How to get perfect wheel fitment on your Lexus IS500

Today we’re talking about all things wheel fitment related on the 3rd gen Lexus IS. This will include the JDM Scat Pack, also known as the IS500. We have also covered the 2IS, which has similar wheel fitment. The 3IS, like basically everything, has gotten bigger and bigger through the generations, and as such it’s only right if we cover this generation on its own.

This guide will go into detail about wheels, tires, and suspension for the XE30 platform, better known as the 3rd gen IS, or 3IS, model years ranging from 2014 to present.

Quick links

• Basic fitment info
• Staggered setups w/ AWD
• 3IS wheel & tire setups
• 3IS air suspension

Basic fitment info

• Lug pattern: 5x114.3
• Lug thread: M12 or M14x1.5*
• Center bore: 60.1mm
• Lug torque: 100 ft/lbs

*2020 facelift switched from M12 to M14 lug nuts and studs. Otherwise, the fitment is the same.

The big decision is always what size wheels to get. For most of you, 19s will be the best option as they fill out the wheel wells but still leave room for a 35 or 40 sidewall tire. If you wanna step up or down, 18s and 20s can also look good on the right applications.

For width and offset, the majority of aftermarket wheels will run between 8.5 and 9.5” for width, offsets land somewhere around +35. The catch here is that wheels 9.5 and wider have a hard time clearing the front suspension, leading to staggered setups being commonplace on this platform. You can go pretty much as wide as you want in the rear without having to worry about suspension clearance.

Yes, you can use staggered wheels on AWD cars

But the rolling diameter needs to be within 2% front to rear. Rolling diameter refers to the overall diameter of the tires. You can play with offset, width, tire specs, and whatever else… as long as the final diameter of the tire comes within a +/- 2% difference. A popular combination is 225/40 front and 255/35 rear, this falls well within the tolerance.

3IS wheel & tire fitment

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Rohana RFX11 19x8.5 +35	Rohana RFX11 19x9.5 +40
Tires	225/35R19	265/30R19
Notes	F-Sport suspension. No additional mods, no rubbing.

Starting with possibly the most popular setup on this chassis: 19x8.5 front and 19x9.5 rear. This is a tried and true setup having been done thousands of times. The fitment looks a whole lot better than stock, yet rubbing won’t be an issue as it’s not that tight. This is an IS300-F, so it comes with factory lowering springs. Regardless of your suspension type, you won’t have rubbing issues if you copy these specs.  

---

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Ferrada FR2 19x8.5 +35	Ferrada FR2 19x9.5 +40
Tires	Michelin PS4S 235/40R19	Michelin PS4S 265/30R19
Notes	RS-R Down springs. No rubbing. More info/pics  here

Like we said, the IS500 shares fitment with the lower trims. This 500 is rocking more or less the same fitment as the last, only with slight tweaks to the tire size, and guess what? It fits just as well. Rather than F-Sport suspension, this car is on RS-R Down lowering springs, giving around a 1.5” drop. And just like the one before there are no issues with rubbing.

If you’re looking to pick up a set of lowering springs, RS-R makes pretty awesome stuff for this platform.

See more IS500 builds in our gallery!

---

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Advan GT 18x9 +35	Advan GT 18x9 +35
Tires	Advan V405 225/40R18	Advan V405 255/35R18
Notes	AWD IS300. BC Racing BR Coils. Slight rubbing.

For something a bit different you could go for a square setup, like we see on this 2016 IS300 AWD. This isn’t completely square as the tires are different, 225/40 in the front and 255/35 rear, but this will still work on AWD applications. Also, these are 18s instead of 19s; definitely a noticeable difference, whether it looks better or not is up to you.

If you wanna go this low you’ll need coils - BC Racing BR were used on this application. If for some reason this isn’t low enough for you, BR’s even have an ‘Extreme Low’ option.

Get your BC coils here

---

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	ESR RF2 19x8.5 +30	ESR RF2 19x9.5 +35
Tires	225/35R19	245/35R19
Notes	Lowering springs, no rubbing.

Going a bit lower with the offset will get you closer to flush fitment. If you choose wider tires, you could possibly run into rubbing issues. With thinner tires, as we see on this car, the fitment is doable without extra modification - after all, it’s only ¼” or so more aggressive than the typical +35/+40 offsets.

If you’re thinking ‘all of these wheels are out of my budget’, don’t worry, ESR makes some affordable wheels that also come in great specs for these cars. These are RF2s, which are a good-looking split 5-spoke with some concavity. Prefer something with some dish? Check out the AP8, a similar look but with reverse lips.

---

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Vossen VFS-1 20x9 +38	Vossen  VFS-1 20x10.5 +45
Tires	Lionhart LH5 225/30R20	Lionhart LH5 255/30R20
Notes	RS-R Super Downs springs. Zero rubbing

So we saw 18s, but will 20s fit on your 3IS? Yes, and they look pretty good on the right applications. Here is what a set of 20” Vossen wheels looks like on a 2015 IS350 F-Sport. The front fitment is pretty standard while a 10.5 was used in the rear. Again, backspacing isn’t a concern in the rear.

If you’re looking at 20s, lowering is a necessity to have it look right. This car is on RS-R Super Down springs which give around a 2” drop. With this setup, there is zero rubbing, probably down to having thin tires with a slight stretch.

---

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Volk TE37 Ultra M-Spec 19x9.5 +28	Volk TE37 Ultra M-Spec 19x9.5 +28
Tires	Falken Azenis 235/40R19	Falken Azenis 255/35R19
Notes	RS-R active-I coilovers. Slight rubbing in the rear.

This ‘23 IS500 is rocking aggressive square fitment on coils. As we’ve seen, with higher offset wheels you might have to remove some of the natural camber to avoid interfiernace with the suspension. With the offsets seen here, +28, the fitment is more or less perfect - without suspension adjustment.

This 500 is on RS-R I-Active coils which retain the factory AVS and DDS. No other mods were needed.

3IS air suspension

Fitment Facts
‎	Front	Rear
Wheels	Work Emotion CR 18x9.5 +38 (effective +30)	Work Emotion CR 18x9.5 +38 (effective +30)
Tires	Kumho Ecsta PS91 215/35R18	Kumho Ecsta PS91 215/35R18
Notes	Air Lift Performance kit. Camber adjusted on factory suspension arms No rubbing when aired up

If the rest just aren’t low enough, you could go with air suspension. This 2019 IS300 is riding on a kit from Air Lift Performance. Combined with 18” Work Emotions, this car is absolutely slammed when aired out. The specs here are pretty standard, even with 8mm spacers. Believe it or not, the natural camber from lowering this car makes the fit perfect when slammed, and drive like normal when aired up.

If you’re looking for more inspiration for an air suspension build, check our 2IS guide, there are a bunch of ‘em over there.

Check out 2IS air suspension builds

Wrap up

To recap, if you want the tried-n-true fitment, go for a staggered set of 19s with either 8.5 or 9” fronts and 9.5 or 10” rears, aim for offsets in the mid to high 30s. These specs will suit cars at stock height, on springs, or coils. If you want to run a 9.5” in front, you’ll have to be careful of the backspacing as the wheels will come close to the suspension. This might require some spacers and or alignment to finesse the fitment.

Sizing up to a 20 or down to a 18 can look good depending on the ride height of your car and a bunch of other factors. Generally, 19s are the way to go. If you want to see more examples, be sure to head over to our fitment gallery. Once you nail your fitment, snap some pics and upload them to help fellow 3IS owners with their builds.