17" versus 18" wheels
- Thread starter Guest
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I agree, size does matter, my 18"s looks great. I've seen people complain about the harsh ride of 18"s on other cars but I can't say I notice it on my Boxster, although I can't really compare it with anything as my car came with 18" rims. I do get quite a juddering on bad roads at times but I suspect that's more down to the rigid suspension rather than the tyres. Even in my local area, which is all cobblestones, the ride is fine and I reckon the extra bumps I feel are as much down to the firm suspension as the 18" wheels.
Dapster
New member
Anything with the "N" rating have been Porsche approved so the hard work of choosing has been done for you already. Continental, Pirelli, Michelin and Bridgestone all have N rated tyres - so for example you may see 265/45 ZR 18 N2 or something like that. Your tyre fitter will confirm. Search the threads for people's opinions on each brand.
The N rating is an interesting thing - you need N rated tyres for your 200 bhp 2.5 Boxster, but ostensively the same Continental Sport Contacts will be fitted as standard to an Audi RS-6 with 450bhp without any special qualification.
What year is your car John?
Very early Boxsters should not fit 18" wheels - the car was redesigned for them (strengthened) for the 1998 Model Year.
Very early Boxsters should not fit 18" wheels - the car was redesigned for them (strengthened) for the 1998 Model Year.
Phew
]
I understand that is the "updated" one and OK for 18's then.
If it helps for tyre choice, there is the last few years of Porsche's own tyre tests linked to in the FAQ at the top of this forum.
]I understand that is the "updated" one and OK for 18's then.
If it helps for tyre choice, there is the last few years of Porsche's own tyre tests linked to in the FAQ at the top of this forum.
I absolutely agree with oliver.
I went from 17" standard Boxster S twists with Pirelli P Zero Rossos (which I ran for 6 months and 7k miles) to 18" Cup 3 wheels with Michelin Sports.
The ride is noticably harsher. Only slightly, not uncomfortable but noticable if you have come from 17". I doubt someone who has only had 18" on their Boxster would consider the ride harsh though.
The car also seems to tramline a little now, but again this is not severe.
I also seem to have a bit more traction now, although I never thought the Boxster was short of this on 17"s. This could be down to the slightly wider rears or the change of tyre make. Hard to say.
I would say though, it is the best addition to the car that I have made so far. The car looks so much better on 18"s (IMHO) and the very slight compromises in comfort are a worthy sacrifice (IMHO).
I went from 17" standard Boxster S twists with Pirelli P Zero Rossos (which I ran for 6 months and 7k miles) to 18" Cup 3 wheels with Michelin Sports.
The ride is noticably harsher. Only slightly, not uncomfortable but noticable if you have come from 17". I doubt someone who has only had 18" on their Boxster would consider the ride harsh though.
The car also seems to tramline a little now, but again this is not severe.
I also seem to have a bit more traction now, although I never thought the Boxster was short of this on 17"s. This could be down to the slightly wider rears or the change of tyre make. Hard to say.
I would say though, it is the best addition to the car that I have made so far. The car looks so much better on 18"s (IMHO) and the very slight compromises in comfort are a worthy sacrifice (IMHO).
sawood12
New member
Just a quick note on N rated tyres. This topic seems to spark alot of debate as everyone seems to have had differing advice from their usual trusted sources and the advice i've received is no different i'm sure but hopefully it might help. I queried my local OPC about N rated tyres when I upgraded to 17" rims on my 944. Their advice (then again if I had a penny for every bit of bad advice i've been given by my OPC!) was that N rated tyres are really specifically intended for 911's (even thought they are probably fitted to other models) as they have a stiffer sidewall which suits the unusal configuration and weight distribution of the 911. Although fitting to non-911's isn't detrimental to the ride and handling it wont necessarily provide any benefits either. So their advice to me was save yourself a few quid a tyre and go for the non-N rated version. Having said that my logic says that the stiffer sidewall of the N rated tyre might suit the lower profile tyres fitted to 18" rims. Either way it is important to match your tyres i..e. don't mix and match with N rated and non N rated tyres. Also there is a number associated with the N i.e. N1, N2, N3. Again it's important to match all tyres whichever spec you go for.
By the way my non-N rated Continentals on my 944 are the dog's dangly bits and I certainly havn't noticed any unusual handling effects that might be attributed to using non-N rated tyres.
Also reports of increased tramlining from other 944 drivers that have upgraded to 17" or 18" rims has generally been solved by changing the rear suspension bushes on the front lower wishbones to stiffer ones from the 968 (also considerably sharpens up handling genrally). Don't know if a similar upgrade on Boxters might help.
By the way my non-N rated Continentals on my 944 are the dog's dangly bits and I certainly havn't noticed any unusual handling effects that might be attributed to using non-N rated tyres.
Also reports of increased tramlining from other 944 drivers that have upgraded to 17" or 18" rims has generally been solved by changing the rear suspension bushes on the front lower wishbones to stiffer ones from the 968 (also considerably sharpens up handling genrally). Don't know if a similar upgrade on Boxters might help.
N-rated on 944's does not really make sense - as N-rated tyres did not emerge until after 944's ended production.
However I would wholeheartedly recommend N-rated on Boxsters and 996/997 series cars. The manufacturers work closely with Porsche to develop tyres specific to the cars. See the FAQ at the top of the forum for tyre test info from Porsche.
However I would wholeheartedly recommend N-rated on Boxsters and 996/997 series cars. The manufacturers work closely with Porsche to develop tyres specific to the cars. See the FAQ at the top of the forum for tyre test info from Porsche.
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