Ride quality with 20-inch wheels?

[lltrigg3rzonell]

I swapped the 20" oem wheels on and here's what I thought.

Daily Driving:
*not pushing the car, following the speed limit*
I can feel the difference but its very mild. It feels like the car is stiffer and you bounce around more than the 18" . But from what I can tell there isn't much of a difference

Performance Driving:
*Curves, High speed, Track mode on*
This is where you notice the big difference. I pushed the car yesterday by driving on the back roads that I usually take and can immediately feel the difference.

The car is stiffer and handles better in the turns. You bounce around a lot more but the car feels very planted. It feels like you are much more connected to the road while the 18 inch feels somewhat like a boat floating.
This makes me wish I got recaros to help with the bouncing around.

It is harder to get the rear tires to spin out. In 0-60 launches the 18 inch would spin out trying to get traction for about a second and a half. In the 20 inch it would chirp for half a second and it takes off.

Conclusion:
If you are NOT going to push the car: Stick with the 18"
If you are going to be doing alot of performance driving: Go with the 20"

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I swapped the 20" oem wheels on and here's what I thought.

Daily Driving:
*not pushing the car, following the speed limit*
I can feel the difference but its very mild. It feels like the car is stiffer and you bounce around more than the 18" . But from what I can tell there isn't much of a difference

Performance Driving:
*Curves, High speed, Track mode on*
This is where you notice the big difference. I pushed the car yesterday by driving on the back roads that I usually take and can immediately feel the difference.

The car is stiffer and handles better in the turns. You bounce around a lot more but the car feels very planted. It feels like you are much more connected to the road while the 18 inch feels somewhat like a boat floating.
This makes me wish I got recaros to help with the bouncing around.

It is harder to get the rear tires to spin out. In 0-60 launches the 18 inch would spin out trying to get traction for about a second and a half. In the 20 inch it would chirp for half a second and it takes off.

Conclusion:
If you are NOT going to push the car: Stick with the 18"
If you are going to be doing alot of performance driving: Go with the 20"

Thanks so much for following up with commentary after you put on 20 inch tires. That's as good of a comparison as I will find! I plan on pushing the car at times, where I feel it is safe, but I will only be touring, no racing. I'm beginning to feel that "all the time comfort" may outweigh he enhanced looks and the occasional increased fun factor. I've never had a really fast car, so I suppose I'll be happy with the level performance I can get on 18 inch tires.

 

[Don's Ruby]

Went from PP wheels to my 20 inch Foose wheels and I didnt notice any difference at all.

 

[lltrigg3rzonell]

Went from PP wheels to my 20 inch Foose wheels and I didnt notice any difference at all.

That is because the pp wheels is 19" and the performance pack has a stiffer suspension and upgraded sway bars. You would not feel a difference switching to 20".

 

[Need4SpeedMotors]

agreed ^

 

[drbrian722]

I just bought a set of 20" pull offs to replace the base 18" on my GT. I do not have the PP and when I push the car I find the limits of the 18" rubber pretty fast. I'm hoping that the increased tread width and smaller sidewall help me in spirited driving, but I'll let you know.

 

[JoeySD]

The 20" wheels simply look amazing on the s550 !!!

 

[Laztug]

Pick up a larger tire with the 20s.
I run 315 35rear 275 35 fronts on my 20s.

 

[JoeySD]

Anymore feedback on the 20" foundry wheels? I saw these wheels on a 16' Magnetic....wowzers what a great combo for that color !!!!

 

[S550ilver]

Laztug, those are same tire sizes I run, and it rides just fine as well. PLus it looks meaty as hell in the back....

 

[Higgs Boson]

I have 20" Foundrys and will sell them....with or without tires. Tires have 4K miles on them.

 

[JoeySD]

I was checking out a new 2016 Gen6 Camaro SS and they also have some nice 20" special wheels, but I really like the 20" Mustang foundry wheels the most !!!

 

[b00sted]

I switched from factory base 17's to the 20's. There was a huge difference and one I totally expected. The 20's are much more responsive, feel better, albeit harsher but the trade off is not so bad that it's not worth it. The difference between 18/19-20 is not so huge.

 

[mike@vossen]

Luckily its not like you are stuck with a 25 series sidewall in the S550....ride quality is very good on 20s....

 

[908ssp]

20" wheel with large size tires have as much side wall as 19"s with factory size tires. The added width makes dodging pot holes easier. Different make tires ride differently too so a stiff 19" tire can ride worse than a softer 20" tire.

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