17 or 18 inch wheels cant decide

[kylepiggy]

hi guys own a standard 01 leon tdi se but cant decide whether to have 17 or a18's is there any pros or cons between the two sizes apart from tyre prices. i have not decided what style of wheel just wanted to get some opinions from u guys first. thanks

 

[Mylo]

18's for looks, 17's for handling and grip.

The ride on 18's with 40 profile tyres can be rather harsh, dependant on the suspension you are running.

 

[leonrob]

17s are a better ride but i like 18s because i recon you have to lower the car less for it to look allot nicer

 

[Gordz]

18's for looks, 17's for handling and grip.

The ride on 18's with 40 profile tyres can be rather harsh, dependant on the suspension you are running.

I agree with Mylo, I'd personally only go with 18's if it's a show car or you don't do many miles, or the roads round by you are nice and smooth!

 

[kylepiggy]

thanks for your advice well my car is the run around as my show car is my 5.0 v8 capri and my leon does round 7000 miles a year so will go for 17's me thinks for the ride quality

 

[GMH23]

Good choice, I've got a 2002 leon tdi 110, not mapped yet, put some 17's on recently, ride is still pretty good, maybe with some eibach's on it (-25/30mm) it'll look sweet!

 

[sie77]

I was going through the same thought process a few weeks back and went for 17's in the end as they seem to be the best compromise between the standard 16's (pre-facelift) and 18's.

 

[Murdered LCR]

Leons have huge arches 18s all the way ride ain't that bad

 

[andycupra]

18" for looks.

17" for everything else. comfort. handling, acceleration...

dont forget the design of the alloys can effect how they look. (in particular the outer rim of the alloy)
Some 18" alloys look lost, while some 17" can look ok.

 

[adam cupra 20vt]

I saw a yellow leon on aftermarket 17's at the weekend, looked rubbish to be honest they were lost in the arches.

 

[Murdered LCR]

18s for looks and comfort and handling and space for big brakes , there a big car need big wheels

 

[Gordz]

Good choice, I've got a 2002 leon tdi 110, not mapped yet, put some 17's on recently, ride is still pretty good, maybe with some eibach's on it (-25/30mm) it'll look sweet!

Good choice of car

 

[SalSheikh]

18's mate,

check my avatar, i have 18's on mine and really the ride isnt that much different than when i had 17's on.

 

[gav_FR]

I agree with 18s.... I honestly didn't notice a difference in comfort when I changed from 17" to 18".

 

[waylander]

Ask yourself this, are you after performance or too look showy?

If you want performance get the 17" the less unsprung mass the better, !7" accelerate better grip better and change direction better than 18" mostly due to this fact.

If you want to look cool (and this is a matter of pure style opinion) get 18"

I personally go 17" all the way for performance

 

[DannyC87]

Ask yourself this, are you after performance or too look showy?

If you want performance get the 17" the less unsprung mass the better, !7" accelerate better grip better and change direction better than 18" mostly due to this fact.

If you want to look cool (and this is a matter of pure style opinion) get 18"

I personally go 17" all the way for performance

Not necessarily. 18" OEM LCR wheels weigh less with tyres than the 17" LCR style wheels found on the FR+...

 

[adam cupra 20vt]

Yep my 18's are a lot lighter than the standard 16's they replaced.

 

[gav_FR]

Same here, my 18s are lighter than the 17s they replaced.

 

[sie77]

I think as long as you buy good quality 18's and not cheap/heavy reps it won't make a big difference.