Wheels...would you go to 19s?

[wuzzzer]

Since my SHO is lowered I know I can put at least 18" wheels on without having a problem with wheelwell gap.
Anyone have any recommendations or advice if I decide to go to 18 or even 19" wheels?
Thanks!

 

[Porkchop]

Mark - what tire aspect ratio are you running now. Specifically the sidewall??

I think with having your car lowered, the ride is hard enough. With 18's I think you will have almost no sidewall which means you'll probably bend a rim in a few years.

But if you don't care about keeping around the OE aspect ratio, or can tune the speedo for the larger wheel I say go for it.

What wheels were you looking at? Are you looking for street/strip quality rims? weight? etc etc. Can you fill us in with some of your ideas.

 

[wuzzzer]

Current tires are 215/50/17
Tires I'm looking at would be 215/35/19. About 1/2" shorter than my current tires.
As far as ride quality, I generally run the struts full hard in town and in semi-active mode on the highway. Rough ride doesn't bother me at all.
I would hate to bend a rim, though...

 

[adidas_kn]

Damn! That's a narrow tire for such a heavy car. I would recommend at least a 225 wide or even a 235 wide on any size rime you get. You need at least a 7.5" rim to fit a 235 wide but almost all the wheels you will find from 18-19" will be a 7.5 wide wheel. I've got 235/40zr18 Falkens on my 18 x 7.5" Enkei J10's. The overall tire size of the factory 215-60-16 is like 26.1", my new tire combo is at 25.4". This is as close as you will get to factory tire height with 18"+ wheels. A 235-35zr19 will be right about even with the 235-40-18's 25.5" overall. This shouldn't bother your speedo that bad you probably wouldn't even notice maybe 1-2mph off at 65mph. Ride quality will always suffer with a thinner tire on a bigger rim, but handling will also improve as there is usually less sidewall to flex and the contactpatch is wider as it doesn't have to wrap as much as on the taller sidewall on a 50 series tire. Just make sure you watch wheel weights as you heavier wheels will effect your cars handling and acceleration along with braking distances due to more rotational mass to move. For instance The factory 16" slicer on a Gen1-2 is roughly 18lbs IIRC. My new Enkei wheels weigh in at 20.1lbs each. Only 2lbs were gained in a 2 inch larger and wider rim. Not bad. This is usually made up for by the tires you install as there is less sidewall rubber and this will usually even the weight right back up again or close to it. Want to keep from bending a rim drive more carefully and watch for freakin' *** holes.

Done ranting. Wheels are my game.

Later
"J"

 

[SHOZ123]

I wouldn't even go to 17's unless I was doing major/larger brake upgrades.

Them lil' rear rotors look kind of funny with big open wheels.... IMHO of course.

 

[2 4shofast]

19's without question!

 

[Wess]

I think the brakes fill 17's nicely

 

[Sagabu]

I use 18" Enkie CDR-9`s and 235-40 BFG Scorchers . The larger the wheel , the less ride .
IMHO anything larger than 18" is wrecking a ballance . 17" wheels are paerfect I think . I used 18" because I like going over the top . 19" would never be a concideration for a car for me .
Only for an SUV .