Wheel Upgrade to 20s...Need advice
 

Hi guys, I'm a relatively new owner looking to upgrade my stock (touring) 18s.

I live in downtown Denver and use my car as a daily driver. Downtown streets are often old and rough and there are tons of speed bumps and speed dips which I'm constantly taking at an angle.

For those of you with 20s, did it lower your road clearance to the point where you have to be *extremely* careful with any and all bumps or dips. If so, would you recommend just going with 19s or is the tire sidewall going to wash out the size difference?

* By "extremely careful", I mean am I going to hate life if I put on 20s?

Thanks! :icon17:

I have 20s on my car and love them. I live in Atlanta. You just have to be more careful driving.

Road clearance will depend if you lower your car and the sidewall you pick for the 20s.

Just by putting on 20s will not affect the clearance that much, but you will feel every bump on the road...

size of wheel doesnt effect road clearance unless you go too thin of a side wall or too big (too big = more clearance)

But with a 20's the car will feel harder as the tire cant absorb some of the bumps. This also has the effect where too hard of a bump can damage the wheel, where as on the 18's the massive sidewall would have absorbed the bump.

So if you get 20's, as James said, you just have to be more careful and slower.

The terms "upgrade" and "20's" don't belong in the same sentence. It's a sports car not a donk. Stick with 19's. They will be lighter and look a hell of a lot better in that fender than 20's will. Unless you don't plan to track your car and want to achieve that hellaflush look for whatever reason and don't give a damn about unsprung weight affecting whp. But that's just me ;)

Why buy a Z for that?

Why not buy a Z for that?

No, moving to 20" wheels didn't lower the clearance. It did however, make the ride rougher. The smaller (and stiffer) sidewall on the tires and the fact that I went wider than OEM, made the ride rougher. I don't really mind. But when I do drive the Z, I find myself avoiding bumpy areas more than I used to.

You won't "hate" the 20's. Have a look at my pics of the Volks that I chose. If you do the offset correctly, the look is much better than 19's. Good luck!

I agree 100%, but some people buy the 370Z because they like how it looks and could care less about performance, and to THEM, a 20" rim looks good. :ugh2:

:iagree: 20's are too big for the Z

:icon18::bowrofl:

This is all great info, guys. Much appreciated, and definitely helping me make my decision.

You can find better places to put your money performance wise. If this is all for looks, go for it.

If you have 18" rims and are going to 19" or 20", that will increase the car's bottom clearance.

:facepalm: