you'll go to AutoWeek's Web site and search their back issues, you might be able to find an article they did within the last year or two on this subject. They actually quoted suspension engineers (I belive they were the ones who designed the suspension on the Dodge Ram, but it's been awhile) who talked about what a bad idea the big wheels were. I don't remember if the article had a pro or con conclusion, though.

Good Point. That is why I have taken so long to find a wheel for my 2004 LSE. 23-24 lbs is my benchmark weight. So far I have only found very expensive ($650+ each) 3 pc. wheels that are 18"x8" in that weight range or better. I have not found any 19" or above that do not weigh more than my stock wheels.:mad:

Maybe its just me but I have an 03 ls v8 and i have no rubbing issues what so ever. It seems that the only people rubbing with 20's is 2000-2002.

i drive a 2000 ls with 20s on 245/35r20 shoes. Ive not once had a problem with rubbing. I do tend to drive a little better, but the car still handels about the same exept for the bumpier ride. I love em...

Tires are a compromise. High profiles are for good road feel and mileage, low profile are for good handling and looks.

Mileage? does ur gas mileage decrease with 20s? y is that?


Not necessarily, but usually. There are a lot of factors besides diameter.

Take a good look at those mileage racers, the ones that get something like 2,000 miles per gallon, really. Notice the tires. Universally they are tall and very skinny. The wide profiles kill mileage by presenting... more unsprung weight, power band rpm, frontal area wind drag and way more rolling resistance than a skinny tire, and more.

I noticed a long time ago, that an econo truck I had that used factory tires, skinny, lost an mpg or so when I switched to fat, larger diameter tires. If diameter was all there was to it, I should have gained mileage. But the other factors jumped in to drop it. Not scientific in my case, but the mileage racers go deep into theoretical territory.

So while 20 inch may help mileage, the wide profile that comes with them will kill it. Of course there are no absolutes unless you are at an extreme. Somewhere in 20 inch diameter tires there is an optimum profile for mileage and another for performance. Usually they do not match.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

does your odometer still read the right mileage, i was told that since the tires are bigger so it causes the tire to go around slower causing the odometer to read fewer miles. i was told this by some kid, so i dont really believe it. any input on this

Whether your speedo (and thus odometer) reads accurately depends on whether your overall tire diameter changes. The standard tires on my '04 V8 are 235/50-17, which yields an overall radius of roughly 21.7 inches, so to maintain that radius, 20" wheels could only have a 1.7" sidewall.

According to the Tire Rack Web site, the lowest profile tires they carry are 25s, but at that aspect ratio with a 1.7" sidewall, we get a tire width of 170mm. If you go with a reasonable width (like a 235 or wider), you're necessarily going with a taller sidewall, which changes the overall radius.

The overall circumference, as we all remember from high school geometry, equals two times Pi times the radius. That means for every revolution of the wheel, the car goes 2*Pi*r units down the road. For my stock wheel/tire combo, that means my car goes approximately 136 inches down the road for every revolution of the wheel. If I go to a 235/25-20 tire, the car goes approximately 140 inches down the road per revolution--as a result, the car travels farther per unit of time, so the speedo reads low.

So, while it is theoretically possible to go to a 20" wheel and not need to recalibrate your spedo, in the real world, if you go to a 20" wheel and don't recalibrate, your speedo will read low.

Whether your speedo (and thus odometer) reads accurately depends on whether your overall tire diameter changes. The standard tires on my '04 V8 are 235/50-17, which yields an overall radius of roughly 21.7 inches, so to maintain that radius, 20" wheels could only have a 1.7" sidewall.

According to the Tire Rack Web site, the lowest profile tires they carry are 25s, but at that aspect ratio with a 1.7" sidewall, we get a tire width of 170mm. If you go with a reasonable width (like a 235 or wider), you're necessarily going with a taller sidewall, which changes the overall radius.

The overall circumference, as we all remember from high school geometry, equals two times Pi times the radius. That means for every revolution of the wheel, the car goes 2*Pi*r units down the road. For my stock wheel/tire combo, that means my car goes approximately 136 inches down the road for every revolution of the wheel. If I go to a 235/25-20 tire, the car goes approximately 140 inches down the road per revolution--as a result, the car travels farther per unit of time, so the speedo reads low.

So, while it is theoretically possible to go to a 20" wheel and not need to recalibrate your spedo, in the real world, if you go to a 20" wheel and don't recalibrate, your speedo will read low.


You're wierd!! :eek2:

Im only kidding.. Couldnt resist.

ok, so the speedo might read that your going slower tahn u actually are. correct? if the calculations are correct (hipothetically). but what about the odometer, will it read less miles than you are actually traveling since your tires/wheels wont be rotating the exact same as they are calibrated to?
thanks for your input sooner ive always wondered this stuff. i love LVC

I also have a toyota truck, lifted with 31 inch tires, only a few inches larger than factory. The company who installed them said i would be going faster than posted and that the odometer would read false. More actual miles than shown.
There's probably a formula to figuring the actual mileage if you know the exact od. reading at the install, compared to the od. now, while comparing the two different tire sizes. (Dont look at me, that would take me years :zgreenbou .)

ok, so the speedo might read that your going slower tahn u actually are. correct? if the calculations are correct (hipothetically). but what about the odometer, will it read less miles than you are actually traveling since your tires/wheels wont be rotating the exact same as they are calibrated to?
I don't know if the odometer's calculations are separate from the speedo's, but they are are both fed data from the speed sensor, so they'll both be getting the same inaccurate information. As a result, just like the speedo will read low, the odometer will read fewer miles than the car has actually travelled. (Of course, if you know this, and don't recalibrate for the new larger wheels/tires, could you honestly sign the mileage statement when you sell the car? ;) )

how do u recalibrate the car the for the larger wheels, can i do it or do i have to take it somewhere to get it done.

I'm not very skilled on slang- what's a doobie?

he was jsut trying to get everyones attention, a doobie is a joint, but here its 20" rims