17in wheels

Who's running 17in wheels that has also run 18in? I'm very tempted by a set I've found and quite fancy them with some sticky rubber and then lowering the car. Just looking for feedback on those that have done this.

No one switched between the two sizes? Just looking for some feedback.

My 996 came with 10 spoke carrera wheels on 17s. Great wheels, light, etc. I then fitted 18" 5 spoke carrea wheels, which I currently have on. When the tyre wear is less than 4mm they start to tramline. On my 964, 18's are crap, and I run 17s. Far better handling all round. Your 996 will run beautifully on 17s. Ride height shouldn't differ, as you have a bigger tyrewall, so the rolling circumference should be (pretty much) the same. Edit, my profile pic below has my 18 inch 5 spokes on my 996 and 10 spoke 17s on my 964. Not forever though, I need to change my profile pic as my 964 looks nothing like that now!

Thanks, its the perceived increase in "movement" that I was little concerned with. If it did go this was I was contemplating something like the Yoko Ado8r tyre. Kind of liking the smaller wheel bigger tyre lowered thing that the older cars have.

I ran the 10 spoke 17" for a few years and was always happy with the ride/ handling. But I always like the look of the 18" split rim BBS wheels so bought some on eBay. Ride similar but stability a bit lower. Much improved from a visit to Center Gravity this year. Both sets on Michelin PS. To be honest, I think it drives better with the 17" but I'm not a great driver! Happy for anyone to try the comparison.

I went from the 18" sport design wheels to the 17" 10 spokes that are on the 964 in the profile pic above. I did this because I wanted a better ride and the 10 spoke 17s are the lightest OE production wheel that was ever available for the 996. That said, after weighing them, although the fronts were lighter, the rears were really not that much lighter. The car definitely drives better with them. It's a perceptible difference, not night and day, but I can definitely tell. The ride is improved, and handling is also improved because the taller side walls allow the tyre to work better with the negative camber at the rear. Aesthetically though, it's a retrograde step. I much much preferred how the car looked on the sport designs. So much so that I will probably change back to them eventually.

Thanks, yeah I don't doubt the asthetic side for sure. Im using my car a lot more and want to get new suspension with will probably mean lower and it just coincided with finding these wheels so thought it might be a good compromise to go with the bigger sidewalls. 90% of the time im on bumpy A and B roads so have to think about that. Id sacrifice some aesthetics if it meant a lot nicer drive. If its a marginal difference not so sure. Saying that I cant seem to be able to get the wheels in 18in from anywhere.

I went from 18s to the 10 spoke 17s, build thread here: http://911uk.com/viewtopic.php?t=133374&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 On our crappy Cornish roads, I'm finding the ride improved for no noticeable downside. Edit: I kept my sport designs as I prefer the look of them too. For now these stay/are my choice for day-to-day.

My car came on the heavy 17" carrera 4 wheels. I swapped after a few months to 18" wheels. I quickly sold the 17s, didn't like the style or weight - I think the PO stuck them on for sale as it previously wore 997 wheels. The car does not ride as well on 18s - its instantly noticeable. I never took it to the track on 17s but on our roads it was much better on 17s. 6 years later my 18s need a refurb (poor job done last time) and I have a set of 10 spoke 17s as above (the lightest oe 17) awaiting next time I need tyres. For on the limit use sidewall stiffness may be a factor, but for road use I thought the 17s were better. I do think about it every time I drive it but will wait for new tyres. The 18 sport design do look sooo good though.