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17" or 18"???

golfgti_tr

golfgti_tr

Ready to race!
Dear guys;

i have ordered my GTI with 18" and i am some confused of these bad patholes where i live. i am from Romania and we have here pretty good patholes to destroy these beautiful rims... how hard or easy is it to break these wheels? anyone has ever expriencied of this? what size do you suggest for winter tires?
thanks you all!
 
zsmitty9

zsmitty9

Passed Driver's Ed
golfgti_TR said:
Dear guys;

i have ordered my GTI with 18" and i am some confused of these bad patholes where i live. i am from Romania and we have here pretty good patholes to destroy these beautiful rims... how hard or easy is it to break these wheels? anyone has ever expriencied of this? what size do you suggest for winter tires?
thanks you all!
Click to expand...

I definately don't have any experience in breaking my wheels but I can tell you that when I switched from the stock 17"s to 18" aftermarket wheels, there was a very noticeable difference in ride quality regarding a rough ride. So in my opinion, I would stay away from 18"s in a pot-hole infested area. Once again, I'm not expert.
 
J

jmblur1

Go Kart Champion
I know of a few people who have already trashed their Detroits, or at least blown out tires on them. They're not weak rims, but they're pretty low profile tires (~91mm I think?), so there's no much cush to take the edge off a deep, square-edged pothole.

Be careful out there!
 
golfgti_tr

golfgti_tr

Ready to race!
jmblur said:
I know of a few people who have already trashed their Detroits, or at least blown out tires on them. They're not weak rims, but they're pretty low profile tires (~91mm I think?), so there's no much cush to take the edge off a deep, square-edged pothole.

Be careful out there!
Click to expand...

thanks for responds. 18" ones look much better than 17" ones. anyway, i am gonna try 18" ones and i will see then...when they are broken, there will may be any damages on suspensions? any idea? have you ever heard?
 
J

jmblur1

Go Kart Champion
If you hit them hard enough to damage your suspension, it would likely damage your suspension with 17s too - a bit more tire isn't going to do much to help that.
 
My2ndGTI

My2ndGTI

Ready to race!
I am picking up my GTI next week. It is coming with 18" rims, since I couldn't find one with 17" without having to wait for a factory order. I was thinking about using the 18" for winter and buying new tires/wheels for the summer. My tire shop recommended 225 35/19, but I am worried that the ride will be too harsh.

Anyone have an opinion on how much harsher the ride is on 18" vs 19"?
 
J

jmblur1

Go Kart Champion
Dont' use 18s for winter - smaller wheels, bigger tires - at most 17". Sell the Detroits if you don't want them, but they're NOT good winter wheels.
 
My2ndGTI

My2ndGTI

Ready to race!
jmblur said:
Dont' use 18s for winter - smaller wheels, bigger tires - at most 17". Sell the Detroits if you don't want them, but they're NOT good winter wheels.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I have been starting to think about my tires/rim selection. I currently run 17" winters on my G35 Coupe, 19" summers. Big difference in the ride. Plus I have to get a summer rim fixed because I brushed the curb (4 days after I got the car...). I am thinking that 19" would be stupid for me. Although I am not a fan of the Detroit wheels, I may keep the Detroits for summer and but 17" for the winter.

I tried to order the car with 17" but couldn't get one.

Thanks for the advice. Glad I joined this forum. :happyanim:
 
iHeartEuro

iHeartEuro

Passed Driver's Ed
golfgti_TR said:
Dear guys;

i have ordered my GTI with 18" and i am some confused of these bad patholes where i live. i am from Romania and we have here pretty good patholes to destroy these beautiful rims... how hard or easy is it to break these wheels? anyone has ever expriencied of this? what size do you suggest for winter tires?
thanks you all!
Click to expand...

I have visited Romania for the very first time this winter and the roads are not much worse than here in Montreal QC. I had cracked a 19" wheel here with VERY low profile tires, however the wheel quality wasn't as good as OEM VW wheels.

You might get a flat now and then, but I can almost guarantee you will NOT destroy your 18"s in Romania ;)

p.s. another thing you can do. The 18" wheels cost around $950 as option, you can easily find a buyer willing to pay $1000 for them, with that money you can get a nice set of 17" ;)
 
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