Rob2005

With regards to people fitting 18's i speak from experience. My Handling was all over the shop when first fitted.

Then i decided to lower it on Eibach springs thiknking this would cure my problem, it didnt.
I then fitted Koni shocks and had my Geo set up and it was great again, just like when i first had it.

I would definately advise any one with 18" wheels to make sure you are running either coilovers or Good aftermarket shocks and springs.

Xd

Tyre's were fresh, geom was not checked, although booked in I was comming back from having had the car serviced. One main point though is the 16s would have bounced onto the kerb were as the 18 rims hit the kerb and the car was deflected across the road.

Chris, if you haven't already make sure your geom, etc is checked

Rob2005

And take your time to bed the tyres in correctly

Ultra_Nexus

Its interesting to hear you comment on the 18's. You say that they have improved handling. It would be interesting to note how fresh your tyres were on your old 16" wheels and wether you geometry was correct. Obviously, when you fit new wheels, you'll get new tyres which will make a big difference, but it seems that you all get your geometry done too. In addition to this, the original 16" wheels on the S are heavy. I wonder if any purists out there have bought lightweight 16" alloys for their S? It just seems that all the JDM tuners stick with 17" wheels on an S (Spoon, J's, Amuse) which is the place i'd tend to take advice from. Nout wrong with 18" wheels, but obviously you will sacrifice some handling balance due to decreased suspension efficiency that is apparent with a greater unsprung mass.

Chris Type R

Some 18s are lighter than stock 16s.

Dembo

If you're talking performance, it's not the actual weight but the distribution of the weight. A car with 18s will be slower than a car with 16s that weigh the same because on 18s more of the weight is further away from the centre of rotation.

Also worth noting that if your bling aftermarket wheels have different offsets to standard, that affects the handling and geometry.

The best reason to have bigger wheels is that you need them to fit your larger brakes. Nothing I hate more than seeing cars with big alloys and piddly original brakes clearly visible behind. At least the design of those BBS wheels will hide the embaressment a bit.

Xd

Biggest problem with 16's on the S is there is little choice of tyre's. F1's are 17" and up.

Chris Type R

Yes, but how much difference does this really make ? ie how much lighter do 18s have to be than 16s (ignoring design differences) for this not to be a major influence. Bear in mind that you're saving weight on the tyres as well - especially sidewall reinforcement.

Chris Type R

And they look like they belong in the '70s

Dembo

Oh I'd say at least some. Well okay, not very much.

I have a feeling lower profile tyres are actually heavier as they need more reinforcement. Not sure about that.

I do think the chunky tyres on the 16s spoil the look of the S a bit, and the OEM 17s do look better (not really fond of the design though).