Question about 996 Carrera 4 ride quality

Hello all, I recently acquired a 2001 Carrera 4 with approx 59,000 miles. It came with 19" wheels (235/30/19 front & 275/30/19 rear) I notice that the car rides really hard (I live in New York) and it is no doubt due to the wheel size. If I go back to 18", will there be a noticeable improvement in ride quality? and if so, what tire sizes are recommended? Thanks

I have Nitto 555's 225/40/ZR18 & 265/35/ZR18 on the turbo look wheels. I drove a lot of these cars over the past couple years and mine is one of the smoother rides. Its still harder than most cars but pretty good in comparison. I would say the 19" wheels would make it a harder ride.

Yes, there will be a change in ride harshness but whether or not it's substantial enough for you to appreciate or sufficient to meet your wants is way too subjective to know. Have you driven any other C4s (or even C2s) to compare the ride? Does your car have any suspension upgrades? The C4 originally came with 225/40-18 fronts and 265/35-18 rears but I believe 17s will fit, too. If you're looking for a softer ride, moving down to a 17 will definitely change the firmness of the ride as compared to 19s. -Eric

These aren't luxury cars, so ride quality is subjective, but generally, 18's will ride somwhat better than 19's, but keep in mind that all high performance tires have stiff sidewalls so the ride won't be smooth even with 18's.

What tire pressure(s) are you currently running with? I also have 19s on my C2 and found 33/39 to be a happy medium for street driving.

Thank you all for your responses... currently I am running 34 psi front, 44 psi rear... this is my 3rd Porsche... my first was an '82 930 with 18's (nice ride with Continental's) a '00 Boxster with 17's (nice ride with Michelin Pilot's), but the Carrera 4 (my first and only experience) feels like I am inside a 55 gallon drum with someone banging it with a baseball bat every time I drive over expansion joints on the highway... now, bear in mind that I am in the New York Metro area... so the roads are not like in Arizona... I am running General tires (came on the car) I am not sure if a better tire would be smoother, even though I doubt it. I know the car was originally designed for 18's... even though many people are running 19's. Has anyone any experience with 19's? Will a more expensive tire be nicer or should I just go back to 18's?

I run 19"s all summer,in the winter switch back to 18" turbo twists. Both sets are hankooks. Yes the 19s are definitely a bit punishing at times,but the trade off is they handle really well. However if were driving a lot off metro,I probally would run 18s or 17s to soften the ride but also give more sidewalk to protect your rims. Just my .02

I have a C2 and a C4S and run 18" on both cars. Check your option codes. M030 is a factory sport suspension and it does ride on the harsh side, but the handling is also notiecabley better. My C4S rides smoother than the C2 with the M030 but the C4S with the standard touring suspension. Personally I am fine with the firmer ride, but my wife always asked if there was something wrong with the C2 and said it rides like buck board. No complaints from her in the C4S though. I asked my dealer about 19" for the C4S and i was told "NO" - not enough sidewall for my driving style and they would ride harsher. And from my soapbox - ditch the General Tires - run the approved "N" spec tires. There is a difference and a reason Porsche requires them. Even among "N" spec tires the brands do ride differently. For summer tires I ran Continentals and they were much harder and harsher riding than the Bridgestones that I now run on both of mine in summer. For winter, I would also stick with N specs - I have them on the C2 but made a mistake and did not put them on the C4S, because I couldn't find N specs at the time. World of difference in my opinion. Often times the tires on the C4S literally feel as if the sidewall is folding under through a turn so I must drive the C4S differently than the C2, and when I forget to do so it is a wake up call for sure. The winter tires are necessary based on temperature, not whether or not you are going to drive through the snow. I have always driven the C2 year round and think it is a great snow car. I hope you find a wheel and tire combo that makes it better for you so you can enjoy the car.

Just out of curiosity, how would one find out what option codes one would have on a used car?

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There should be a sticker under the front hood--also the same sticker is in the back of your maintenance book, if it came with the car. Write down the numbers and there are various places on the net with option decoders. David

Option sticker is located under your frunk. There is also a decoder link where you just type in your vin. https://rennlist.com/forums/9085799-post6.html https://rennlist.com/forums/2189676-post5.html

I have 1999 C4 with X-74 suspension - so it is quite stiff. Just drove over 1700 miles from Ottawa Ontario to Fort-Myers Florida. The car was very comfortable running on 17" wheels and snow tires. It is quite a bit less harsh on the 17" wheels than the 18" summer wheels and tires that I run in from April to November. I can only imagine how hard 19" wheels would be - I suspect that you are feeling it. Sounds like 18" would be an improvement.

I agree with Fergus. My 17" snows are more compliant than my 18" PS2s. To the OP, do you know anything about your suspension? X74 or PSS9 (or PSS10) will be a bit firmer than stock.

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fbgh2o, What size 17 snows are you running? I am looking to pick up a set soon for the winter and thought that I'd drop down to 17s for a softer ride.

I agree with the previous comments. I think 18s would make a difference in your ride quality, but it probably wouldn't be huge. I'd be interested to know which suspension you have also - I think that makes a big difference. For comparison, we have 20-inch wheels on our Cayenne. If I set the suspension in comfort mode, it floats like a Cadillac. If I set it in normal mode, it's very comfortable, and still not as firm as my C4S. If I set it in sport mode, it's actually stiffer than the C4S. I know that a Cayenne isn't a good comparison to a 911 in terms of ride quality, but I used this example to illustrate the fact that the suspension has a great deal to do with ride quality, not just the tires. I'm also a supporter of 18" wheels on the 996 and of N-spec tires. There are lots of people who have different opinions on these two issues, but my feeling is that it's best to stick with the sizes and tires that were designed, tested and approved for this car.

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Our third vehicle is (dare I say here) A dodge grand caravan and we had new Hankook tires installed. The ride differance with Hankooks was remarkable. A much quieter smooth soft feel to the van. When I change my 966 tires I will defo be using Hankooks. I have 18 inch on the 966 right now and i feel every bump in the road with 36psi front and 44psi rear Goodrich all round. Not like someone banging a steel drum with a baseball bat. Not really annoying. Rather than you shelling out all that money on 18inch wheels and tires, do you know anyone who would lend you a set for a test drive first. Maybe a local Porsche garage. I should imagine it would be very annoying if you went to all that trouble buying new 18 inch wheels and found the same problem afterwards. I think I would certainly try dropping the tire pressure 4 pounds on the 19 inchers before shelling out. See how that feels.

I found the codes in my maintenance schedule, and entered them here: http://www.kindel.com/porsche/options/options.asp There was no mention of suspension when I decoded so I am assuming that it is the stock suspension. Perhaps 18's will be the way for me to go, too bad, as I love the way that the 19's look on the car.

Happy New Year all! Anyways, what is the stock wheel size and offset (in 18") as well as tire size for a 2001 Carrera 4?