paulybhoy1888
New member
Will 18" Touareg Manhattan's fit an early square dash 944?
Cheers
Cheers
18" Touareg Manhattan's on 944?
- Thread starter paulybhoy1888
- Start date
paulybhoy1888
New member
I have original 15" Fuchs 7/8's. I was looking for help with the offset as I'm not sure of either the proposed wheels or mine.
I wanted to to try somethin different for winter
I wanted to to try somethin different for winter
As said, putting anything larger than 16's on a 944 is not going to be good for anything; handling, steering feel, your wallet, or anything else. You'll destroy all the reasons that the 944 was great. Just because Porsche sell something doesn't mean you should buy it (the Cayenne is probably proof enough of this in itself.)
Going for bigger wheels over the winter is one of the daftest things I've heard of for a while.
Oli.
Going for bigger wheels over the winter is one of the daftest things I've heard of for a while.
Oli.
pauljmcnulty
Active member
Looking them up, the offset is 57mm and yours is 23mm. You'll need big spacers, and I'd doubt they'll fit under the wheel arches anyway without serious modification.
Some people have run 18" on a late 944, but they have either been carefully modified cars with a lot of thought put in to making it work, or completely ruined.
In the wheel size FAQ https://www.porscheclubgb.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=403251 there's a link to a guide to fitting later wheels on the late-offset cars.
Some people have run 18" on a late 944, but they have either been carefully modified cars with a lot of thought put in to making it work, or completely ruined.
In the wheel size FAQ https://www.porscheclubgb.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=403251 there's a link to a guide to fitting later wheels on the late-offset cars.
pauljmcnulty
Active member
To add,
I quite like the idea of a jacked-up 944 on Cayenne wheels. It'd have to be a proper 4WD monster-truck type thing though, not just the wheels. That would be a more interesting project that yet another V8 conversion....
I quite like the idea of a jacked-up 944 on Cayenne wheels. It'd have to be a proper 4WD monster-truck type thing though, not just the wheels. That would be a more interesting project that yet another V8 conversion....
paulybhoy1888
New member
Edh, blade7, waylander, Paul.... Thanks for your comments
944s2.com has quite a number of cars with 18" wheels and mentions need for spacers and such but a bit out of date. Thought I read in one of the Tech Bulletins that Porsche advised against 18's on a 944 but can't find it. Tbh I wonder if my 17" Cup 1's are the reason my front end feels a bit twitchy at slow speeds on our uneven Manx roads.
Indi9xx
New member
Porsche released a technical service bulletin to all Porsche dealers in the 1980's to say that 18" inch wheels were prohibited on coupe models and later released another to say the same but added that 17" wheels on the cabrio were prohibited too.
To stop any confusion, that does not mean it is illegal, just that a main dealer would get a hefty slap for doing so.
The 968 Turbo came with 18" wheels and indeed there was an option for them, but that was with the 968 MO30 front wishbone rear caster mounts available.
The problem with larger wheels was mostly to do with these caster mounts, the worry was that the original 944 ones allowed for too much movement and the mount could fail with horrible consequences. With the cabriolet the worry was stress and a lack of testing by Porsche with this setup.
Of course the caster mounts can be replaced with the 968 M030 items and then you could fit 18 inch wheels or 17 inch wheels.
However to fit an early offset pre 86 car with steel wishbones with these mounts you really need to install the 1986 aluminium wishbones.
Personally I feel that the 944 drives better on 16 inch wheels.
My worry with the Cayman or Macan (or Toureg) wheels is that they would be heavy as they are designed for off road use, which would put more stress on bearings and suspension, but also would also increase unsprung mass (a problem for road holding and handling) but also would add to the gyroscopic effect and ruin the feel through the steering.
To stop any confusion, that does not mean it is illegal, just that a main dealer would get a hefty slap for doing so.
The 968 Turbo came with 18" wheels and indeed there was an option for them, but that was with the 968 MO30 front wishbone rear caster mounts available.
The problem with larger wheels was mostly to do with these caster mounts, the worry was that the original 944 ones allowed for too much movement and the mount could fail with horrible consequences. With the cabriolet the worry was stress and a lack of testing by Porsche with this setup.
Of course the caster mounts can be replaced with the 968 M030 items and then you could fit 18 inch wheels or 17 inch wheels.
However to fit an early offset pre 86 car with steel wishbones with these mounts you really need to install the 1986 aluminium wishbones.
Personally I feel that the 944 drives better on 16 inch wheels.
My worry with the Cayman or Macan (or Toureg) wheels is that they would be heavy as they are designed for off road use, which would put more stress on bearings and suspension, but also would also increase unsprung mass (a problem for road holding and handling) but also would add to the gyroscopic effect and ruin the feel through the steering.
pauljmcnulty
Active member
blade7 said:
But I'd also not imagine the Touareg wheels are designed for track use, and probably aren't mega-lightweight!
edh
New member
blade7 said:
I think there is a definite fashion for huge wheels - anyway, with a high powered GT3 it's quite a different beast & needs a lot more rubber on the road. Brake clearance is certainly one issue. Modern cars have probably got the rigidity to cope with ultra low profile tyres as well. I drove an M4 last weeked & the ride was amazingly good.
EPAS also means you don't have to worry about steering feel as there isn't any [
]Road driving isn't all about laptimes. A 944's road manners are hugely influenced by the wheels - I've driven my turbo and S2 on heavy 17" split rims and it's not nice. 16" cups were the best for the S2, 16" CS for the turbo, and the 17" (but light) Boxster wheels a reasonable compromise for a track car (cheap & readily available tyres in 225/45/17).
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