smaller wheels on sport

[tony gee]

done a search but not found anything. has anyone gone from 18inch to 17inch wheels on a W204 sport ? I like mine with the 18's but the roads round my way are really bad so it can be a pretty rough ride, not to mention the battering on my suspension !!!!!! as it made any difference to ride comfort at all or is it a waist of time ?

 

[Skd884]

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[W1ghty]

done a search but not found anything. has anyone gone from 18inch to 17inch wheels on a W204 sport ? I like mine with the 18's but the roads round my way are really bad so it can be a pretty rough ride, not to mention the battering on my suspension !!!!!! as it made any difference to ride comfort at all or is it a waist of time ?

I’ve got 17’s on both mine in the summer and 16’s on both in the winter .
Before I bought both cars the ones I test drove on 18’s , I didn’t like the ride on either .
With horrendous potholes being our future I vote don’t exceed 17” .
Bigger wheels may look better but if your family can’t understand you because you have bitten off the end of your tongue hitting a pothole I say it’s not worth the hassle .

 

[Gazwould]

I remember a guy dropping down from 18 to 17" and there was multiple dynamic gains , he really recommended I do the same .

But with my torque 255 on the rear is a must that the 18's have .

What engine do you have Tony ?

 

[tony gee]

I remember a guy dropping down from 18 to 17" and there was multiple dynamic gains , he really recommended I do the same .

But with my torque 255 on the rear is a must that the 18's have .

What engine do you have Tony ?

M271 K 1.8. enough power for what I need, I have my bikes for the fun factor

 

[Gazwould]

For sure with 270 Nm , 17's all the way .

 

[AMGeed]

done a search but not found anything. has anyone gone from 18inch to 17inch wheels on a W204 sport ? I like mine with the 18's but the roads round my way are really bad so it can be a pretty rough ride, not to mention the battering on my suspension !!!!!! as it made any difference to ride comfort at all or is it a waist of time ?

I have 17" rims on my S204. They seem a decent compromise to looking OK and the 3rd world roads we have.

 

[Chrishazle]

I switched my 2008 S204 C220Cdi from original 16's to 17's and neither I nor SWMBO in normally the passenger seat had nothing but compliments for the switch. Got rid of the roly poly ride and firmed up the steering and ride enough to enhance the driving experience without compromising the ride quality. That was many years ago (had the car over 12 years now!!) so I would say without doubt ditch the 18's (blingmasters will buy them easily) and fit 17's. Mine are staggered so 225/45 on the front and should be 245/40 rear, but I could not find all season 245/40 so fitted 235/45 Bridgestones and they work well, and as I almost never floor the throttle, 235 rears are fine, only time I've made the orange TC light flash is when the road is icy - but even then the car was nowhere near swopping ends!!

 

[tony gee]

I suppose its a case of finding a good set of wheels and trying them on at the end of the day

 

[Skd884]

done a search but not found anything. has anyone gone from 18inch to 17inch wheels on a W204 sport ? I like mine with the 18's but the roads round my way are really bad so it can be a pretty rough ride, not to mention the battering on my suspension !!!!!! as it made any difference to ride comfort at all or is it a waist of time ?

My 2013 c180 has oem 16" and the ride is sublime.

 

[tony gee]

My 2013 c180 has oem 16" and the ride is sublime.

yeah but is it a sport ?

 

[Skd884]

yeah but is it a sport ?

No i would never purchase one.

 

[tony gee]

No i would never purchase one.

fair enough

 

[fabes]

Tyres can make a difference as can the pressures you run them at aswell.

Bear that in mind

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

This whole debate continues for decades across all the German marques.

“I’ve got sports suspension on big wheels, which looks great. But the ride is sheet.”

 

[ALFAitalia]

I remember a guy dropping down from 18 to 17" and there was multiple dynamic gains , he really recommended I do the same .

But with my torque 255 on the rear is a must that the 18's have .

What engine do you have Tony ?

Comfort gains?...very probably....dynamics gains?..I highly doubt it. My E has 18s on a Sport.... the slightly harder ride is the price I pay for a sharper turn on and better steering feel as less feel is lost through sidewalls flex. It's a price I'm willing to pay having driven a few non sport versions on smaller wheels before I bought mine. But I appreciate that if comfort us further up your list than cornering than my car would not be for you. Just to put this onto context....sure my car is harder than say a non sport on 16s or 17s...but its far from jarring except on the biggest ridges (i don't generally drive through potholes i can avoid). My wife always comments on how comfortable it is compared to my old, and slightly more sporting 159 on Eibachs.
Another point is that on modern cars 16s do look a bit like your car is on casters.....but I understand that you guys are putting comfort over looks are performance which is fine....but I like my car to look good too.... which is why I'm actually looking to go slightly bigger to factory option size 19s. I've been in a sport like mine with them and I honestly could not tell the difference in ride.
I realise the OP has a C but I think a lot of this applies equally.

 

[Gazwould]

He reported that the car was more nimble and acceleration felt better .

 

[ALFAitalia]

Maybe if they were a lot lighter... otherwise I can't see why.
I once rode a FireBlade exactly the same as mine that had been fitted with (very expensive) very light completely carbon wheels. It was like a completely different bike....it accelerated noticeably faster, wheelied loads easier and the handling was so much quicker it felt unstable until you got used to it. But that was losing a lot of weight of each end..... something that would be hard to do on a car unless you went for racing weight alloys... and even then to get the same size rolling circumference the tyres would have rather more sidewall... so they won't be lighter than the bigger tyres...like for like at least. You could fit a lighter brand.... until quite recently I never realised how much heavier certain tyres are than others. Reducing unsprung mass can transform any vehicle....its far more important than losing it elsewhere.

 

[Gazwould]

Reduced unsprung mass is also partly to do with ride quality improvement on cars when downsizing .

 

[ALFAitalia]

I bet there is not much difference....less wheel....but more rubber.