SpeedyZ

I'm about to order a touring 6spd manual, chrome silver roadster and am debating about getting the 17 inch wheels. It's going to be my daily driver and frankly I'm concerned about how brutal my 50 mile daily commute might be with the 18s, however if I get the 17s and I don't they don't have substantial grip, I'll be dissapointed. I recently had an S2000, which had 16 inch rims which were awesome. I'd appreciate your sage guidance - many thanks

straderp

I have an '04 CS Touring Roadster with full kit including the 18" wheels. I have not extensively driven, beyond escorted test drives, a 17" wheel model.

The Z gets a LOT of credit for its stickiness on the road in a stock configuration (i.e. 17" wheels). I love how my Z can stick to an interstate cloverleaf interchange so tightly that I can go speeds around the loop that make me sick to my stomach. Based on the raw physics of the situation, the two sizes have the same surface area in contact with the road, but the 18" tire will be rotating more slowly than the 17" tire at the same vehicle speed. Theoretically, that implies that the 18" would have more grip.

I can't say that the difference is big enough to influence your decision.

My Z is my daily driver as well. I run a 25 mile commute in each direction, and quite frankly, I wouldn't rather drive anything else to and from work. The Z is a sports car, and the suspension is rigid, as it should be. This is true, regardless of wheel size. My Z is plenty comfortable for a daily driver. In fact, if I were you, I'd worry more about lumbar support in the seats and less about the "bounce" that 18" versus 17" wheels will give you. There's a really good thread on lumbar support in the Z seats on the site; just do a search. I'm planning on making the lumbar support mod myself.

Having said all this, there are a few factors that you should pay attention to:

1 - 18" tires cost more to replace than 17" tires. Not significantly more, and given that you're buying a Z Roadster, I presume that the difference in dollars won't matter to you. So moot point.

2 - 18" wheels LOOK better than the 17" because they fill the wheel well better...it's sleeker.

3 - 18" factory wheels will increase your resale value (as if you'd actually sell your Z). Note: Non-factory wheels greater than 17" will either not affect or will decrease your resale value; if you're into modding the vehicle, go with the 17" wheels because you'll lose less money replacing them with bigger wheels later.

4 - In my experience, there is no significant ride difference between the two, and I'm plenty comfortable riding on my 18"ers. If you're concerned that a sports car won't be a good riding daily driver, I'd suggest that you look at something besides the Z. Consider your commuting route too; 50 miles sounds like mostly highway, but if you're going to go through significant rush-hour traffic, you'll want to be sure you can tolerate shifting in stop and go traffic (look for the "downshift into 1st" article on here). I'd also recommend you take a test drive on an extended, non-standard drive route--if the dealer will allow it; they're pretty picky over miles on their test Z's--so that you can see how it rides.

My diatribe probably isn't very helpful up to this point because there's no firm conclusion. That usually means that it's a matter of preference. Based on the fact that I think the 18" wheels look better and increase resale, I'd recommend them over the 17".


Hope this helps in its own weird and twisted way.

You should also check out the couple of threads on MSRP for Roadsters...they might help you in your dealer negotiations.

- Peace out

SpeedyZ

Straderp, thank you very much for that reply; you've given me some excellent points to consider and it seems pretty clear to me that I should just get the 18"s and enjoy it. Thanks again for taking the time to respond.