Performance difference in 19" vs 20"

[BFord1]

I've been looking at aftermarket wheels and love the look of the 20s but have heard the 19s perform better. I'm assuming 19s perform better in a straight line with more side wall. Do 19s also perform better in corners?

Has anyone run both and can see a significant performance differenc?

Thx - B

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[Spykexx]

A shorter sidewall will give a quicker response (better would be just a personal opinion), but it's limit of adhesion and breakaway point will come much sooner, as the sidewall isn't capable of flexing and helping the contact patch hang on to that last bit of grip. This may be optimum for autox courses (opinions may vary), where speeds are not necessarily that high, and responsive steering holds more of an advantage. Probably not better under wet conditions, though, where your ability to retain more grip is more important than response times.

A taller sidewall will give a slower, more gradual response, but the sidewall will act as a lateral spring for the contact patch. Because there's some give to the sidewall, the patch can hang on that much longer, so you can push the lateral load just a hair more. This is probably more ideal for track use, where speeds are higher, and lateral loads are applied under greater duress

 

[Angry50]

wanting drag performance or like auto cross? There will be no significant performance difference. i see tons of people running 18 square setup for road course for cheaper tires. 20s look good, 19s give a "blend". but it all depends on what youre doing. the wheel in most cases will change nothing. the tires is the biggest contributor

 

[Grintch]

I've been looking at aftermarket wheels and love the look of the 20s but have heard the 19s perform better. I'm assuming 19s perform better in a straight line with more side wall. Do 19s also perform better in corners?

Has anyone run both and can see a significant performance differenc?

Thx - B

In an equivalent match up, 19s will be lighter, and perform better. In addition none of the hardcore track tires are availible in 20" sizes.

If you never track the car, you probably wouldn't notice the difference.

 

[Paul@PKAUTODESIGN]

To be honest you can have a mix of both

19" is more performance oriented, but there are wheels now that are 20" wheels that are lighter then some 19" wheels and you can go wider and lighter.

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