Best Tires For Lexus NX - Complete Guide

8 Best Tires For Lexus NX

The NX was released in 2015 as a new initiative by Lexus to expand the brand’s reach in the compact luxury crossover SUV market. There are also future plans to introduce a hybrid model too.  

In this tire guide, recommended tires are tailored towards the Lexus NX and play well into the vehicle’s strengths. The primary features customers rave about are the smooth rides, array of safety features, and fuel efficiency. This is why we love the Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season Plus on this vehicle so much.  

Let’s get right into it. Here are the eight best NX tires along with a factory tire analysis.

Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season Plus - Best All-Season

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Pirelli designs tires with specific vehicles in mind. The goal is to provide features that will best suit a driver rather than producing for everyone. The Scorpion Zero All Season is an upgrade over the traditional Scorpion Zero and the P Zero All Season Plus, focusing on crossovers and SUVs.

You are getting a tire with heavy-duty pickup truck capability. What makes this tire so special is the ultra-high-performance traction, winter driving ability, and road comfort.

The tread is made from high-performance silica and woven into an asymmetric tread design with special polymer and resin blends for overall balance and stability. The pattern includes rigid central tread blocks and broader outboard shoulders to provide both cornering strength and internal tire balance.

Winter driving relies on zigzag sipes that cut through snow and ice more precisely than traditional sipe technology. Pirelli loves to use additional biting edges, too, for better road grip as a safety and performance feature.

Customers who use this tire also rave about the lack of road noise and superior comfort. The steering has a refined feel on the road, and vehicle performance is more accurate.      

Pros:

• 50,000-mile limited tread life warranty.
• Most comfortable and quiet ultra-high-performance tire.
• Performance track level cornering and handling.
• All-weather traction is exceptionally reliable.    

Cons:

• The tread life could be improved.

Continental ContiProContact - Best Touring

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Drivers shopping in the best touring tire category typically look for luxury, comfort, and dependability. Fortunately, Continental created the ContiProContact for this niche market using the latest tire technologies. We love the all-season tread, comfortable driving, and sporty handling features the most.

This grand touring tire option comes with a symmetric, all-season tread to handle all the conditions that could come your way. Continental separates this tire from competitors with winter traction due to the PROactive EDGE technology. It adds extra layers of arched edges to grip the road better on snow and ice.

The edges may sound like a knock on the tire comfort during traditional driving conditions, but that is not the case. The center rib is strong and supports even rubber to pavement contact to absorb road vibrations.

Summer enthusiasts can rejoice too. Dry traction is consistent, the shoulder blocks support sharp cornering, and the internal structure holds up for short distance braking.

Pros:

• Up to 80,000 miles in limited tread life warranty coverage.
• Widely available tire in many sizes.
• Little road noise with maximum comfort.
• Dry traction is as good as it gets.

Cons:

• Winter performance is the primary weakness and could be better in heavier snow.

Hankook Ventus S1 Evo2 SUV K117A - Best Summer

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Hankook is a reliable brand known for its balanced tire construction and high-silica tread compounds. The Ventus S1 evo2 SUV K117A ranks as the best summer tire for the Lexus NX because of intense dry pavement handling, braking responsiveness, and wet traction stability.

This silica tread is different in design thanks to the technologies used by Hankook during production. The compound contains max silica and styrene polymers. This is a rare combination for summer tires to create maximum braking abilities on all roads.

The asymmetric pattern provides extra support for handling too. A continuous center rib and set of broad, outboard shoulder blocks can interlock for better cornering and road stability. When roads are slippery, extra-wide shoulder blocks allow the contact patch on the tire to grab extra pavement for more secure driving.

While this tire cannot drive in the winter, there is an extra stiff bead filler found on the internal construction as an upgrade to previous models. This feature extends the tire tread life span and adds additional handling support.  

Pros:

• Confident wet road traction and braking.
• Excellent road comfort for a max performance summer tire.
• Dry pavement cornering ranks best-in-class.

Cons:

• No limited tread life warranty.
• Poor tread life in winter conditions.

Pirelli Ice Zero FR - Best Winter

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Tire manufacturers like Pirelli use a softer rubber compound in winter tire designs to create such high-performing products in cold weather. The tire can remain flexible enough with softer rubber as the temperature drops to still maintain road traction. Pirelli has done an excellent job of that with the Ice Zero FR tire.

As technologies continue to improve in the world of tires, studless winter tires are gaining popularity. The Ice Zero FR is a studless option that handles even better than a traditional studded winter tire.

The tread pattern is directional layered with angled grooves and both the interior and exterior of the tread block. This creates better traction while providing biting edges for snow and ice performance improvement.

Pirelli has also upgraded the sipes to 3D technology. This has significantly improved the tire stability in heavy snow compared to previous Pirelli winter tires.

Most importantly, the multi-link tread compound is responsible for versatile performance capabilities. It holds up in the harshest of conditions to remain flexible enough for whatever the driver asks of the tire.  

Pros:

• Short distance braking on slippery roads.
• Ranks as one of the top winter tires in comfort and road noise.
• Winter road grip is extremely reliable and consistent.
• Highway and cornering stability is precise.
• Run-Flat tire technology.  

Cons:

• Treadwear longevity could be improved.

Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 - Best Performance Street

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If you are looking to add a new performance element to your NX, the Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 tires will blow your mind. This is an ultra-high performance summer tire that provides the most elite levels of traction, stability and cornering on the streets.

It begins with the advanced tread composition. The combination of high-silica and long link carbon creates an unstoppable tread compound with near-perfect road grip and handling. The compound is made into an asymmetric pattern for even better road stability.

The downfall of this tire is when the weather changes. It will fail miserably in cold temperatures in the winter. The treads will wear significantly faster and even begin to crack slightly, as some customers have reported.

But during the rest of the year, you cannot go wrong. Firestone uses the Pulse Groove Technology to funnel water away from the contact patches while shortening the braking distance. These hydroplaning resistance features are very reliable.

Pros:

• Dry road traction, cornering, and handling are unbeatable.
• Wet pavement grip is consistently firm.
• Ride comfort is noteworthy for such a high-performing tire.

Cons:

• No limited tread life warranty.

BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 - Best All-Terrain

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BFGoodrich is known to create great off-road, all-terrain tires. The All-Terrain T/A K02 is the fourth generation model and packs some of the best features yet.

The most glaring upgrade right away is the tire strength. The tire sidewall is twice as thick as the previous models with extra rubber to prevent punctures or tire damages. This upgrade is known as the Tri-Gard technology from BFGoodrich.

The upgrades don’t stop there. There is 10% more traction on mud and 19% more traction on snow and ice than the previous KO all-terrain model tires. Constant improvement is an innovation that BFGoodrich provides itself on.

The tread compound is also tear, cut, and chip-resistant for more extended-lasting wear and a reduction in flat tire occurrences. The tread also has interlocking features between the blocks and grooves for better braking and wet surface traction.  

Pros:

• Most durable tire option available.
• Tire rides are extremely quiet, especially on roads and highways.
• Tread life is as good as it gets.
• Traction is nearly perfect in all elements.

Cons:

• No limited tread life warranty.

Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus - Best All-Purpose

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Continental emphasized improving the ExtremeContact tire line, and the achievement is evident in the DWS 06 Plus release. They spent three years crafting this tire, and it has everything you need in an all-purpose tire for the Lexus NX.

The most prominent feature is the tread upgrade. SportPlus Technology is a new continental invention creating a silica and +Silane compound for the best traction and handling capabilities possible.

Previous Continental customers complained about the lack of overall road traction too. The DWS 06 added new, upgraded traction grooves and X-Sipe technology. Both of these features are layered across the tread for more balanced road performance.

Overall, this tire can handle just about any road condition with confidence. Features like the tuned performance indicators also remind drivers of tire wear and alert them when it is time for a replacement.  

Pros:

• Traction in all weather conditions is crisp and precise.
• Tread life is excellent.
• Responsiveness on cornering is elite.

Cons:

• Nothing worth mentioning.

Bridgestone TRR Spare Tire - Best Temporary Spare

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A new purchase of a Lexus NX will come equipped with a compatible spare tire. However, if you have already used yours or it is worn and needs replacing, we can help. The best choice for the NX is the Bridgestone TRR spare tire.

It is a compact, lightweight option at only 13 LBs. It can handle a max load of 2,094 LBs and fits comfortably in the trunk without adding extra weight to your vehicle.

The tread depth is much thinner than a traditional tire with a smaller overall construction. A vehicle must adjust with a temporary spare and does not drive as smoothly.

Pros:

• Easy installation.
• Lightweight, compact, and reliable.
• Provides optimal trunk space.  

Cons: 

• Not reliable in winter conditions.
• Max speed of 50 MPH.

Michelin Primacy MXM4 - Factory Tire

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Using the Michelin Primacy MXM4 as an OEM, factory tire speaks volumes for Lexus as a brand. This luxury tire is not cheap and ranks as one of the better options available in the touring, all-season category. However, it might not be the best for you.

Michelin uses unique technologies like the Helio compound and sunflower oil in the tire composition. This compound is raved about in the industry for reducing braking distance and improving fuel efficiency.

Michelin is so confident, and they even claim this tire stops 19 feet shorter than any other competitor tire. Bold claims.

However, we had some issues with traction in the rain and saw tread life wear down sooner than we had hoped. If you are experiencing these issues and need an upgrade, the Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season Plus is the comparable option we recommend.

Pros:

• 55,000-mile warranty.
• Dry traction and handling are exceptional.
• Ride comfort is strong with low noise levels.

Cons:

• The tire was slippery in the rain on wet pavement.
• Tread life is a bit overrated.