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18x8 vs 18x8.5

CDUBBGTI91

Go Kart Champion
Help me decide. I've been going back and forth on what size wheel I should buy. I'm having a hard time between choosing either 18x8 or 18x8.5 I want to know what the benefits are to each size. I don't want any rubbing (I'm stock height) and I will be using my summer tires from last season which are 225 40 18. Before I eventually plan on buying 235 40 18. for those of you that have 18x8.5 can you show me what 225 tires look like on the wheels if you have that size tire, as that's my biggest concern holding me back from buying the 18x8.5 wheels. Seems like for us the 18x8.5 is most popular but I want to know why. I'm an extreme nube when it comes to aftermarket wheels as these will be my first time ever buying aftermarket wheels for my car and I'm wanting to make sure I make the right decision. Thanks for the help, and trust me I've done my research I probably have 15+ other tabs open atm regarding wheel size and pics in general. As always thank you guys from the forum for the help!

I plan on buying the Neuspeed rse10 wheels 18"
In either Hyper Black or Silver or Gun metal
I drive a tornado red mk7 GTI (I would love pics!)
 

Mk6_vic

Ready to race!
I ran a Neuspeed set up previously on my car. Not stock height but still no issues with rubbing. If your stock height and planing on staying that way with 18inch wheels, you will be fine. Now regarding the tire size 225 I am unable to comment. Here my set up with 235/35/19 tire with 19' 8x0 ET 45. Similar but no 225 or 18'inch..Correct me if I'm wrong but, I don't think you'll stretch the tire if your have an 18 wheel that's an 8x0.

Pics below, enjoy.
 

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CDUBBGTI91

Go Kart Champion
I ran a Neuspeed set up previously on my car. Not stock height but still no issues with rubbing. If your stock height and planing on staying that way with 18inch wheels, you will be fine. Now regarding the tire size 225 I am unable to comment. Here my set up with 235/35/19 tire with 19' 8x0 ET 45. Similar but no 225 or 18'inch..Correct me if I'm wrong but, I don't think you'll stretch the tire if your have an 18 wheel that's an 8x0.

Pics below, enjoy.

Nice I like your set up. I want to eventually run 235 tires. I'm just curious to why I've seen so many people go with 8.5 vs 8 I just want to make sure I'm not missing anything and make the right choice as wheels aren't necessarily cheap lol.
 

MrFancypants

Autocross Champion
The wider wheel makes better use of the tire, to a point. Obviously if you want to run a 225 on a 12" wide wheel it's not going to be optimal.

But consider that a 225 mm width tire is about 8.85 inches (tends to vary based on manufacturer), so a 225 will fit fine on an 8.5 inch wheel and should look right. That's personal taste though, I think most would say that it would look a touch stretched.

If you eventually want to run a 235 the 8.5" would probably be optimal, but to say that the 8" wide wheel would be "worse" would be splitting hairs.

Between the two just look at a bunch of pictures and choose the fitment that looks best to you. Both the the 8 and 8.5 will work great for what you want.
 

ShawnP

Ready to race!
You will no problems with rubbing if you stay stock height no matter what wheel size you go.
It's all preference man
I'm running 19x8.5 with a 225/35/19 the tire is a little bit stretched.
I'm also lowed on H&R SS springs

Here are some pics. Sorry they are not the best pics




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

vwrabid

Ready to race!
225/40 18×8.5 et45.

Personally, I prefer the more aggressive look of an 8.5 wide tire over the 8. The benefits are minimal. That said, my next wheel set will more than likely be 19". [emoji12]


Ugggh. Sorry about the sideways pics.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 

CDUBBGTI91

Go Kart Champion
^^^just what I needed! Thanks for the replies and photos. This will help me with my decision. I'd love to see more pics if anyone has either 18x8.5 or 18x8 using the stock size tire then with a 235 tire. Thanks again for the help!
 

gtikc

Passed Driver's Ed
Honestly, the only advantage of an 8.5 width wheel is that is looks more aggressive. Other than that there is no reason to go that wide on a stock GTi suspension, or even a slightly modified one.

Our suspension was designed around a 7.5 width, and going much wider than that is most likely going to hinder performance, not aide it. A wider wheel will have more rolling resistance, and will be heavier than the same wheel in a less aggressive width.

Most think your going to see a great benefit as far as grip, but this isn't necessary the case. Without significant suspension changes, you aren't even going to be able to fully utilize the additional width and rubber anyway. If the benefits were that great by just adding a inch of width, VW most likey would have made the car that way from the factory.

Also, the quality of tire has a lot more to do with how much grip you get, as opposed to how wide it is. As far as a 225 on an 8.5, i consider that to be stretched. I just installed a 17 inch 8.0 wide Neuspeed wheel with my 225 tires, and i was surprised that there is a slight stretch with that setup. I definitely gained added stability with the 8.0, but see no reason to go any wider. I think 8.0 is the sweet spot(also depending on offset), which is why Neuspeed designed and recommends that size for our cars. If they sold one, i would honestly consider just going with a 7.5. Just for added curb protection without having to try and fit a 235 on my lowered suspension.

I would consider what your needs truly are, what your actually trying to achieve with the wheel, and how much your willing to compromise other things to achieve that goal. Its best to stay as close to the stock specs as possible if your after performance. Aesthetics would be an entirely different discussion.

Take a look at the classifieds as well. What types of wheels do you see people often trying to sell, or having difficulty selling. Bigger wider, more aggressive sizes. It sounds good in theory, but in practice its often not that great. Many people end up with something like a 17 inch wheel 8.0 width after they satisfied there itch for looks. This article helped me out big time when trying to understand width, and goes much more in depth than i did in this post. They have a few more great ones concerning wheel weight etc...

Sorry for my overly long post. Good luck with your decision, i know it was a nerve racking process for me.

http://www.tuneruniversity.com/blog/2011/04/wheel-tech-part-ii-size-matters/
 
Last edited:

CDUBBGTI91

Go Kart Champion
Honestly, the only advantage of an 8.5 width wheel is that is looks more aggressive. Other than that there is no reason to go that wide on a stock GTi suspension, or even a slightly modified one.

Our suspension was designed around a 7.5 width, and going much wider than that is most likely going to hinder performance, not aide it. A wider wheel will have more rolling resistance, and will be heavier than the same wheel in a less aggressive width.

Most think your going to see a great benefit as far as grip, but this isn't necessary the case. Without significant suspension changes, you aren't even going to be able to fully utilize the additional width and rubber anyway. If the benefits were that great by just adding a inch of width, VW most likey would have made the car that way from the factory.

Also, the quality of tire has a lot more to do with how much grip you get, as opposed to how wide it is. As far as a 225 on an 8.5, i consider that to be stretched. I just installed a 17 inch 8.0 wide Neuspeed wheel with my 225 tires, and i was surprised that there is a slight stretch with that setup. I definitely gained added stability with the 8.0, but see no reason to go any wider. I think 8.0 is the sweet spot(also depending on offset), which is why Neuspeed designed and recommends that size for our cars. If they sold one, i would honestly consider just going with a 7.5. Just for added curb protection without having to try and fit a 235 on my lowered suspension.

I would consider what your needs truly are, what your actually trying to achieve with the wheel, and how much your willing to compromise other things to achieve that goal. Its best to stay as close to the stock specs as possible if your after performance. Aesthetics would be an entirely different discussion.

Take a look at the classifieds as well. What types of wheels do you see people often trying to sell, or having difficulty selling. Bigger wider, more aggressive sizes. It sounds good in theory, but in practice its often not that great. Many people end up with something like a 17 inch wheel 8.0 width after they satisfied there itch for looks. This article helped me out big time when trying to understand width, and goes much more in depth than i did in this post. They have a few more great ones concerning wheel weight etc...

Sorry for my overly long post. Good luck with your decision, i know it was a nerve racking process for me.

http://www.tuneruniversity.com/blog/2011/04/wheel-tech-part-ii-size-matters/

Good insight thanks for the post.
 

Sanderzzz

Go Kart Champion



18x8.5 on 225/40/18
 

Gino

Ready to race!


Lowered on Koni Coilovers. This was before my corner balance, but have had no issues rubbing with the RSe11. My front fenders have been rolled a tad. Hopefully this picture helps.
 

Gino

Ready to race!
Are these 18x8 or 18.8.5?

My bad, 18x8. That is the usual size for Neuspeed, so stuck with it. Was told if I wasn't stancing my car go for 18x8. So I did. :)
 
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