17" vs 18" wheels

[JonInSanDiego]

I have a new 330Cic on order and I was showing the specs of it to a friend. He immediately noticed that I was getting 18" wheels instead of the usual 17" tires. I have to confess that I just nodded my head in agreement but I didn't have a clue what the real difference is between the two. Can someone out there educate me?

Thanks for your help.

[waapples]

I have a new 330Cic on order and I was showing the specs of it to a friend. He immediately noticed that I was getting 18" wheels instead of the usual 17" tires. I have to confess that I just nodded my head in agreement but I didn't have a clue what the real difference is between the two. Can someone out there educate me?

Thanks for your help.


are you getting the performance package? because the performace package comes with nice 18" rims.

17" vs 18"? well it's just personal preference whichever you want to go with.
18" tires will handle better on curves because the side walls of the 18" tires will be thinner than the 17" rims/tires when counting the fact that they have the same diameter.
but i would personally go with 17" rims though, because the 17" tires are cheaper to replace and since we aren't living in the world where the public roads aren't always nicely maintained.

[JonInSanDiego]

Unfortunately, I'm not getting the Performance package. I thought long and hard about it and for me, it just didn't make sense. The tires I'm getting are an upgrade (#71). I really wanted a nav system and when the dealer searched around, the only one she could find with the colors I wanted, had the upgraded tires.

Thanks for the info on tire sizes.

[doeboy]

Unfortunately, I'm not getting the Performance package. I thought long and hard about it and for me, it just didn't make sense. The tires I'm getting are an upgrade (#71). I really wanted a nav system and when the dealer searched around, the only one she could find with the colors I wanted, had the upgraded tires.

Thanks for the info on tire sizes.

You mention it's on order.... what status is it in... is it a car the dealer pre-ordered that way before you came along? if you ordered the car to your taste/liking... why are there 18" wheels if you didn't originally order them specifically that way? Something sounds a little weird here....

If it's an existing car in their inventory, I don't see why they can't just swap wheels... many dealers are pretty accomodating when it comes to that... unless they just want you to pay more because it's already there on the car...

Either way though... Style 71s are nice.... I hope they're giving you a pretty good deal on it at least....

[JonInSanDiego]

You mention it's on order.... what status is it in... is it a car the dealer pre-ordered that way before you came along? if you ordered the car to your taste/liking... why are there 18" wheels if you didn't originally order them specifically that way? Something sounds a little weird here....

If it's an existing car in their inventory, I don't see why they can't just swap wheels... many dealers are pretty accomodating when it comes to that... unless they just want you to pay more because it's already there on the car...

Either way though... Style 71s are nice.... I hope they're giving you a pretty good deal on it at least....
When I went to the dealer, my requirements were that it be a black on black 330Cic with nav and the brushed aluminum interior. The rest of it I was fairly ambivalent about. There was exactly one of them coming in on the boat and they had to do a trade with the dealer who was supposed to be receiving it. This particular car has the 18" wheels on it. Personally, I think they look good but from a performance standpoint, I didn't have a clue what difference it made. Thus my posting. :)

[flashinthepan]

Personally, I like 17's or 18's. 19's start to look like overkill.

But its all personal taste, when it comes to looks.

[JonInSanDiego]

Oops...forgot to add that I wanted SMG also.

[doeboy]

When I went to the dealer, my requirements were that it be a black on black 330Cic with nav and the brushed aluminum interior. The rest of it I was fairly ambivalent about. There was exactly one of them coming in on the boat and they had to do a trade with the dealer who was supposed to be receiving it. This particular car has the 18" wheels on it. Personally, I think they look good but from a performance standpoint, I didn't have a clue what difference it made. Thus my posting. :)

Ok... so it was not custom ordered by you and they "slipped" in the wheels or something like that. That's all I was a little confused about.

The style 71s look great... I'm not sure about the weight of the wheels though.

[JonInSanDiego]

Yea, poor choice of words on my part, admittedly. Thanks for your thoughts on the different tire sizes....now I know! :thumbup:

[Pinecone]

Basically, for the same sized overall diameter, 18s will handle better. More cornering force, quicker turn in.

The larger wheels typically weigh more and thus will decrease the acceleration slightly.

Larger diameter wheels, take more expensive tires, and less choice of tire makes and models in the size you need. At least for now. Used to be that way with 17s.