Does size really matter?

[Fawkes]

So here’s the question; how much wheel is too much? I’m not talking about ridiculous looking, as that is a matter of opinion. Rather, at what point does it begin to become a hindrance on performance? After all, one of the reasons for going with an aluminum wheel vs. a steel one is freeing up unsprung weight. Will an 18” or 20” aluminum wheel have the same effect as a 15” steelie in the quarter mile? Any thoughts?

Here’s an idea for PHR or one of the other car rags; do a comparison to find out. Take a Camaro/Firebird, a Mustang, and a Mopar of choice, and run them all through a gauntlet of tests, et al R&T or C&D. I’d like to see a skid pad test, road course times, quarter mile times, and seat o’ the pants opinions about them all after a ten or twenty mile road trip. Compare these cars with a 15” factory wheel for the benchmark, and then with 15, 17, 18 and 20 inch aluminum wheels. I’d be interested to see if and where performance drops off.

[Fuelie Fan]

I think a mag did that 3 or 4 years ago, actually. they did 15,16,17,20. I believe the 17 won.

[dropit69]

well i am gonna go with 17-18 for my camaro only because of side wall ..i live in area with crappy roads and potholes so a 20 with a nice tire has little sidewall and im not gonna bend 3k rims..but as far as preformance im sure its all physics and struff i dont understand..

[parsonsj]

Yes, it really matters.

Here's a recent thread:

https://www.pro-touring.com/forum/sh...ad.php?t=35886

jp