Aftermarket wheels on a 944, porsche design or veloce RS

[53berliner]

Has anyone fitted aftermarket wheels on a 944, I like the simple look of the 18" porsche design wheels and the Veloce RS design, are these a straight bolt on wheel without any problems or effecting the handling.
I think it makes the car look a little bit more modern.
photos would be great if anyone has them.

thanks

 

[edh]

..standing by...

 

[53berliner]

?? is this frowned upon or something on here

 

[bumperblue]

Not sure if its frowned upon but, have a look on the Rennlist forum for our cars and a lot of our American friends put different wheels on. Some look rather nifty. Personal choice at the end of the end of the day.
On the question of modernising the looks I have always liked the look of the 968 wing mirrors as opposed to the flag mirrors we have. I think that would make quite a bit of difference.
Ian

 

[53berliner]

I think a set of these will look just lovely

 

[edh]

?? is this frowned upon or something on here

Not really, I think we have a broad church here.
We have a very enthusiastic forum member who will respond to your enquiry at length...
see
https://www.porscheclubgb.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=942427

Veloce wheels tend to be very heavy I think. Most aftermarket wheels are heavier than OE. You will be trading steering feel, comfort (and possibly performance?) for looks with bigger wheels.
944's were designed to run with 15 & 16" wheels & corresponding tyre aspect ratios.

 

[edh]

btw 2 good websites

http://www.wheelenhancement.com/index.php?t=Wheels
http://www.944racing.de/felgengewichte.php

Porsche have lots of later wheels that look good on 944's including the 17" Sport Classic & some 987 wheels. 996 10-spoke possibly. The 18" sport design wheels are heavy old lumps.

Oh, and check out my track car thread for pics of various wheel options

 

[wolfie308]

Hi Matt,

Here's a photo from a customer of mine..... I think the wheels are 18" Veloce 3.6's. Thought you'd like to see especially as it features other mods including bridge spoiler, Cup mirrors and of course clear rear lenses []

Personally, I prefer period correct wheels and one of my favourite upgrades are 17" genuine Cup 1's which I'm lucky to have on my new S.2. Complete with KW v.3's, for me, this is a great setup. Would it not be better to get suspension sorted before choosing wheels? Anything over 16" and you'll have to fit 968 castor mounts before you start.

 

[924Srr27l]

Hi Matt,

Here's a photo from a customer of mine..... I think the wheels are 18" Veloce 3.6's. Thought you'd like to see especially as it features other mods including bridge spoiler, Cup mirrors and of course clear rear lenses []

Personally, I prefer period correct wheels and one of my favourite upgrades are 17" genuine Cup 1's which I'm lucky to have on my new S.2. Complete with KW v.3's, for me, this is a great setup. Would it not be better to get suspension sorted before choosing wheels? Anything over 16" and you'll have to fit 968 castor mounts before you start.

Thanks Wolfie..


To Berliner
Hi, It cracks me up when you get a "warning" that somebody may hound you on fitting wheels! Superb..

So you've now got a 944 3.0S2 on the way, and your thinking of changing the wheels ?


The ride comfort will be worst, the car slower than it could be etc...But if your looking for "a cosmetic Look" go for it.

The 18" BBS 2 piece split rims were found on the Boxster's and also the 911's, although the rear were 9" and 10"

9" Will go on, but 10" will be tight or foul on the body.

The front Rim widths are 7.5, you could even source and use all (4) 7.5" but this would most probably mean buying 2
sets, so if you find a rear 9" put 265/35/18 on it and 225/40/18 fronts.

The veloce wheels can be a problem when the lacquer on the Rim chips from stones and wear and tear, because
water will then creep inside, lift the lacquer off further an the aluminium will corrode and leave white milky deposits..
From memory the Fake bolts cannot be removed (I think they are Glued in?) and there'a high chance without getting these out
the Wheels cannot be re-machined polished (Diamond cut) or even if they can the costs can be approx £150+ per wheel.

Originally the 18"Split rims also had a Diamond cut outer rim,which also does the same although a lot of these
have been painted and lacquered Silver the same as the centre.

If you find out what the Offsets numbers are of any prospective Wheels and also your current ones i can work out
exactly how much more or less than stick inwards and outwards...

R

 

[u63af]

i have bought a set of genuine ruf speedlines for my 944 turbo, they look like a deep dished cup 2 wheel, pretty heavy but I don't care as it's not a race car. The cup 1 and 2s are nice looking

if you are sticking with standard wheels then it looks a lot better lowering the car a bit and fitting proper spacers which helps fill the arches.

 

[Frenchy]

If it is looks your after go for it, whatever suits you,personally I think later wheels on a 944 do not look right.
The car will handle and feel way better on standard 15 or 16 rims.
I have genuine 17 cups on mine with 968 caster mounts, a bit of a compromise between looks and handling, the car is way more nimble on it's original lightweight 16 club sport rims.
Drove a 944 Turbo on 18 wheels once.........horrible, it just skipped about and never felt planted, looked cool though once parked up........as said your shut, your car.

 

[u63af]

when I had my old s2 which had standard shocks, I actually felt that 17s improved the handling and made it feel more stable on the road. My last turbo had cs 16s and then due to putting on big red calipers I had to go to 17"s can't say I noticed a difference, to be fair though it had the 996 bbs 10 spoke (not splits) which are actual really light so not much weight difference but that car had 968 castors and kw's .

 

[jasonp]

matt,,
design 90s keeps it original and simple,,,,,jasonp

 

[blade7]

Drove a 944 Turbo on 18 wheels once.........horrible, it just skipped about and never felt planted,

Been driving one on 18's for 8 years.......nice, on KW's, PS2's and correct geo setup it feels very planted.

 

[924Srr27l]

Drove a 944 Turbo on 18 wheels once.........horrible, it just skipped about and never felt planted,

Been driving one on 18's for 8 years.......nice, on KW's, PS2's and correct geo setup it feels very planted.

This is the Beauty of the human race ! What one of them thinks is "Planted" the other doesn't !

18" Diameter wheels are certainly in the Minority on any 944 or 968, and all the comments why they are not Nice are
always denied by the people that love them...

8 Years is a long time, just imagine how much faster you could go if you changed them!

R

 

[53berliner]

Its mainly for looks, i just dont like the original wheels, i would prefer 17" but they dont do that size in the wheel i want and they have been fitted before in the photo up top and my personal opinion is they look nice and a little modern, i will always keep original items with the car for if i ever did sell in the future. I would only be using the car occasionally and certainly not for racing around in so not to worried about speed

 

[53berliner]

i quite like these http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=252612196084#ht_500wt_1361
would these fit straight on a 944 or need spacers etc..

 

[u63af]

Those wheels are 996 c4 10 spokes made by bbs, I think they are one of the lightest 17 available. I had them on my old 944 t, not sure if they looked right on the 944 but I had them due to weight. I think a 5 spoke looks best and that's why I went for the ruf speedline which is not dis similar to the veloce wheel. If you want a set of cup 2 wheels then I have a set in the garage which have just been refurbed

 

[924Srr27l]

i quite like these http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=252612196084#ht_500wt_1361
would these fit straight on a 944 or need spacers etc..

Yes straight fitment, no spacers needed and no too heavy, Tyres 205/50/17, 215/50/17 or 225/45/17 front & 255/40/17 rear.

R

 

[53berliner]

these look nice as well