The Lexus ES350 is a midsize luxury sedan with a comfortable ride and precise handling. Because of this, tires are an important consideration that must enhance and amplify its luxury experience. With so many different tire options, it can be difficult to sort through them and find the right set for the ES350. There are many different technologies and features that can help give you a soft ride. That’s why we have put together today’s post.
Figure 1: The Lexus ES350 is a midsize luxury sedan with an incredibly comfortable ride. Source: TireDeets.com.
Getting the best tires for a Lexus ES350 can be a tough undertaking. Not all tires have the right qualities to keep your car riding smooth and comfortable while still delivering high performance. That’s why we have put together a shortlist of the best tires for a Lexus ES350. By picking a set from our list, you can ensure that you’re getting a comfortable tire that is packed with performance technologies.
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Finding a set of tires with these technologies is important, but so is the quality of your car’s ride. With so many different tires on the market, finding the perfect combination of these features is a good bet. All the tires on our shortlist are perfect for the soft, comfortable suspension in the ES350 and will also deliver high caliber cornering and reliability in different weather. Your safety and comfort is the number one priority, but handling is a fantastic quality to look for and that’s what we have narrowed down in today’s article.
Source: Edmunds.com.
What Makes a Great Tire for a Lexus ES350?
We spoke to a tire specialist at Wheel Works who told us “the ESS350 is a straight up luxury car, so you’re going to want tires that have a soft compound. This will guarantee you a smooth ride. You’ll also want a lot of traction since it’s a pretty heavy car, so this will be good for that and it will keep you comfortable on the road. Something with a long tread life is also good because that extra weight will wear out lighter tires really quick.”
The best tires for a Lexus ES350 are going to be incredibly reliable. Many people like this car because it is a dependable family sedan in the midsize category. Reliability in tires is achieved by a durable construction with a stable tread. What this means is that the tires themselves will be reinforced by steel belts, but usually have independent tread blocks that move along with the car as the terrain changes in the road. This will help reduce vibrations and keep your ES350 comfortable, even on less than ideal road conditions.
Figure 2: Tires for the ES350 should have technologies that push air and water away from the contact patch. Source: TalkCarswell.com.
The best tires for a Lexus ES350 will also have technologies that wick water and air out from under the vehicle. This keeps a stable contact patch on the asphalt as the tires rotate, giving you better traction and resistance to hydroplaning. These technologies can also help keep the tires quiet at high speeds. They achieve this in the same way they wick away water, by pushing the air out from under the tire and distributing it evenly throughout the grooves. When air gets trapped in the grooves, it can emit a high-pitched whistle at highway speeds. The best tires for a Lexus ES350 are always moving air around the tire so you do not get this consistent noise.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO ON THE QUIETEST TIRES ON THE MARKET
They will also use special compounds that are designed to react to the road in real time. By using additives like silica, these rubber compounds will harden in hotter temperatures and soften in colder temperatures. This allows you to always have the best possible tire stiffness, no matter what the weather is like.
Sources: Cars.com; TireProfiles.com; TireDeets.com; Grace.com; Interview with tire specialist at Wheel Works conducted 12/23/2020.
How Did We Pick the Best Tires for a Lexus ES350?
On our shortlist of the best tires for a Lexus ES350, we sorted through the market to find sets that met all of the above requirements. They are all designed with comfort and stability in mind. This helps keep the qualities you love in your Lexus at their absolute optimum performance.
Figure 3: Stable tires are a must for the soft suspension of the ES350. Source: CarAndDriver.com.
The tires on our shortlist all use designs and technologies that push water and air out from under your car. This means that they are incredibly stable and able to maintain the largest surface area on the road. A heavy amount of grip on the asphalt means that the comfortable suspension of the ES350 can work exactly as it was intended.
All the tires on our list also use proprietary blends of rubber in their compounds. Depending on what type of weather you are usually driving in, these blends and additives will change the molecular composition of the tire. This allows them to always give you the best possible texture and softness for the temperature of the road in order to ensure maximum safety.
Sources: TireReviewsAndMore.com; TireReview.com.
1. Michelin Defender T+H
Figure 4: The Defender T+H by Michelin uses wide steel belts to enhance stability. Source: TireRack.com.
The Defender T+H by Michelin is a touring all season tire that is meant for drivers of luxury sedans like the ES350. They use an all season tread compound that is specially developed to be as durable and reliable as it can possibly be. This compound has a very high silica content that changes and reacts to the temperature of the road, giving you the best possible tire stiffness no matter what the weather is like.
The Defender T+H has an asymmetrical tread design that is specifically developed to be quiet at high speeds. The unique pattern keeps air from getting trapped in the grooves and cancels out any high frequencies that could result from that air. If you want the quietest possible ride, the Defender T+H is one of the best tires for a Lexus ES350.
They also use two extra wide steel belts in their internal construction. These belts are reinforced by polyamide to make them incredibly stable, even on rougher roads. They also help to improve steering response and give you better control over the soft, comfortable suspension that the ES350 is known for.
Source: TireRack.com.
2. Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus
Figure 5: Pirelli’s Cinturato P7 All Season Plus is their top of the line grand touring all season tire. Source: TireRack.com.
Pirelli’s Cinturato P7 All Season Plus is a grand touring all season tire with a wide range of technologies and features designed to deliver ultimate comfort. The tread compound is an incredibly low oil blend that has a high silica content that helps reduce rolling resistance. Rolling resistance is measured in the amount of energy that is expelled when the tire makes one rotation. The lower the rolling resistance is, the better gas mileage you will get due to less energy being used to roll the car along the asphalt.
It also used pitch sequencing in its tread design to help reduce noise on the highway. This means that each tread block is set to a specific height in order to cancel out pitches. In a sense, these tires are tuned to specific frequencies in order to deliver the quietest ride possible. Along with this, it has wide circumferential grooves that help keep water from building up and creating hydroplaning conditions. This gives you a safer ride along with a more comfortable one.
The internal construction has lightweight steel belts that are reinforced by variable tension polyamide. This gives more control and absorbs vibrations while also offering more stability and steering response in the process.
Source: TireRack.com.
3. Michelin Premier A/S
Figure 6: Michelin’s Premier A/S uses sunflower oil and silica to react to the road in real time. Source: TireRack.com.
The Premier A/S is Michelin’s grand touring all season tire and it is a leader in the category of traction in wet conditions. If you are someone who drives in wet weather consistently, these are the best tires for a Lexus ES350. They use Michelin’s Total Performance technologies to combine qualities like stopping distance, steering control and fuel efficiency. Because of this, they are a great option for people looking for a well rounded tire solution.
The Premier A/S uses a combination of sunflower oil and silica in its tread compound to help react to the temperature of the road. This extreme compound is molded into a design that allows for spot-on straight line tracking, which translates into better handling at both high and low speeds. This means that they are designed to be both stable and responsive.
They also use Michelin’s EverGrip technology which uses patented expanding rain grooves. These grooves widen as the tire wears, so you do not have to worry about losing traction, even as they get older and more worn down. This is a great feature for people who are looking for longevity in their tires and don’t want to sacrifice safety.
Source: TireRack.com.
