Daughter needs to buy tires for her 2000 Q45T, need recommedations

[maxnix]

No, when a gas pressurized shock or strut insert is leaking oil it is broken and the next event will be datastrophic failure.

Common sense and concern for one's offspring has to triumph over contrived palliatives, at least I would hope for her sake.

[Victor]

OK, just talked to my daughter and she decided to replace all four tires with Michelin Pilot H4 MXM4. size 225/50 R17 93v cost her $650 installed at Costco, which includes free life of tires balancing, tire rotations, and flat repairs. This should make everyone who was coming down on our case happy, except for those who say she should put 94 weight rating even though 93 is OEM. Costco gave an $80 discount for buying four tires at the same time. BTW. the balanced tires also eliminated a vibration problem she had been experiencing above 60 mph.

[maxnix]

Here is the problem with the 93V recommendation to which Infiniti switched when they introduced the 17x7.5 wheels, the car did not get any lighter!

Your daughter, your money, your call, you put the price on her safety.

We run a 100Y tire on my wife's FGY33. I think she is worth the extra margin.

[sublime187]

I'm in desperate need of new tires on a 2000 Anniversary. Is that much sacrificed by going with the 225/50-17 size? That's what I'm currently driving on. Money is a big issue for me. Also, what are your thoughts on purchasing used tired with 8/32 or 9/32 tread? Lastly, would you say snow tires are a must on this car for Detroit area winter conditions?

[JOHNQ]

if money is an issue then the best bang for buck are the falken 512 in 235/50/17 from discounttiredirect for $400 shipped cant be beaten for the price

[maxnix]

Used tires are like wearing someone elses used underwear. Don't do it. The racing stripe might be in the wrong place.

In winter, snow tires are a must on all 4 wheels, as well as warming the engine and block heaters if warranted.

I would think 235/50-17 would be better, but the main thing is to meet or exceed the OEM minimum 94 load rating. Speed rating should not fall below H, even for winter.

[Victor]

Mannix, you worry too much. I have had cars in New York, Germany and Korea where it got down to eleven degrees below zero and never needed snow tires or a block heater. I have driven hundreds of miles through snow storms with regular all season radial tires and never got stuck. You just have to know how to drive under those conditions. Might be a good idea to carry snow chains though if you have to go up steep hills.

[maxnix]

Regardless, modern snow tires are so much better than even the euphemistcally named "all season" tires there is no comparison in control and safety. Past deeds do not nullify modern progress.

I have used cables and chains also on "all season" tires, but no fun even at under 40 mph. Snow is just not good for driving in none AWD or 4WD vehicles, and even in one of those it is not fun on a road with traffic. The other idiots who never do anything and are just .1 mph away from total loss of control.

Block heaters are always a good thing when it gets near 0° F. Not necessary, but a good precaution and they will reduce warm up time and intitial cold start wear.

[mr.beeks]

QUOTE=Victor]Actually with the way used cars are priced in California you can get a used Infiniti Q45 or J30 for about the same price as a used Camry or Corrola, so why not go with the luxury car.[/QUOTE]

I like U cars are just disposable so value doesnt matter, quality does.

Quote »but I prefer to use Tire Rack and their recommended professional installers which are usually operator owned and do not employ minimum wage pit monkeys who are insufficiently trained or do not have access to the better balancing and alignment equipment.[/quote]How do you really know that tirerack recommendations are not using minimum wage pit monkeys I dont see you signing checks.There is no such thing as a tire installer certificate and if there is who is approving it.Have you spoken to reps on tirerack, and feel they dont know jack about tires.Best knowledge is by doing research and forums is a very good source for info but bets to be careful in wich info you pick.I did not see nobody mentioning threadcount?

My best recomdation for you is to buy spec size and and stay away from cheap namebrands they either blow or lose traction..

[2005Q45er]

i have kuhmos and love it! try it!

[BadQ45t]

Mr. Beek, the installers off Tire Rack are recommended by the people that get them installed, sort of like buying from eBay. The Rack does basic inspection but i have found two installers from Tire Rack. One is now my mechanic.

you can see what type of equipment they use and for me the guys that installed the tires were ASC mechanics but more important both guys are fantastic mechanics.

[sublime187]

OK, so I'm considering purchasing a set of all-season Yokohama YK520's from Discount Tire. $620 out the door. I've read decent reviews of the tire, one of which was from a '99Q45t owner. It's available in sizes 225/50-17 and 245/45-17. My primary question is: what's the difference between the two sizes and what do you guys recommend? Also, does anyone recommend a better A/S tire in the same price range? Thanks.

[maxnix]

The made for DT YK420 was a known to have catastrophic failures on the G50. I would run as fast as I could away from the made for DT low ball YK520.

Skimiping on tire qulaity is never a good idea. Read the tire review sticky in Infiniti General and the reviews at http://www.tirerack.com .

Most other cheap tires are not sufficient in strength for even the FGY33.

[sublime187]

Given the wintry conditions ahead, I've boiled it down to the Yokohama YK520's or a set of ContiExtremeContacts. Both are within my budget. Does anyone have experience with either tire, or recommend one or the other? Durability is also a big factor for me. Again, can anyone tell me the real difference between size 225/50-17 or 245/45-17??? Thanks.

[TBrack]

In a nut shell 245/45 will give more contact area and lessen the chance that the tires slip in wet or snowy conditions. 225/50 obviously has less contact area but might have a better ride due to the thicker sidewall.

Personally if it were my daughter I would go for wider tires so she is safer.

[maxnix]

Given the wintry conditions ahead, I've boiled it down to the Yokohama YK520's or a set of ContiExtremeContacts.

Then I would say you have two strikes on you.

For "wintry conditions", a car or even an AWD vehicle needs winter tires. "All season" is a marketing euphemism that really means compromised summer tire and not very good winter tire.

One needs to understand that good performance and long wear are mutually exclusive.

Lastly, the tires are the only part of your car under normal operating conditions in contact with the road are your tires. If you skimp here, nothing else really matters how good it is.

By the way, just in case you did not catch it in the post before, the YK420, the YK520 predecessor, is known to have failed catastrophically (that means blow out at highway speed) on a G50. Others have had DT replace the YK420 at DT expense because it was so bad. Why you would want to subject yourself, your car, your passengers or other drivers to that risk is dumfounding.

[maxnix]

In a nut shell 245/45 will give more contact area.

This is patently wrong.

At the same load and pressure, the contact area will be the same. Different shape maybe, but nevertheless of equal area.

[TBrack]

Yes I agree at the same load and pressure contact area would be the same, limiting factor being the wheel width. If a lower psi was used however it would show what I was trying to say. Not condoning lower psi to get more contact area, just saying it is possible.

[maxnix]

Yes, dependent on weight and pressure. Wider lower profile tire does not increase contact area. The shape of the contact area changes, but that is all.

Many are confused, hence the clarifying remarks.

[sublime187]

I appreciate the responses here, but what's the verdict: should i go 225/50-17 or 245/45-17? 235/50 is not going to be an option for me.

[qship96]

225/50/17 will be better in the snow as it is slightly taller and narrower, will provide slightly better ride quality also due to taller sidewall aspect.

[sublime187]

Ok, I bought the YK520's. 500 out the door with extra warranties, etc. Somehow the guy talked me into getting 245/45-17. Does this seem like a goofy bastard size to you? The one benefit I see is that it's rated 99V XL, whereas the 225/50-17 size was 94V. I realized it would be a lower profile tire, but now I'm getting a bit OCD about the fact that the overall tire diameter is smaller, makes me feel like they look like 16's now. I'm almost considering going back and having the 225/50's installed instead. Am I just nuts? Any opinions other than shredding me for buying the YK's?

[goody90q45]

I bought a set of OEM tires/wheels from a 2003 G35 coupe a couple of months ago for my (former) 90Q. The fronts were Goodyear Eagle (GYE) 225/50-17 and the rears were GYE 245/45-17. You're right, the 45's on the rear looked like Geo tires. I got a great deal on a set of brand new GYE RS-A's, 235/55-17, and put two of them in the rear. The 55's filled the gap nicely with no rubbing and because of the diameter difference, about 3/4" taller, my mileage increased by about 5%. It's your call to go to 55's but you're going to see about a 5% drop in mileage because of the smaller diameter 45's. If you can exchange them without too much expense do it.

Here's a pic with the 55's on the rear and 50's on the front.

[maxnix]

Your tires are still a little short, but I would run that size if I didn't have 8.5" wide wheels for 255/45-17, the correct size.

The only problem is they are the dreaded and to be avoided DT only cheapie special YK520.

But for $500, about the only decent tire would be the Avon Tech500 or Tech550 if still avaialble in that size.

[sublime187]

Max, the Avon Tech's get bad reviews and survey results on Tirerack.com. I know, I know, the customer reviews are often done by people who "know nothing" about tires. Now let me also say, the YK420 has horrible reviews all around the net, but the YK520 has many, MANY solid reviews. Sure, it's an all-season, and sure it doesn't have the BEST traction, and it's not made for aggressive driving. But it does get recognition for being a very quiet, smooth riding, good treadwear tire. And for $500 out the door with a little haggling (which includes free lifetime rotations, balancing, and repairs, along with 60k tread warranty), it seems to be an interesting option for my budget... Now, back to my OCD problem- can anyone give me some reassurance here and tell me why 245/45-17 is actually a good size? LOL. Is the handling better? I'm also getting worried about the pothole infested streets of Detroit and how the lower profile tires may cause quicker wear of shocks, etc. I'm going to call Discount Tire in the morning, but I'm fairly certain they will not swap the tires out for me unless I shell out some decent cash as they are considered to be used tires now. I guess 225/50 is hardly any noticeable diameter difference anyway..

[sublime187]

Well, I went to discount tire. today and they said they'd. swap out the tires but I'd have to pay full price on the new tires. So now the 225/50's would cost me 100 more. Seems hardly worth it as they are barely bigger. So I'm considering 225/55 as were on the car when I bought it and filled in the gap nicely and rode fine. But those will cost me 200 more out of pocket. They also have 235/55 that are only H-rated and those would only be 100. My question is, will 235/55 fit? And will they look too thick and bulky? Is the H rate instead of V a big deal? I was happy with the 225/55 previously but I would like to save 100$. This will be the last of my whining about tires, I swear.

[bullittandy]

I agree with OCD diagnosis.

There is a microscopically small chance that the 245's will cause accelerated wear on the rear control arm bushings but you won't know for about 30K miles at which point the rear subframe will be destroyed and will require replacement-about $2500.

I'm just kidding-I'm a kidder-especially with nervous types-LOL.

If the 245 and 225 tires are the same diameter then keep the 245's-especially since you'll pay more to swap them. No real performance difference between the two so enjoy your new tires-until your car explodes from the increased stress....

[sublime187]

Well, Andy, do you have any idea about the 235/55-17's? I believe these would be 1.5 inches taller than the 245/45. For a hundred bucks it would be worth it to me. But will they fit, and will they look too bulky? Right now there's so much gap in the wheel well it's driving me nuts. And is the H rating a deal breaker?

[bullittandy]

The problem is that there is a large gap with the factory size and the 245's you got are the same size as the stockers.

So, I think the only problem different size tires cause is speedo inaccuracy (I don't know which way though for larger tires-someone here that's smarter will answer) and sloppier handling if you go with a higher aspect ratio.

It sounds like your porblem is too much wheel well gap but thats stock so.... Since you do have a touch of the OCD I would recommend as a mental health professional and a Y33 enthusiast you either stay with the 245's or waste money on swapping 225's.

[JOHNQ]

go with 235/50/17, you wont regret it