"V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
"V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
I'm driving a 2020 Lexus RX350 with Bridgestone Ecopia 235/55/R20 102V OEM tires at 6000 miles. I'm not happy with them for a number of reasons, including wear. I've decided that rather than fight with the dealer, I'll just buy new tires. I was thinking of putting on Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus II tires that I had on my old 2017 Lexus RX350. But I noticed that these tires are "H" rated and therefore the Sam's Club website won't let me buy installation because "these tires do not fit your car".
What's REALLY the difference between V and H rated tires. I can't image ever driving faster than 85MPH and even that would be just to pass in an extreme situation.
I know it might seem odd to buy new Lexus tires at Sam's Club, but I've been doing this for years and it works for me. Mainly because I'm in Pittsburgh and I can't find a tire yet that lasts past 25,000 miles here. Sam's is easy-breasy on the pro-rating....so not only do I get the tires at probably the best possible price, but I end up getting the second set, about 18 months later, for about half price or less.
What's REALLY the difference between V and H rated tires. I can't image ever driving faster than 85MPH and even that would be just to pass in an extreme situation.
I know it might seem odd to buy new Lexus tires at Sam's Club, but I've been doing this for years and it works for me. Mainly because I'm in Pittsburgh and I can't find a tire yet that lasts past 25,000 miles here. Sam's is easy-breasy on the pro-rating....so not only do I get the tires at probably the best possible price, but I end up getting the second set, about 18 months later, for about half price or less.
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Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
In general, V rated tires will have a stiffer sidewall and softer compound. These help make crisper turns and higher lateral grip in corners. Why they put tires like this on your truck is beyond me. H rated tires will feel different for handling. I would imagine that they also will last longer. I've only had one car ever that went through tires in 20k miles and that was the rear tires on a Lotus Elise, where almost all the weight of the car is over the rear tires and the tires are a special Lotus designated Avon tire with extremely soft compound. So much so that they strongly recommend not driving the car in temperatures under 40F.
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Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
The difference is better tire construction, better heat dissipation, etc. None of which matters for your use case given that H rated tires are good for 130 mph and you don't plan to exceed that. The V rating is theoretically even safer because the safety margins at 85 would be larger, but almost every SUV and truck on the road is running H rated or even lower for those beefy all terrains (they're often T rated, 118).
The tire shop doesn't want the liability if your vehicle is capable of 130+ mph and you have a blowout. In an ideal world you'd sign a simple waiver acknowledging it was no longer safe to exceed 130 and they'd agree to mount the tires. But I understand why they'd refuse as it's much simpler and safer for them. Try another shop.
The tire shop doesn't want the liability if your vehicle is capable of 130+ mph and you have a blowout. In an ideal world you'd sign a simple waiver acknowledging it was no longer safe to exceed 130 and they'd agree to mount the tires. But I understand why they'd refuse as it's much simpler and safer for them. Try another shop.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
It’s a speed rating - your car must be rated to be capable of a top speed that exceeds the limit of the H rating. A quick Google shows that Pirelli makes the tire you want in a V rating but not for the specific size you need (the 20in. must be a newer size).
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
If your relying on the wear guarantee to get a second set.... I expect putting on H rated will void that plan. In real life they are fine.
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Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
I'm trying to envision the situation you're describing of needing to exceed 85mph while passing and can't.
But many tire retailers won't install a tire not rated for your vehicle just based on liability concerns. I'm sure some will.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
Yeah, I think that's right. If I want to be sure to get the pro-rata effective low price when they wear out in 20,000 miles, I'll need to stick to the "V" rated tires that are recommended. The Tire Rack chart shows the (not manufacturer rated "H") Pirelli tires rated at 8.7 for snow versus 8.0 for the (manufacturer rated "V") Goodyear Assurance Max Life tires. I guess it's a slight trade off that I can live with. Both tires are priced similarly.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
I have had good luck with "Discount Tires" on this subject and I see they have two stores in the Pittsburgh area.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
Winter, hills, potholes, hills, bad roads, hills and hills. I fully fess up that there are better drivers who get longer tire life than me, but overall those same drivers still get about half the tire life they'd get on better roads in areas without winter.
Brake pads/rotors/shoes only last 1/2 as long around here too.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
Well, we have worse winters in Cleveland (lake effect) and our share of potholes. We don't have the hills. I normally get about 40K from a set of tires. I can understand the effect of hills on brakes, but it seems strange for tires.Leesbro63 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:19 amWinter, hills, potholes, hills, bad roads, hills and hills. I fully fess up that there are better drivers who get longer tire life than me, but overall those same drivers still get about half the tire life they'd get on better roads in areas without winter.
Brake pads/rotors/shoes only last 1/2 as long around here too.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
All the braking going down hills wears on the tires.sport wrote: ↑Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:48 amWell, we have worse winters in Cleveland (lake effect) and our share of potholes. We don't have the hills. I normally get about 40K from a set of tires. I can understand the effect of hills on brakes, but it seems strange for tires.Leesbro63 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:19 amWinter, hills, potholes, hills, bad roads, hills and hills. I fully fess up that there are better drivers who get longer tire life than me, but overall those same drivers still get about half the tire life they'd get on better roads in areas without winter.
Brake pads/rotors/shoes only last 1/2 as long around here too.
Re: "V" Rated Tired vs "H" Rated Tire
"Q: So if the governor is set this low on the RX's, why the V rated tires?
A: Because Michelin is able to charge a lot more for the same tire if there is a V on the side instead of an H. That's the real reason. For many people, a higher speed rating equals a better tire, so Lexus and Michelin are just playing to the incorrect notions of the average consumer."
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-3rd ... ost9701085
The Scorpion Verde is well rated, and I'll have to ask my installer if that's something he'd put on my car next time.
Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus II tires
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyre ... e&filter=y
I've never gone over 100 (or even near), but supposedly the top speed is limited to 124 mph. I couldn't find the top speed with limiter turned off.
https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/spec ... 114072732/
FWIW, 130/124=1.048 vs 149/124 = 1.20. Some engineer might have thought, that's less than 5% on paper, so let's just bump up the spec one.
Might be a Y rated tire 186 mph!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nfj3Tw9k0rc
A: Because Michelin is able to charge a lot more for the same tire if there is a V on the side instead of an H. That's the real reason. For many people, a higher speed rating equals a better tire, so Lexus and Michelin are just playing to the incorrect notions of the average consumer."
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-3rd ... ost9701085
I think the Michelin - Premier LTX is also OEM and is a good tire, aside from the same issue of wear. It's rated 60k and you're lucky if it goes half that. Still, that's my default choice for the moment. The size and speed rating are odd, so these tires cost nearly twice as much as my other car that has more common tire size. I wouldn't worry about H tires if your installer is willing, but they're worried about liability or at least using that as excuse to sell you a more expensive tire.Leesbro63 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 04, 2021 9:52 am I've decided that rather than fight with the dealer, I'll just buy new tires. I was thinking of putting on Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus II tires that I had on my old 2017 Lexus RX350. But I noticed that these tires are "H" rated and therefore the Sam's Club website won't let me buy installation because "these tires do not fit your car".
The Scorpion Verde is well rated, and I'll have to ask my installer if that's something he'd put on my car next time.
Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus II tires
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyre ... e&filter=y
I've never gone over 100 (or even near), but supposedly the top speed is limited to 124 mph. I couldn't find the top speed with limiter turned off.
https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/spec ... 114072732/
FWIW, 130/124=1.048 vs 149/124 = 1.20. Some engineer might have thought, that's less than 5% on paper, so let's just bump up the spec one.
User comment: "The 3rd gen 450h was a lot faster than the 4th gen!"Lexus GS450h Top Speed on German Autobahn 265 km/h 165 mph A99
2007 Hybrid model
Tires: Sava Intensa 225/45 R18 (summer)
Top Speed according to speedometer: 265 km/h (165 mph)
Top Speed according to manufacturer: 250 km/h (155 mph) (electronically limited)
Might be a Y rated tire 186 mph!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nfj3Tw9k0rc