ceworkman

Hi guys, I know that everyone is always asking what wheels to put on their stook but I have never seen a discussion on the benefits or shortcomings of installing aftermarket wheels. I have been wanting to get some 18

jws626

Ride will probably be rougher/bumpier becuase of the smaller/stiffer amount of sidewall to absorb the bumps, however the stiffer sidewall is where the handling benefit come from, besides the increased contact patch. The ride doesn't really bother me; it was pretty stiff to begin with.

If you get strong rims and dont live in a construction zone, bent rims won't be too much of a concern. Forged are the best in this aspect as well as often being lighter.

Going to 18s I've felt a decrease in acceleration but it might just be my head. The 18s I picked are about as light as stock. It might just be the tires are heavier. Heavier tires will make a larger impact on acceleration/braking than a heavier rim.

If you get the right profile tire then the effect on speedometer accuracy should be pretty negligible.

I have SSR GT1's. Semi-solid forged, light and strong. I like the M6s and Racing Hart is a very good company, although I don't think the wheels are all that light. A couple people on the board have them. You might try searching for them and PMing them.

If you're concerned about what everyone else has, it seems to me a lot of people have the Work Meisters as well. The TE-37s are a very good wheel, that's why everyone has them.

My brand suggestions for 18s are: SSR, Racing Hart, Volk,

and if you have the funds then I highly recommend: Kinesis, Fikse, and HRE. All forged three-piece and custom made to your order.

ceworkman

Thanks JWS626. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I was looking at the rims you have the other day and really liked them. They are on the front cover of the dealer wholesale catalog for tire rack on a Porsche Boxster. I showed them to some of the others and they really liked them also. Do you know what they weigh? I think I am going to check into getting those. I heard that the Racing Harts are going to be heavy so I think you are right. The Volks are nice wheels don

ceworkman

I was of course refering to pics of the ssr

s2ktaxi

In addition to what jws626 said, here are a few other considerations when going with aftermarket larger wheels:
1) even if the wheel is the same weight overall, because the rim(which is normally the heavier part of the wheel) is further away from the wheel center, you have more rotational intertia to overcome when stopping or accelerating.
2) most of the time, when you go aftermarket, you tend to have heavier tires (though this is not always the case) because the tire is also wider. Same effect as #1.
3) though generally shorter sidewalls are stiffer, they are not always stiffer - depends on the tire.
4) wheel offset - this on its own may affect suspension geometry (and thus have minor effects on load on bearings and suspension).
5) wheel offset in combination with wheel width may give you fender, suspension and even caliper clearance problems
6) center bore differences from the mounting hub which if not adapter'd is dangerous and could cause stud failure under load.

jws626

I believe the SSR GT1s in 18s are about 18-20 lbs each. There are some new GT-3s that look to be at least two-piece if you like the look (came out right after I bought my wheels) but are probably a little heavier due to the mounting hardware.

These are the only rims I have pictures of mounted on my car besides stock. However, there are a lot of members who have previously posted pictures of their cars with their respective rim choice. Phantom, probably the resident expert on wheel offset/TE-37s, has a few pictures of his. His tires are slightly thinner than what he could be running for 18s (215s in front and 245s in rear) and are mis-matched in brand. Its due to the offset of the wheel and the amount he lowered his car. I *think* though, that he has felt a positive affect on acceleration.

Tire Rack should be able to give you weights of tires, so that rotational inertia will be less of a problem. Generally the better the brand, the lighter the tire. Like I said, I think I feel a slight decrease in accleration, but I think its due more to moving up two sizes in wheel than wheel and/or tire weight. VTEC seems not to kick as hard either but that might be me or because I'm trying different brands of oil.

Ben

HREs are priced very well right now in the following group buy.

https://www.s2ki.com/forums/showthread.php?...?threadid=21100