18 or 19 inch wheels

Im looking at purchasing some HRE Classic 300 wheels for my 2004 C4S and want to get peoples opinions, should I go with the stock size 18" wheels or upgrade to 19" wheels, looking for opinions, I just enjoy driving my car not looking to race or anything just want to keep smiling while i'm driving!

I have a 2003 C4S that came with 19" wheels and changed to 18" for the following reasons: The car was designed for 17" and 18" wheels limited 19" tire sets available 19" tire choices mean it is difficult to maintain the same tire diameter between front and rear which causes wear to the AWD system of a C4S You will end up with a larger gap between the front tire and the fender unless you change suspension due to different tire diameter between front and rear The car doesnt look right to me with small sidewalls

I think the cars look best with 19 inch wheels. I�ve driven both 18�s and 19�s. Coincidentally, the one with 19�s was a C4 and it rode perfectly. Mine is a C2 on 18�s.

I like a bigger wheel, so I vote 19.

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My vote is for 17s. 😊. I know, I know. And it's unlikely hre even make 17s. Are those Wheels really 2k EACH? Whoa ...

18's in gt3 specs. Could never get 19s to fit correctly with my lowered car.

18

I am also biased with 18"...in particular GT3 wheels I think are perfection on a 996. Generally, for some reason 19s look to big to me but yet look just right on 997 and don't understand why I feel that way since they are effectively the same body. There is an exception however, diddy2003 posted his aero with 19" 997 lobsterclaws and frankly I think its stunning and looks better on his car then on the 997 it was stock on. Was never a fan of lobster claws until I saw them on a nicely setup 996 997 lobster claw on 996 mk1 C2 - Rennlist - Porsche Discussion Forums

I’m a wheel ***** and I admit it 4 sets of 18s and 3 19s the best fit was my GT3 wide setup the best look was the polished HRE 19s 18s will give a better rubber selection and slightly better ride the 19s gave a sharper turn in

I had 19" wheels on my 996 but went back to 18" Turbo Twists. Unlike the 997, the 996 was never designed to support 19" wheels. The fender's diameter and ride height just doesn't look right with 19" wheels IMHO. Even when wheel offset and tires sizes are adjusted to compensate for the larger tire it still doesn't look right. (see example) It produces a harder ride and in my case, the fronts scrubbed with sharp turns.

Like B3, I found that 19's ruined the ride. I also think 19's on my 996 made PSM too twitchy - so I'm in the 18 camp.

The car was designed for 17s and 18s. Go 18s 19s look way too big. Also ride quality suffers.

19s on a 996 give it this look� not good

Wow you guys went ghetto lol

Man @NYPOWR4 you really cleaned that car up!

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Not so sure about that. I have 19� on my car and have never felt they look out of place. The ride could be softer, but that�s not my goal with a 911.

I did the 19 inch in the rear and 18 in the front, IMO it looks great and rides great, I am riding on coil-overs.

I'd suggest 18s for overall performance and looks.

Your car looks phenominal @yo_keutla , are those Apex EC-7RS�s? My 996 on 18" CCW C14's.

Previous owner of my (since sold) 996 C4S had put on lobster fork/claw 19" wheels from a 997 C4S. I loved the wheels but like @sfapsey mentioned, they make it difficult to get the matching front and rear circumference. I also always wondered in the back of my mind what impact on handling, acceleration, and ride quality they had. Cheers Charlie

18" is the only option, unless you're not driving the car as intended and are looking to hard park only. GT3s and GT2/Turbos came with 18s for a reason, they could have gone with 19s but as mentioned, wheel/tire combo is part of the active suspension. Leave 19s for 997 and 991....

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The day Charlie joined us light years before Elon Musk won his heart. (sniffle)

We will have to agree on disagree... I have 19" Champion RG19s, and I think the car looks great. My suspension setup is the RoW C4S springs with Bilstein B6. What makes the difference in my opinion, is that these wheels were designed specific for these cars (offset, etc) Also, regarding concerns about tyre dimensions, just go with the dimensions used in the 997 C4/C4S (235/35 Front - 295/30 Rear. Also valid 305/30). Is the same chasis and same AWD system. My car has these wheels since 2004, 65Kmiles now, and no issues at all. The ride is a bit more stiff than with 18", but no problems pushing it hard or turning

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In my opinion, 19's look perfect on the 996 Turbo platform. I own a 996 C4S as well and my main wheelset is 19" in diameter. I genuinely do not feel a ride quality difference between my 19's and my 18's. Are there less tire options in 19"? Yes. However that doesn't mean that there are zero tire options. Michelin Pilot Sport 4S are the tires I like to use and those are available in 19" sizing. Photo of my buddy's 996 Turbo on 19" HRE 300's below. We're HRE's largest dealer in the world so I'll message you shortly to further help with your order. Instagram

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You crack me up

Turned into a display thread of some gorgeous cars. 👍

19's all day. If you're planning to track it, 18's.

I bought the car with 19�s so I don�t know any other ride. Seems fine, I just added Bilstein B4�s but I might buy a winter set of 18�s just to try. Will I need to deal with any figment issues when switching?

+1 for 19s aesthetically.

For the record, the best looking cars in this thread have altered suspensions (aka, ride heights), regardless of wheel sizes.

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roger that�.

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Yep, you got it

for some it might ride a bit too high but i live in Cleveland and between the pot holes and snow its awesome to have the extra room. Handleing is still amazing.

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I have to agree with mike....its really about how the ride height is matched to the wheel in question. Maybe that is why I like the 19s I talked about earlier....the car is set up perfectly. I feel pretty good about my car too....

18s are quicker. So there's that.

My car definitely rides harsher on my winter set which is 19" versus my regular set that is 18". To the point I am considering selling the winter set to get something in an 18". It could be the difference in tires as well, but I think the size plays a role.

Golden winter tires tend to ride softer different rubber compounds and less side wall strength I think an adjustable suspension has the best ride on any size rim on my car I had 20s and set the Ohlins to soft setting my car rode cushy but I didn’t lie the look of the rims most 911s ride on stockish suspension but an adjustable setup is best of all world regardless of rim size

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Thanks. I do plan to update the suspension at some point and want to go with an adjustable option. It's still on stock suspension and at just over 100,000 miles so it needs a refresh anyway.

I’ve driven the feel+ suspension very good value I had the JIC/Cross it gave me an excellent street drive but the best option for street and light track work is definitely the OHLINS R/T excellent but not as soft as my JIC my ride on both 18/19 were easily dialed in with either remember put in as many adjustable suspension pieces and you make your car into a scalpel

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Thank you 😎 I definitely like how it looks with the 997 Lobsters. I have 305s on it now. I can�t really speak to AWD wide body cars though. Here is my friend�s turbo with 19s and 18s. Offset really plays a big part in fitment. I have a 14mm spacer in front and nothing in the back.

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You're not wrong @Mike Murphy . I keep trying to convince myself that my C2 stock ride height is good enough but I must say it does look like a bit of a 'dentists edition' (not sure where I first read that description of a base 911, but for some reason it stuck in my head) from certain angles. Plenty of engine work needs doing but ultimately, it would be nice to have adjustable ride height. I'm kind of turned off by coilovers, they all seem to require the car be lowered 1.5 inches or more to allow the damper and spring to work correctly in the designed envelope. Does anyone know who makes coilovers that default to ROW ride height and allow lowering from their, or not, if one prefers? I'm on no rush to buy, it will be one of the last boxes ticked on my restoration. Maybe before a respray, maybe after. So so much money still to do between then and now.

It really depends on the road conditions where yiu live as well. If it�s a warmer climate without potholes 19s are great, but if you live with bad roads, 19s are wheel benders for sure. The smaller profile tire just doesn�t absorb much nonsense with potholes. Either way it�s the offset and stance that makes the car look good with either size wheel. A non lowered car with the correct offset just isn�t the same as the pictures above. I had 19s on my stock ride height 996 turbo, and they were an aggressive offset that was made for the car. Without lowering, the car just didn�t look right. After lowering it was good.

I think 19" definitely look better with 996 wide body cars or even aero car. But for me and my base Carrera, it looked like a big wheel wagon. Here's a picture I found of my 996 before moving to 18" Turbo Twists.

So basically my 21" 315/305 are good looking but VERY noisy.. We aoonnhave winter season here in Finland and think ibhad 20" for winter.. Ill look tomorrow. But Best compromise would be 20" with low noise tyres.. btw. These 21" lose always grip (slide) when wheels are turned max. I never had that kind of issue..