frankfast

Except for style points, is there any advantage having 18" wheels. They were offered as an option on my '01 C4 Cab but was there a reason Porsche preferred to put 17" wheels as stock on the car. A Porsche salesman says I shouldn't change them because I won't like the handling. Any of you guys had 17" wheels on the track? Which do you prefer? I live on dirt roads and I think the 17" would probably be advantageous there. I'm about to change tires so I need to come to a conclusion as to changing wheel sizes. Style ain't everything.

ivangene

IMO - there is nothing wrong with 17's for daily driving and they most likely offer a cheaper tire solution, more selection and slightly higher profile which should equate to a softer ride on rougher roads with less chance of the wheels hitting something.

I have ran 17's on my car and had no issues. I prefer the look of the 18's and I dont like the look of the 19's (in person, not in pics) Many if not all race cars are running 18's - They have ran 17's in the past and I think they still worked......

my .02

tooloud10

There's nothing wrong with 17" wheels and tires. In fact, they can often offer a big advantage in reduced unsprung weight over an 18-19" setup. Seems like a lot of people automatically assume that "bigger = better".

Nicolaasdb

what's wrong driving a Prius?? besides the 14"wheels. 49miles to the gallon!!

RallyJon

Tire technology has moved on significantly since the 996 was first introduced. The compromises are much less than they used to be.

The current generation of 3.5" sidewall tires (225/40, 265/35, 295/30, etc) ride as well as and handle much better than 4.0" sidewall tires (205/50, 255/40) from 5-10 years ago.

It's also interesting that Porsche will not go below a 3.5" sidewall. The new cars that have 19" wheels go up in diameter, rather than using a lower profile. Pretty well indicates what the sidewall sweet spot is.

ivangene

are you suggesting he run 14" wheels?

PasPar2

from the success I had selling my 17" inch wheels for close to nothing... I would say there is EVERYTHING wrong with them simply due to the fact that now one wants them at all.

Barn996

Not a thing. I still run 17"s, but would like to use them for my winter sneaks, and find some decent 18" for the summer. No question that tire prices jump, but improved looks and tire patch would be nice.

Jake Ok

Tire size have their purpose. Smaller and light wheels/tires puts less stress on suspension (unsprung weight). Lighter often means faster, but that having said, the P car requires lots of grip with wide rear tires. Smaller wheels/tires doesn't accomodate that function .
285/30/18 tock, with 17" you have to run 255/45/17 to keep the same diameter. Handling will be compromised. Correct me if I am wrong

ivangene

what do the rally cars run?

They are on dirt roads -----

RallyJon

On dirt/gravel, roughly equivalent to 205/65-15. On tarmac, roughly equivalent to 225/40-18.

redridge

from early 996 reviews... the drivers preffered the 18". They said, this time the bigger wheel had better feedback and feel... need to dig up the source.

RallyJon

And when you read the 997 reviews, they prefer 18s to 19s. Since the sidewalls don't get any shorter, all you get for your extra inch is more weight and more bling.

ROK

For me the look of 19s easily outweigh the supposed performance advantages of 18s. 17s... it's similar to me thinking about driving a Boxster instead of the 911. The thought does not even cross my mind.

s_kelly

Living in an urban environment and rolling 18's, I'd almost prefer 17s. Last summer I bent a rim and trashed a sidewall while parking - never seen anything like it. Hit the curb with rear while parallel parking (super slow parking speed - <2mph). I'm thinking a higher sidewall might have prevented that.