17" or 18" Wheels

[traumatized]

Hello Everyone,
May seem like a silly question but i just wanted to know everyones preference on this.

I have a Euro Luxury with the Factory kit, I am in the market for a new set of rims and I'm not sure if i should go for 17" or 18" wheels, as it is a Auto i'm not after performance and just wanted to know which size would suit the Euro better in terms of looks.

I would also like to lower the car once i get the rims so i need to take into account that with the optional factory kit on my car which makes the skirts and front closer to the ground on stock height, i don't want to be scraping because it is too low once i lower it.

So will the rolling diameter of my current 16" wheels running stock tyre profile increase with the new rims (17" or 18)? I plan to lower it 35mm to make a more decent ride height will this make me scrap on speed humps, drive ways and so forth. I prefer not to go on angles over them.

I assume the rolling diameter on the wheels will be the same regardless of whether i go with 17" or 18" due the the tyre profile i have on the wheels is that correct?

Sorry if it doesnt make sense as i currently at work and will re-read it soon
Cheers.

[mugen88]

This is a very open questions and there will be a lot of different responses.

Are you performance oriented or after just looks.

Performance= reducing weight/ light weight rims

Looks= big/bold with weight gain

Rolling diameter should not change much as long as you stick to the plus rule when upgrading tyres and wheels sizes.

Good luck in finding the right wheels.

[traumatized]

This is a very open questions and there will be a lot of different responses.

Are you performance oriented or after just looks.

Performance= reducing weight/ light weight rims

Looks= big/bold with weight gain

Rolling diameter should not change much as long as you stick to the plus rule when upgrading tyres and wheels sizes.

Good luck in finding the right wheels.

Yeah i do release it is a open question, as it is a AUTO i will not be into performance.

[kenny]

if you're not into performance, go for 19s... they suit the euro just nice, and when you lower it, u dont have to go on an angle up bumps etc unless they are like massively angry huge hahaha... i've got 19s on mine, with a luckystar kit, and lowered, and no need to go on angle when goin up bumps etc... hope this helps..

[adammet04]

I reckon go 18's..

slightly cheaper for rubber :) and it will last longer than 19s rubber..

cheers

[adammet04]

lowering by 35mm will (in my opinion) mke you scrape going up driveways etc

i have some pedders springs which lowered my car about 27mm.. and i scrap on some driveways ( i dont have body kit ) ..you may have issues with clearence on some types of speed humps as well..

another thing to take note of is car parking spaces when parking into curbs etc.

you will have to be careful not to drive into the curb..

cheers

[SiReal]

Go 18s. with a mild and subtle drop, it will look nice.

[sameol3]

Yeah i'd have to say 18's also...17's looks quite small on the large wheel arches... getting tyres for 18's is much cheaper then 19's... the tyre is dependant on which if it will increase rolling diameter or not...obviously u will have to get low profile tyres if u want to try to keep the same diameter.

in terms of lowering it 3.5 cm...im not sure myself but sounds ok.. there are a few ppl in the forum in which have lowered it around 2 - 2.5 inches by saying that im pretty sure 1.5 inches in which u are intending should be fine.

[traumatized]

thanks for the replies everyone keep them coming, i must admit i am leaning towards 18" more so than the 17s however I'm just concern about lowering it after 35mm as i don't want to scrape or damage the factory kit.

does anyone here have a euro with a factory kit on it lowered by 35mm? just want to know some measurements from ground to front skirt and ground to side skirts.

or even some pictures of euros with some 18's and a 35mm drop?

19s will cost too much for rubber when it comes time to change them so i guess 18s will be the way to go for me. now the only concern is lowering will it scrape or not.

also another thing if i do get 18s should i go for dished or not dished, will 18s dished look small for the euro?

[BiLL|z0r]

I have an auto but would go 17's anyway due to weight. Performance is not the only reason to get lighter rims. Increased braking time and worse handling can also be a side effect of bigger heavier rims. 0 -100 or bling isn't everything. It's a car and still needs to be safe.

[tony1234]

I've got 17s with no body kit with a 35mm drop.I think you'll have clearance issues with a body kit particularly as you live in Sydney and the roads/driveways/speedhumps etc.are complete shit.I've scraped my ft.bumper a few times(not bad)underneath.You have to watch those concrete blocks in car parks when you drive your car ft.in to a spot.

[akina]

i have dropped mine only 25mm with 17" rims. and it still looks stock so im sure dropping another 10mm wouldn't have any clearance issues. in fact 35mm drop would look the best imo... not too low nor too high.

[IAMVTEC]

Dont lower your car, you will end up looking a fool.

[EKVTIR-T]

Dont lower your car, you will end up looking a fool like me.

WTF :confused:

[EUR003act]

lowering by 35mm will (in my opinion) mke you scrape going up driveways etc

i have some pedders springs which lowered my car about 27mm.. and i scrap on some driveways ( i dont have body kit ) ..you may have issues with clearence on some types of speed humps as well..

another thing to take note of is car parking spaces when parking into curbs etc.

you will have to be careful not to drive into the curb..

cheers

exactly right! mines lowered on pedders with 18"s and honda bodykit, approx 35-25mm front and back. i have scraped a few times since getting it lowered, some driveways, some speed bumps, blah blah blah... but it looks perfect, suits the euro nicely!

[traumatized]

i have dropped mine only 25mm with 17" rims. and it still looks stock so im sure dropping another 10mm wouldn't have any clearance issues. in fact 35mm drop would look the best imo... not too low nor too high.

what did you lower your car with to get a 25mm drop? i'm only worried about scraping the kit on sydney roads, i don't mind though kerbs in the parking spaces as i'm use to reversing into parking spots with my last 2 lowered car i had previously

just want to keep my car in good looking condition

[traumatized]

exactly right! mines lowered on pedders with 18"s and honda bodykit, approx 35-25mm front and back. i have scraped a few times since getting it lowered, some driveways, some speed bumps, blah blah blah... but it looks perfect, suits the euro nicely!

do you have any picutures of your car that i can see? just to see the height of you car?

when you say you have scraped a few times you mean you don't scrape always only on big humps and dips and stuff right?

so you mean that you lowered your car 35mm at the front and 25mm at the back?

i don't know if this is asking too much but would you be able to go and measure the clearance you have from the ground to the front skirt and also the ground to the side skirts? just so i have a good idea of how low it would be.

thanks

[traumatized]

Dont lower your car, you will end up looking a fool.

huh????

[akina]

i lowered my car with a mugen sport suspension, which the height is fixed and not adjustable.

if u srs about keeping your car in good condition, drive slowly on the humps and driveways. its actually not that easy to scratch ur car unless u drive like a fool with only lowering 35mm on the euro. of course there are exceptions on some driveways but u'll be fine with most of them in sydney.

here's mine:
http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=69318&page=3

[traumatized]

i lowered my car with a mugen sport suspension, which the height is fixed and not adjustable.

if u srs about keeping your car in good condition, drive slowly on the humps and driveways. its actually not that easy to scratch ur car unless u drive like a fool with only lowering 35mm on the euro. of course there are exceptions on some driveways but u'll be fine with most of them in sydney.

here's mine:
http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=69318&page=3

thanks for the info again.. can you if possible do me a favour and measure your stock 17" rims with tyre from tyre edge to tyre edge (diameter) I just want to see how much difference there is with my 16" wheels

[luv_psi]

ive been thinkin about this for my euro as well. Im more inclined to puttin 19's on my car. But ive seen a few euros with 20's and now i dunno which i wanna put on hehe

[akina]

ive been thinkin about this for my euro as well. Im more inclined to puttin 19's on my car. But ive seen a few euros with 20's and now i dunno which i wanna put on hehe

trust me... 19"s are enough ;)

19" already takes away the performance and the $$ enough... 20"s are just too extreme, in fact it would look crappy IMO.

If thinking of 19"s+... a lowering is a must lol

My stock ones are 17x7.0 JJ, 225/45 R17 91W all around.

If u got the std euro it would have been 16x6.5 JJ, 205/55 R16 91V.

[snYpz]

I've got 17 as well. I think 17 are just fine IMO
Will lower my car by about 25mm with tein ss at the end of the year if all goes according to plan. I live in Sydney and my only concern is scraping on certain roads such as Parramatta Rd, in particular when turning into some of the side streets once i lower the car. Some of the streets are terrible like the side street to Bunnings Auburn off Parra Rd for those who are familiar with it! :(
hey Akina, post more pics of ur euro lowered 25mm! :D

[vippy84]

Get 19" * 8 with 235 or 245 low profile tyres will make ur car look beautiful especially if you are going for looks instead of performance..
I have my integra with 18" while stock is 16" with king springs super low.. it looks damn nice with ur tyres inside the wheel archs..

definitely, when u get ur car lowered n using bigger rims.. watch out for potholes and bumps.. u will have to bear from people horning at you..

i had that a lot of times in adelaide.. when i turn into carparks or shopping places... people sounded the horn at me coz i was driving too slow to avoid the scratching on my car.. also.. u need to memorise the road and the condition of the roads as well.. u dont want to hit potholes which will make ur drivin become uncomfortable.. :P

ur car will look like a VIP if you use 19" with 35mm lowering.. :P make sure u buy the right rims that suit your car :P

good luck mate

[akina]

I've got 17 as well. I think 17 are just fine IMO
Will lower my car by about 25mm with tein ss at the end of the year if all goes according to plan. I live in Sydney and my only concern is scraping on certain roads such as Parramatta Rd, in particular when turning into some of the side streets once i lower the car. Some of the streets are terrible like the side street to Bunnings Auburn off Parra Rd for those who are familiar with it! :(
hey Akina, post more pics of ur euro lowered 25mm! :D

Trust me... lowering 25mm shouldn't get u any major problems. Driving on a normal road like parra rd, shouldn't get u any problems. Just gotta watch out for potholes, like the one when u go past leicharde (whatever the spelling is).

Haha, I'm probably the only one here lowered 25mm as other ppl would go for more. IMO... lowering 25mm wouldn't get ppls look but when they do, they will c that it looks bit better than other stock euros but they won't know its lowered.

[tony1234]

I've got 17 as well. I think 17 are just fine IMO
Will lower my car by about 25mm with tein ss at the end of the year if all goes according to plan. I live in Sydney and my only concern is scraping on certain roads such as Parramatta Rd, in particular when turning into some of the side streets once i lower the car. Some of the streets are terrible like the side street to Bunnings Auburn off Parra Rd for those who are familiar with it! :(
hey Akina, post more pics of ur euro lowered 25mm! :D
I agree.I'm running 17s with a 35mm drop,wouldn't be game to go any lower!Roads in Sydney are a fcuking joke.Theyr'e a disgrace!:thumbdwn::thumbdwn:

[Euro76]

I would go for 18" to make the car par between looks and performance.

[traumatized]

thanks for the replies everyone, its good to know different opinions on these things.

I think I will go for 18s, maybe just get the 18s and see how much i can lower it by without scraping all the time.

Now the only issue is finding a nice set of 18s, don't want to spend too muh either a little short on money these days.

[sonnic]

For a cost effective solution I used King Springs which gave about 40mm drop (after the first set were replaced with re-designed new model that didn't rattle!) and I have an OEM body kit with 18" rims. I have no problem with speed humps and dips, provided they are approached sensibly.

[yfin]

For a cost effective solution I used King Springs which gave about 40mm drop (after the first set were replaced with re-designed new model that didn't rattle!) and I have an OEM body kit with 18" rims. I have no problem with speed humps and dips, provided they are approached sensibly.

Not really cost effective when after 12 months you need to replace all 4 shock absorbers!

[traumatized]

For a cost effective solution I used King Springs which gave about 40mm drop (after the first set were replaced with re-designed new model that didn't rattle!) and I have an OEM body kit with 18" rims. I have no problem with speed humps and dips, provided they are approached sensibly.

as the others may be busy would it be alright for you to measure the clearance from ground to front skirt and also ground to sid e skirt for me?

[EuroAccord13]

as the others may be busy would it be alright for you to measure the clearance from ground to front skirt and also ground to sid e skirt for me?


If you want to measure it to see if if clears whatever you are driving through, it's not the lowest point of the car to measure.....

[akina]

seriously, lowering how much or clearance isn't really your biggest enemy... its ur driving skills. Knowing how to drive up the driveways will solve the problem.

[EuroAccord13]

Skill is one thing, but if you are going to be downright low to the max, skill is no use...

[traumatized]

If you want to measure it to see if if clears whatever you are driving through, it's not the lowest point of the car to measure.....

I agree that it is not the lowest point on the car, but it gives me a good indication of how low the car will be compared to my previous cars that i had which i did not have any issues with.

[sonnic]

Bottom of front airdam ('04 OEM) to ground 140mm
Bottom of front sideskirt to ground 150mm
Top of curve of front wheel arch to ground 640mm
Top of curve of rear wheel arch to ground 650mm
18" all round and OEM body kit. Hope that helps.

[kenny]

if you lower your car as per usual like almost everybody else, you shouldnt have troubles making it up speed bumps etc if you take it sensibly of course... there is no point lowering the car if you are gonna take speed bumps etc at full speed, of course it will hit.. unless you lower it to a ridiculous height, then yeah no matter how you take the bumps, you will hit it haha, but apart from that you should be fine..

[traumatized]

Bottom of front airdam ('04 OEM) to ground 140mm
Bottom of front sideskirt to ground 150mm
Top of curve of front wheel arch to ground 640mm
Top of curve of rear wheel arch to ground 650mm
18" all round and OEM body kit. Hope that helps.

Thanks so much this has helped me out so i can get a rough
idea of how much the drop will be and so forth.

Once again thanks for taking the time to measure it for me.