row m030 daily driver, 18s to 17s? any experience?

First, I don't subscribe to the "bigger wheels are better" dictum. IMHO, I think the smallest, lightest wheels you can fit over your brakes, while preserving high quality tire choices, will offer the best performance. So, you know where my bias lies. I recently went w/row m030 on my 03 996 coupe, which is my daily driver. I love the handling and the ride height. What bothers me a little bit is the impact harshness, primarily from the rear. I think this is in large part due to the high recommended tire pressure for the rears in 18" guise. For some reason, the reco goes from 36psi for 17s to 44psi for 18s in the rear. IMHO, this is probably for rim protection as much as it is for handling. So, I have this suspicion that the car would be smoother on 17s (probably the '02+ factory wheels), while preserving 99+% of the handling. Has anyone run 17s w/factory sport suspension? Any opinions from folks out there? I know it might not look quite as cool, but who cares, it's a 911

Try dropping the tire pressure to 36 lbs in the rear and about 33 lbs in the front. You should get a better ride without significantly affecting tire wear. The OEM pressures make for a very harsh ride. The 17 inch wheel and tire option will get you a more comfortable ride. The std 996 17 inch wheel is also narrower than the 18 inch option wheel, which may affect your tire options. I'm sure you can get custom 17 inch wheels made so that you can fit wider tires, but that's going to be expensive. I use 18 inch wheels on the track and have 18 inch wheels for daily use and I have dropped my tire pressures for the street to take away some of the ride harshness.

I'm more concerned about protecting the rims than I am about tire wear (especially my "carrera lightweights). My guess is that this is the primary motivator behind the (relatively, and absolutely) higher pressure in the rear for the 18s. Does anyone have an answer to why they spec 44lbs in the rear on 18s? Has anyone had trouble w/bent wheels running <40lbs in the rear?

When driven at the track, if you don't have these higher pressures, the tire wear is very uneven (at the edges). So, I have to conclude that even on the street, the tire wear will suffer if you go with too low of pressure. How low is too low? I don't know. BTW - I had 17"'s on my Boxster S with RoW030 and you still feel the firmness of the suspension quite noticably so I'm not sure 17" wheels will soften it up enough for you???

i have 18" carrera light-weights on my '00 996 w/ the row m030. yeah, it's a little harsh on 2ndary roads or city streets, but i have yet to bend or crack a wheel in 80k miles. 17s would definately ride better, but then why go with the m030. maybe you should have just keep it stock.

I went with m030 because I wanted it to handle better. I think 18s are more cosmetic than handling improvement. And, the impact harshness was annoying stock, the m030 really doesn't have much to do with it. If anything, it has lessened the harshness. I'd even consider combining x74 and 17s. Again, because I'm looking for the ultimate ride/handling tradeoff. I guess I was really interested in 18 vs 17 from a handling POV. I know the taller sidewall will give me a bit softer ride, and that I'll lose a touch of turn-in precision, but beyond that are there any real downsides? On previous cars, I've actually found them more fun with smaller tires. Lower limits can make things more entertaining overall. Anybody out there think their car handles amazingly well on 17s? Anybody find the car less "lively" when going from 17s to 18s? Thanks, Scott.

Again, I'll reference my experience with the Boxster S with RoW030 and 17" wheels. It handled beautifully; I tracked it a lot for two years and now have my 40th on 18" wheels to compare and can say that I feel little if any difference in handling. However, as I mentioned above, I also don't feel much of difference in ride quality. Butt dynos vary significantly so you probably will never know unless you can fine a set of 17" wheels to try... Of course, there are many used sets out there in perfect condition so you could buy a set, try them, and if you don't like them you could sell them without losing any money. Give 'em a whirl

I'll mess w/tire pressure. I can't avoid the fact that the 18's look great. Pete, PS, congrats on the M3 feature in EC. That was yours, no? Good time to sell

Yeah, the 18's really do look nice. Indeed, that is my M3. It has been my trusty track steed for 5 years; now replaced by a Z06

For track use, I've dropped the hot tire pressures on the stock Rosso's to 36(F) and 40(R) without any wear on the shoulders. I was initially worried about rolling the tires over on the wheels. This was not a problem at these pressures and I ended up with less understeer and a better balanced car. Pete, are you going to start fiddling with your Z06 to make it a tack monster?

I've been running 41F 47R (hot) with both the stock Michelin ribs and Pirelli Corsa's and have been very happy. With the ribs, any lower and the edges of the tires wore down very quickly. Note that this is on a track (Pacific Raceways) that is notorious for killing tires, so, YMMV. Interestingly, a buddy that owns a Stradale was at the track yesterday complaining that his right front outer edge was chunking (on Corsas!). I suggested adding more air than he was told it should be at and sure enough, the tire wore more evenly. Re the Z06: It is pretty my a track beast right out of the box, so I'm just doing some fairly minor mods (pads, seats, rollbar, harnesses and transmission and diff coolers).

Well, I reduced the rears from 44 to 40lbs and the thing rides like a cadillac. Amazing.