Awheel Question

[Neon1000]

Hello guys.

Does anyone know the pros and cons of having larger or smaller wheels?

[pgarner]

Pros of bigger wheels

Bigger Brakes
Looks better (as long as its not stupid big 20+" on a hatch just looks stupid to me )
can be easier to get wider tyres for more traction

Cons

Expensive in the tyre department
insurance
Harsher ride
more easily damaged / kerbed

[HDi fun]

I'll gio with the bigger brakes. If your car is getting on and has small wheels then fitting larger ones can give you better choice of tyres, thus making you safer, faster and happier.

We've got a 1996 Seat here which has 13" wheels. Next tyre change they'll be swapped for 15" steel rims so we can fit some good quality rubber.

Brakes are actually quite good for a small car so no need to change them. But the rear drums (hell, I've not driven a car with drum brakes for over fifteen years) need cleaning and adjusting.

[DaveyL]

Difficult one. Bigger rims in general look better(IMHO not on minis) and house bigger brakes. However, lower profile tyres transmit more road noise, they are heavier unsprung weight so the car handles worse, larger moment of inertia so can affect acceleration and will generally be wider, which reduces economy and isn't neccessarily grippier round the corners. They can also increase torque steer and wearing in the bearings etc

Smaller tyres have smaller brakes but:

Cheaper tyres
Cheaper wheels
Not as low profile so not as easy to curb(as pgarner said)
Better acceleration
Better handling(on the whole)

Also, if you have standard suspension, it will be designed for a certain diameter tyre. Mini's handle the best on 10" wheels for example. So, unless you change the suspension for the wheels you use, it will probs make it worse.

Dave

[waynne]

Good points there - especially the one about Torque steer DaveyL