sal501

Are there any noticeable disadvantages of putting 19'' on compared to 18'' as far as performance is concerned. Does the car take off a little bit slower compared to 17 or 18's?. What other performance degradation/improvements you guys have seen. I have stock 17's on . I assume they weigh 24lbs so if I get an 18 or 19 in the same weight range. Am I still compromising performance. Please help. I am confused whether to get 18s or 19s.

ssc

iTrader: (1)

you gotta decide what you are gonna use your car for first...for example,
if you track and stuff, i would go wit 17 or 18's...
if not, then go with 19's

showstoppertk

iTrader: (6)

pretty much everyone who goes for aftermarket wheels faces the same dilema you do, but at ssc mentioned you need to know what you plan to do with the car. if you plan on doing track or autocross stuff then you should go with a lightweight 17 or 18, if you don't and want the wheel well filled out more, then go with the 19's. i personally love the look of 19's and I might change out later, but cost wise it made more sense to go with 18's (not just b/c of the higher rims cost, but because of tire cost especially when you consider how fast Z's can go through a set). use the 'search' function on this forums as this topic has been discussed many times before.

froggy

iTrader: (1)

18 OR 19 ...

I've been reading many threads about that,( I'm talking about lightweight rims/tires),and I still don't get why ,for example,the M3 CSL has 19...It's ready for track! With years go by,sports cars have bigger rims ,why? Just for look and handling,sales pitch... Look at the 2006 Z 19R/18F, maybe the way to go for undicided people, like me.

knight_white99

iTrader: (5)

19" is for show, 18" (or even 17") is for GO. Depends what you want to do. If you plan to to track or race the car, there are almost NO choices for R-compound tires in 19 inch size - that should tell you something. Tires are often heavier than the wheels themselves. Going to 19" wheels puts that weight even further outward, making rotational inertia even harder to overcome. On the street, with lightweight 19" wheels, you might not notice it too much. But on the track... Just remember that every 10 pounds can be worth 0.1 seconds per lap. And one pound of weight on the wheels is worth about 4 on the car (such is the importance of rotational inertia).

jimster716

iTrader: (3)

I had 19" TE37's then I sold them for 18" 5Zigen's because I wanted a fat track set. Now I'm lucky to be able to order a new set of 19's so I will have a nice street set and a set for track.

If you plan on tracking get 18's (compromise between looks and performance) but if you're only on the street but like to take the corners once in a while then get 19's...the loss in performance isn't enough to make you regret getting them...as a matter of fact with 18's you'll probably always look at your car and wish you had 19's.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

Yes. Once you’ve passed 18-inches, you’re in the area of “looks” not performance.

Weight: Big wheels weigh more. Weight effects performance and suspension wear. Big heavy wheels are more tough on suspension components.

Sidewall: Bigger wheels mean less sidewall. When cornering, a 50-series tire will “flex” more than a 30-series tire. Consider damage from hitting a pot hole. Instead of 4 inches of rubber between the road and the wheel, you now have 3.

cehome

iTrader: (7)

Also if you drive on bad roads alot 18s are preferable than 19s. My first choice was 19s but when I realized I'll be driving on alot of bad NJ roads I went with 18s.

Chebosto

iTrader: (43)

I have both 19" TE37s and 18" LMGt4s.

let me tell you the acceleration difference on the 18s is pretty big. and i'm turbo'd... and i can feel the straight line accel.

both are superlight, but its amazing how much quicker the 18s are.. also the ride is alot more comfortable on the 18s compared to 19s too..

if you want to bling around town, then 19s for sure, but in all practicality, 18s are alot cheaper and probably better in the long run.

froggy

iTrader: (1)

What about lightweight 18F & 19R (like the 2006 Z), with lightweight tires and almost same sidewall height 245/40F & 275/35R.

Would it be a good compromise for performance(acceleration,braking,handling)-look-ride confort?

Most of us want all of that for an everyday SPORT car and tracking it a few times.

THANKS for your inputs.

jmcmorante

iTrader: (22)

This may sound funny but i was going all performance and then I got 20's! Killed the idea there and then. LOL But now of course as u can imagine Im looking for a second set that looks good and also dont hurt performance.

So yeah definitely get 18s if you are looking for performance.

Bubble

iTrader: (50)

why 19? go for 20". If you are not tracking your car then skip 19. Go all the way to 20". Look REALLYYYYYYYY nice.

southern_info

iTrader: (3)

I would say get the best of both world's performance and show with 19 inch wheels.