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16s OR 17s The MASS-DEBATE!! Ahem! ;)



G

Glennclio16v



The time has come - new wheels for my valver are to be ordered this week!!

I have decided that 15"s are too small! And that 18"s are unfeasibly BIG!! They are just too expensive and hard to fit!

So, the choice is of either...

16"s + Better Handling
+ Cheaper
- Dont look as good

OR

17"s + Look the badgers nadgers
- More expensive
- Lesser handling
- Lesser performance
- Pain to fit if lowered

Now i want my car to look good - this is a major factor! ...But then again i want to be able to slam it and have it handling beautifully!!

Oh so torn!!

PLEASE! Contribute your opinions and experiences to aid me in my final choice! All replies will be greatly appreciated!

Help to make this the definative debate on whether 16s or 17s are the way forward!
 
B

BenFromOz



Alas I am suffering from the same dilemma (looks vs performance) as well but between 15" and 16".

If you have a look at my previous post wheels for new clio youll see that 15" were recommended as the best performing wheel. This is what the Australian clio comes with as standard. But they do look lame.

I rang the local OZ distributor here today and if I want 15" SuperTs I have to order them specially. They only have 16-18" in stock. Not that I mind waiting.

Can we make this the definitive debate on 15"v16"v17" instead?

Cheers.
 
N

nedbeard



Im eager to see what ppl think too... the time has come to change my dated alloys for something a bit more spectacular to go with the bodykit. Problem is that if I fit 17s I have to get an engineer do a study and coff up even more cash so Im put off a bit by that (Spanish homologation laws).

Ned
 
T

The Monk



Check out the wheels post, if i had the money thats what ill put on my clio, personally i think it look great and different, as well as all the + points you get with 15s
 
A

Adam Munn



I have 17s on my 16v (see gallery) and can answer all your questions.

The 17s are not hard to fit to a mildly lowered car (mines dropped 40mm) dropped more than 40mm you will have probs.

17s dont effect handling much, make sure you get good tyres, my 17s on eagle F1s are *far* superior to my 15s on budget tyres. The only thing about handling is it gets a bit bumpey with such little rubber and suspension travel!

As for effecting performance, whenever ive been to santa pod its been on 17s and i have recorded times so unnoticably close to other valvers with 15s and *more* mods. (see santa pod report and times on meeting pics)

They do look amazing and command a lot more street cred, if your worried about that? I personally couldnt give a sh*t what anyone else thinks!
Also someone correct me if im wrong but i think that 17" rubber is cheaper or about the same price as 16" tyres as 17s are now a more common size.

Hope this clears a few things up for you, now wait for the small wheel posse to come back!
 
B

Ben H



Both myself and my mate run 16s. Just to give you a quick recap: mine runs 171bhp at the flywheel and his Willy 3 makes 245 with nitrous. We stuck to 16s because theres little point moding a car if youre going to scupper performance gains with adding unsprung weight. If you can find 17s that weigh less than 16s then go for it - but itll cost you a bomb! I cant stress this enough. The reason people will give you conflicting reports about performance on 17s is becuase some weigh more than others.

Im running 205/45 section tyres and he uses 205/40 ones (thats less than the original rolling radius = faster acceleration). Hes dropped his car to the floor, while Ive gone for a mild 30mm drop. Even so, the wheels look adequately big and the handling is fantastic.

I went down the big wheel/lowered a lot route on my last Clio - and Ive now seen the light and am keeping it all sensible from now on. My last Clio was definitely slower when I stuck big wheels on it.

If of course your priorities are looks then by all means go for it. Just dont come back crying when your car is about the same speed as standard despite some mods!!
 
G

Glennclio16v



I am looking at getting OZ SuperLeggeras - i know these use a super light alu blah de blah - but do you reckon they would weigh about the same as 16s? or maybe even lighter!?!
 
F

Fred@BTM

  Lionel Richie


Please dont get superleggeras cos i want to be individual!! Only joking!!! Ive got 17s Superleggeras on my car and although the straight line perfomane is down slightly, the handling is 10x better on 17s than my old 15s. The looks you get off everyone as you drive past makes it all worth while!!!! Ok im going to stop now before my head gets any bigger!!!! Oh by the way, i had a 1.6 fezzie zetec-s race me away from the lights, he beat me, not by much and then he pulled into the petrol station and i followed. He got out of his car and said "these 172s aint that quick!!!!!" i said nothing and opened up my bonnet!!!! You shouldve seen his face!!!!
 
W

wongy008



i think 17"

i got 17 mm evos and yeah the car tramlines a bit more than my 195 i had but they look 10000000 times better and dont bother beleiving performance being blunted. a 17 with 205/40/17 is only a tiny bit bigger than 185/55/15 the 16v left the factoiry with anyway.and price of tyre is only about 10/20 quid more than normal tyres. 17 tyres prices are coming down all the time now as even bigger wheels and tyres are being made

wongy
 
G

Glennclio16v



Are you referring to the super silvery-ness of the new superleggeras Fred?? I saw a pic of them in the new MaxPower!

Nice, although i think the original colour will look better on my black 16v!
 
N

nedbeard



Oooooo! Arent they shiny!

I was thinking of TSW Flys, Momo Quasar 2 or a multispoke design for the swap but Im sure theyll weigh twice as much as the OZs.
 
G

Glennclio16v



White wheels on a black car!?!? Id rather f**k my mum!!

...Oh Lordy - please forgive me!!

Original SuperLs are the wheels of choice for me!
 
N

nedbeard



I dont like the black ones... the car gets dirty enough as it is, black wheels will make it look worst. Silver shiny ones or it aint worth the cash Im afraid.
 
T

The Monk



PLEASE! Contribute your opinions and experiences to aid me in my final choice! All replies will be greatly appreciated!
Hmmmmmmmmmmm
 
C

cse



does anyone know the weight of the standard clio 16v 15" ? i was gonna get 17" wolfrace octanes in hyper black, anyone know anything about them ? really like the alloys, but the possability losing performance has made me think twice. arent 16" hard to find the right tyres for anyway ?
 
N

Nick Read

  BMW 320d Sport


Did a few calculations and a 205/40/17 comes up around 15mm bigger than the original 185/55/15.


If you like to drive your car fast and twisty, youll have trouble lowering it and running 17s. 17s will go on easily if you dont lower it.

16s will go on easy lowered or standard. But the point about the price is right, 16" tyres arent that much cheaper than 17s...17s are a lot more common and a size like 205/40/17 which on the face of it is very weird (should really be a 215/225/235 when compared to the profile and diameter), is actually the commonest size in 17.
 
B

Ben H



Man - get the black wheels: have black car and black wheels and looks ever so good if I do say so myself. b**ch to clean though
 
C

Claud Lio



17 But if you want Superleggeras in anthracite you best get a move on. The silver Superleggera is on it,s way, and I think the anthracite coloured one is gonna be phased out (with the super t).Get the new o.z. Titan if you want a wheel that is pure class.
 
BenR

BenR



people, i know its all up to your personal choice, so nobody can really tell you what is best. Me, i like a well driven car, i dont really care about looks since im in the car mostly and cant see it. I got 15" super Ls and i think they look best in gun metal, and the brake dust dont show up as much.
Anyway, 17" super Ls weigh in at 7.2 kg whilst 17" super Ts weigh in at 12kgs!!! a huge differnce.
if your just a poser, 17", but 16" would be ok on a 172 but i swould still go for 15".
As for handling, please dont get this mixed up with grip, there is a huge difference. BIgger tyres mean more grip yes, but handling goes to poo, tramlining, violent breakaways, extra starin on bearings, rod ends and suspension. I will make a bet that a 172 on 15" will go round a track faster than one on 17"s.
 
C

Craggy

  mk2 172


if i could afford some wheels id definately get those team dynamics gold ones that are on adams car, think there motorsport?, anyway, looks cool as f***
 
B

BenFromOz



Hmmm I think 15" SuperTs will be the go. Next question - 6.5x15 or 7x15? - actually I might try and match them to the existing wheels so I can keep my tyres - any Australian owners know what size they are?

Just out of interest - how much do you guys pay for them in the UK? Theyre $365 here which is about £135.
 
BenR

BenR



the tyres are 195/50/15which means that the largest you would want to go is a 7" wide wheel. Stick with 6 or 6.5. I got my superleggeras for 390 quid including pirelli p5000s and fitting/balancing. But its cause my bro in law works for pirelli, so i have no idea about cost.
you can swap your tyres across no probs though. Are they teh michelin SX GT?
 
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