Do I need to be okay with the ride of my 2019 LC?

[LCtour]

I'm at the dealership for my first oil change. No better time to reflect on my $90k "investment"
My first car was a full-size bronco and I have owned 8 SUV's my whole life. My last SUV was a 2012 MDX with 20" wheels. I live in Norcal and I drive only to LA and Tahoe. I loved the handling of the MDX with the updated wheels.

The LC has been a dream of mine since my Bronco days. Now that I have the LC and a newborn, I've been going back and forth on what to do with the wheels (If anything). The LC handles like a boat compared to the MDX. I knew that going in. But I've wondered if I should consider swapping the stock 18" wheels for 20" or even 21"? I do not plan on going offroading for now. Snow is about the most I'll make use of the 4x4. I know most who do like to go off-road like going 17".

Are there any LC 200 series owners that went from 18" wheels to anything larger? How did you like the handling? Issues?

 

[UCrazyKid]

Wheels will help, shocks would help more. Look to see if you can get some Bilsteins for the LC. You might have been happier with the LX570, with the AHC you can dial in the ride you want and if you don't plan on going off-road you wouldn't want swap out the whole suspension anyway.
Tires make a big difference with these vehicles too. Are you on the factory Dunlops? You might benefit from just a tire change.
Good luck.

One more thing. The LC, LX, Sequoia, and Tudra all use the same wheels, find some cheap used or new take offs to try a new wheel size/tire combo before committing big money on some nice wheels. As the dealer if they have any take offs while you are there.

 

[LCtour]

Wheels will help, shocks would help more. Look to see if you can get some Bilsteins for the LC. You might have been happier with the LX570, with the AHC you can dial in the ride you want and if you don't plan on going off-road you wouldn't want swap out the whole suspension anyway.
Tires make a big difference with these vehicles too. Are you on the factory Dunlops? You might benefit from just a tire change.
Good luck.

One more thing. The LC, LX, Sequoia, and Tudra all use the same wheels, find some cheap used or new take offs to try a new wheel size/tire combo before committing big money on some nice wheels. As the dealer if they have any take offs while you are there.

I thought about the 570 but it was not for me. I haven't done too much to test the Dunlops (rain or snow) : are they as bad as they say?

 

[UCrazyKid]

I thought about the 570 but it was not for me. I haven't done too much to test the Dunlops (rain or snow) : are they as bad as they say?

I've heard they are bad in BOTH ride quality AND traction.

They get pretty low reviews here: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=Grandtrek+AT20#RatingsReviews

Here would be how your other choices (generally) stack up. Looks like the Michelin is best:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=HAS

 

[Markuson]

Suspension upgrade will vastly improve handling.
Wheels...meh. -A wee bit, but suspension is the ticket, provided you carefully select springs, front preload or springs, and compression rebound rates of whatever struts you install.

Stock handling is squishy.
As soon as I was able. I yanked the stock suspension out of my 200.

 

[Phalen302]

LC suspensions is soft to keep the awesome off road capabilities. Even with stiffer shocks, springs it wouldn’t feel like unibody suv.

 

[rwbmedusa]

im on 20s with 34" tires

 

[Markuson]

LC suspensions is soft to keep the awesome off road capabilities.

??

 

[Union]

Those Dunlops do really suck in snow. I wouldn't trust them with the Tahoe winters.

 

[timjax]

If you are really set on going for the street look, I personally wouldn't go higher than 20" (big wheels on a Land Cruiser don't look right to me).

Michelin LTX are some nice alternatives to the Dunlops IMO. There are of course lots of suspension options on the market as well, some with lift, some without.

20":

View attachment 1040773 View attachment 1040774 These are those knock-off Toyota wheels from ebay. I actually have a set of OEM 20" take-off wheels from the Platinum Tundra, but I need to get them painted black before I install them. I would highly recommend to stick with OEM Toyota wheels.

Here's an all out 22" street setup:

View attachment 1930089View attachment 1930090View attachment 1930093

 

[Chocolate]

Those Dunlops do really suck in snow. I wouldn't trust them with the Tahoe winters.

Also dangerous in the rain. In my first month with them, I experienced hydroplaning on a highway offramp. Worst factory tire I've ever experienced.

Lightweight RWs and fat LT tires are the best upgrade you can do, IMO. Almost any LT tire is an upgrade over the P-metric Dunlops.

 

[M1911]

The LC handles like a boat compared to the MDX. I knew that going in. But I've wondered if I should consider swapping the stock 18" wheels for 20" or even 21"? I do not plan on going offroading for now.

Of course it does.

The LC is a 6,000 lb, off-road capable, body-on-frame, solid-rear-axle truck, with a long-travel suspension. The MDX is a unibody, front-wheel-drive biased minivan — basically a tall station wagon with independent suspension — that weighs almost 2,000 lbs less than the LC.

If you don’t need off-road or towing capability, perhaps the LC isn’t the best vehicle for you.

I suppose you could improve the handling of the LC with larger wheels and stiffer shocks, but I don’t really see the point.

 

[Battleship]

Are there any LC 200 series owners that went from 18" wheels to anything larger? How did you like the handling? Issues?

The first thing I had done to my '16 was install 275/70 KO2's on the 18's. I felt like it made huge difference, with the stiffer tires eliminating a lot of the wallow. Maybe just try that. It will also be an actual improvement to the rig and enhance its capabilities (and looks) should you ever want to exploit them, as opposed to hobbling it with some corvette wheels and rubber.

 

[Phalen302]

Maybe trade it for highlander for better ride

 

[LXinOBX]

Of course it does.

The LC is a 6,000 lb, off-road capable, body-on-frame, solid-rear-axle truck, with a long-travel suspension. The MDX is a unibody, front-wheel-drive biased minivan — basically a tall station wagon with independent suspension — that weighs almost 2,000 lbs less than the LC.

LCtour...^^^^^this^^^^^

I would tell you that larger rims do provide "better" handling, but (as has been best described) the vehicle becomes more "darty" in it's handling. Also, if needed, airing down in 20/21's is problematic as no side wall to "mush out"

 

[coleAK]

Yes the Dunlop’s suck in the snow. Going to larger rims will do little to nothing for handeling other then slow acceleration. You could do suspension for better on road but will be $$$$ and pointless to the next owner. I would say like others you would have liked the drive/feel of the Lx more so just get used to it or sell it and get anothet unibody SUV.

 

[mooneywa]

Someone mentioned the Michellin LTX MS2s, and I switched out my Dunlops for them. I didn't notice some massive change, but they do seem to ride a little better and the performance is better in cornering and a more predictable ride. They're a great road tire.

I had the KO2s on the last 200 and while they do improve the handling, the ride was noticeably stiffer - it wasn't bad, just noticeable. And if you're pining for the ride and comfort of an MDX, you're probably not going to like the ride or the noise from the KO2s.

 

[99Cruiser]

This happens a lot, you have been wanting a certain vehicle and are excited when test driving but not really paying attention to the characteristics of the vehicle and suspension. You spent a lot on the vehicle and sometimes it doesn't make sense to throw money trying to change something that the vehicle wasn't designed to be in this case a sharp handling sporty ride. I have seen many G wagons where a husband will buy for the wife and she hates the ride and they trade it in with low miles. See if someone will let you drive a LC with upgraded suspension before making changes to your rig.

 

[catastrofe]

I had a 4th generation 4Runner and wasn't happy with the ride. A little too soft and lot's of nose dive. Changed the stock tires to LT, which was a big improvement. Later, I updated the shocks to Bilsteins. . .further improvement still. That's the direction I'd suggest; LT tires first, then if warranted, improved suspension components.

 

[ScottsNDale]

KO2s make a big difference in feel, especially when inflated to the pressures recommended on the tire pressure thread. Gone is the nose dive on braking and laggy video game steering response, in exchange for a jittery ride. As others have said, there are trade offs to any changes you make. I think the KO2s were worth the cost — figuratively and literally — but your mileage may vary. See if you can test out a few different setups before spending real money.