18's on a Astra sport

kevin101

Buying a new astra sport over the comming days and I am considering upgrading to 18" five spoke alloys that come with low profile tyres.The cost is about 300 euro extra over the standard 17"s.Would these wheels sacrafice the comfort a lot and would I be buying tyres constantly.I live a little outside the city so some of the roads would not be great,any advice here would be super

bazz26

kevin101 wrote:

Buying a new astra sport over the comming days and I am considering upgrading to 18" five spoke alloys that come with low profile tyres.The cost is about 300 euro extra over the standard 17"s.Would these wheels sacrafice the comfort a lot and would I be buying tyres constantly.I live a little outside the city so some of the roads would not be great,any advice here would be super

Definately there will be a difference is the comfort and ride factor. Larger diameter alloy wheels can mean a firmer ride.

Depending on the roads you drive and Irish roads in general 18" wheels might not last. Tyres will definately be more expensive to replace if they get damaged.

Personally I would not go any bigger than 17" myself.

sonners

I have 19's on a Toyota Celica. Upgraded from 15's that were on her when i got her. It made the ride alot bumbier and I also lost some of her handling ability-car now bounces over potholes if ur going around a bend at speed.

I replace a tyre at least once every six months at around 180 euro a pop. I know there's only a difference of 20 or 30 euro between the price of 17's and the price of 18's but personally I would'nt go over 17 again.

It does depend on where ur driving though. My car is fine around the town but as soon as you go onto back roads u tend to regret upgrading.

:rolleyes:

Volvoboy

Steering will wobble like mad if you going fast on the motorway, you'll get flat tyres to beat the band, also they'll be buckled before ya know it, they'll throw yer tracking off, your spedo wont be accurate, they'll attrcact thevies and muppets alike.



So,
,
,
,
I would'nt recomend it at-all-at-all

-VB-


P.S, SHWEAAAAAAARRRR

*Couldnt help myself*



Sorry!

clarkey1980

kevin101 wrote:

Buying a new astra sport over the comming days and I am considering upgrading to 18" five spoke alloys that come with low profile tyres.The cost is about 300 euro extra over the standard 17"s.Would these wheels sacrafice the comfort a lot and would I be buying tyres constantly.I live a little outside the city so some of the roads would not be great,any advice here would be super

Kevin I have an astra sport too. Came with 16" sxi wheels and I bought these wheels in 18"

http://www.steinmetzdirect.com/products.asp?model=19

Haven't had any problems with flats, extra wear on tyres or steering wobble. Ride is not noticeably worse and I have changed the springs for eibach ones too

furtzy

Volvoboy wrote:

Steering will wobble like mad if you going fast on the motorway, you'll get flat tyres to beat the band, also they'll be buckled before ya know it, they'll throw yer tracking off, your spedo wont be accurate, they'll attrcact thevies and muppets alike.
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What? Nonsense. I have 18's that came on my Vectra and steering doesn't wobble as the wheels are balanced and the tracking and alignment is fine

Haven't had a puncture yet after a year and I live in an estate where construction is ongoing. No buckles as I tend not to wallop it off kerbs etc

Speedo is accurate as rolling diameter is the same as the 17"'s you can also get with this model and these were factory fit and not some Halfords add-on

Nobodys nicked them yet

omega man

Volvoboy wrote:

Steering will wobble like mad if you going fast on the motorway, you'll get flat tyres to beat the band, also they'll be buckled before ya know it, they'll throw yer tracking off, your spedo wont be accurate, they'll attrcact thevies and muppets alike.

What crap. My car came with 17's standard but i went with the 18's and having driven both there was nothing in it. You might notice it though when you hit a typical irish pot hole! If its in your budget just go for it instead of going for the 17's and regretting it every time you look at your motor then spending a fortune on an aftermarket job!

LarWright

furtzy wrote:

What? Nonsense. I have 18's that came on my Vectra and steering doesn't wobble as the wheels are balanced and the tracking and alignment is fine

Agreed! Nonsence!! €6 a wheel, get them balanced!

I have the upgraded 19's on my OPC and apart from feeling the bumps, the ride is WAY better than my previous GTC SXi on 16's! The tyres are wider so give more traction. Yes you lose some ride comfort, but if you want it, get it. At the end of the day, you're not in Hockenheim racing for a living, you're in Ireland, on crap roads... Alloys are purely cosmetic!

JoeA3

yes I must say I agree with some of the posters above... I've had factory 17" wheels on my car since new (over 2 years) and all the alloys are totally unmarked, I've never had a puncture or needed to replace any tyres. Admittedly my mileage is no more than average.
I think if the alloys are factory fitted and are designed to suit the car, you should have no problems unless of course you're in the habit of mounting kerbs, parking badly, etc..

MarkN

Used 18" wheels for 3 years myself on 4 different cars and no problems..

Had a couple of punctures but that could happen with a 14" wheel.

If the profile etc of the tyre is correct then the speedometer will not be out.

ciarsd

I'm another in the 18" wheel brigade..
Some of the negative comments posted above against them is pure bull!

Coming into my 4th year with my daily driver (2 different ones) sitting on 18s - not one dent, no imbalance, not one puncture - road noise is a little more noticeable but thats about it.

Maybe I'm a lucky one, but I think not..