ok so i have owned my cl-s for about a month now and am ready to start modding. i have been avidly(sorry boss) reading these forums and looking at pics and i must say you guys are not like most guys on forums...most of you have really good things to say. i think this is a more mature crowd and am happy to be a part of it. ok enough sucking up.

I want wheels!!! i see so many cars on here with 19's and some with 20's. but nobody really has 18's. i am going back and forth cuz i think 19's look too big but i dont want to spend all that money for 18's and i only go one size up from stock. i dont really care about looks i want my cl to handle like its on rails. there is a silver cl on here with 18" black centerlines and i think it looks great!

i just wanted your guys' input. did some of you wrestle with this when buying wheels? and i like to spin my tires a lot, am i going to regret it if i spring for the 19's...am i going to wish i had 19's if i buy 18's?

i would like your opinions from both the performance and looks side of things....thanks guys for helping me out!!!

 

I'd rather have go. I like sleepers. I had 18's. Went to lightweight 17's. If you do 19's you need a drop. The CLS looks so dumb on big rims with no drop. I've seen a few of them up close. 18's can be just as nice. There are trade offs. More weight, & expensive. 19" tires are not cheap. You also have less rim protection if you hit a curb, or big pot holes. The ride with 19's is harsher.

 

I was going to go with 18's, but got the same feeling about only going up one size from stock. I only went up one size on my last car, and regretted not going bigger - from a looks standpoint. From a performance POV, I can't really say much, because I haven't put my 19's on yet, so I don't know what it's like to go that much bigger than stock.

I think I pretty much asked myself all the same questions before deciding on a wheel size. And this is the conclusion I came to: When deciding on wheels, I care more about looks than I do performance. The performance will be impacted greater with other things like a lower stance, springs/shocks, sways, and strut bar.

Plus, I've read reviews from a number of people that while 19's do make the ride a bit more harsh, it's not that big of a difference. And with my last ride being an 88 TA, I don't think I'll have any problems with the harshness of going up two sizes on my CL.

 

I have 19's now and would rather 18's. Look harded, there are a lot of them out there with 18's. I like a nice mix of show and go.

 

where do you live
and
How many miles on your car.

alot more people here have 18's than 19's

 

Everyone has their own opinion.

I prefer show over go (i dont race at all).

I went with 19s, and wish I bought 20s.

 

i live in central ohio...and the car has 52000 on it....i am doing tein SS coilovers so i will be able to place the height where i need to....what size tire are you guys running on a 18 and what are you running on a 19?

 

215/35/19...but i'm going to 225s soon

 

I stayed with 17's 215/50/17 I have the neuspeed sway's and the tein basics and my car handles awesome. Just remember most of the time the bigger the wheel the more weight you are adding to your car. Plus the lower the profile of the tire you will start to sacrafice your ride quality and the life of your suspension. No longer does the tire absorb any bumps in the road all the strain is on your suspension.

 

I'm going with 20's cause I don't race my car and don't to many people have 20's and IMO
20's look the best on the car as long as you get the right rims.Take Essarak Huot's car,it would'nt look as good with 18's

 

Well got 19" on my ride... I love the way they look but at the same time hate the extra weight.... I like the stiff ride feeling so it depends.. If you are getting 19" make sure you gett the 235/35 instead of the 225/35 (which is what i got.) Other thing with 19" is you have to watch out for pot holes.... 20" in my are way to big for our car, but every man car, every man choice...

 

i like the sleeper effect, see my sig

 

Well depends what you wanna do. My brother has 18's on his but he races his CL-S all the time and has dropped about 2.25". I had 17's on my 1st Gen and didn't like the look , I thought they were too small and now I'm going to go up to 18's and possibly 19's if I get a tein coilover setup.

 

don't do 19's if you're around pot holes

 

go > show

 

i have 18" centerlines on my cl. 16lbs ea.

 

I love those wheels Matt.

 

..am i reading your post wrong?.. last time I checked our stock rims weighted like 40 some pounds each.

I went with a 18 inch rim that weights 23.8.... SSR GT3

 

wait are those the same as Seattles wheels but his are in gunmetal???? wow he is almost copying our ride. (better talk him out of that carbon fiber hood)

 

i figure the go>show only if you have a 6mt...

i figure w/ my 5at, i'll just stick to audio.

 

i first bought some 18 with a drop, it was nie3 for a while, but a few months down the line i wish i hadnt spent 2000 on 18, i ended up buying some 20 and replace my springs with coil overs and now i am as happy as i can be, but then again i have always been a big fan of BIG RIMS I GOT I HAVE 225/35/20, THE RIDE DOES GET A LOT harsher though but big rims on a coupe mmmmmmmmmmm, mmmmmmmmmmmm

 

he lives in a different city in a different state. we only see each other like once a year. it will be a novelty.

 

I'm in the same position, I dont know whether to go 18's or 19's. I have a feeling when it comes down to it I will go 18's. Better ride, cheaper tires & wheels, less chance of bending a rim, and they still look big. With the right drop, some chrome 18's with a nice lip, and some 235/40 tires it will look hot. 19's will look a bit bigger, but will most likely be heavier, ride worse, and cause more headaches.

And I like to have a nice combination of show & go. I like to do chrome wheels, sub system, & tint for looks. Intake, springs/struts, and perf tires fo go.

 

I like show and go.

Check the sig....

 

40lbs

your smoking some shit, 45-50lbs with the tires

i think the 03 cl-s rims weigh 25 lbs

 

where can i find those centerlines for a good price..any links???

 

Go > Show

I've always believed a ticket is worth more than a trophy.

 

Yeah, OEM weigh about 26 lbs. I have 18's and they are perfect, but If I was going to shows I will definitely go with DUB's.

 

No shit sherlock, hes got a wide body car where the fenders are modified to accept larger wheels. ANd unless you plan on doing the same, it will look like crap IMO. I have not seen a CL on 20s besides Esseraks car and XraziXs car that I like. Plus it will ride like crap it will be so stiff. I don't think there has been any lowered CL with 20s that has been a daily driver.


And as for show vs go, right now my car leans toward the show but eventually I'll even that out

 

C'mon Mang, I mean with that same bodykit without the flares duh

 

Just find some lightweight 19's and you'll be happy.

 

I got mine at Les S. $2700 out the door w/ 235/40/18 Toyo T1-S. I'm sure you can find em cheaper but I like the road-hazard feature. A couple years ago I trashed a 1-mo old SO3 I had bought online. Didn't save any money in the long run and having to buy another $230 tire.

 

VS.



If I get the hood too Matt and I will be BEST FRIENDS! Matt is the greatest!

 

Tell me this dosen't look good
its the look I'm goin for but with the right susp. set up

 

2ND_TIME_CLS you beat me to the punch! I posted that picture of my boys ride with 20's a little while ago, and from personally experience it doesn't ride too bad at all. He did a lot of work to make the 20's work and look the way they do (fender flare/wall-plastic cutting).

We live in Boston, probably some of the worst streets I've ever driven on in terms of potholes. I still went with 19's on my car because I like the bigger look.

At the end of the day, its all about personally preference..My vote is for 19s!!

 

since i live in la i would pick show over go. how fast can you go when you are stuck on a traffic jam? and go with the 18'.

 

.. i forgot the tire part....excuse me.
but my point is.. you can find 18's that can be similiar to your stock rim/tire weight.

 

i personally like show. but not just exterior. interior and audio too

 

blackcoupe,what susp. set up was he runnin???

 

you need 03 headlights & tint as well