18" Detroit Alloys

What about these 17s?http://www.vwvortex.com/artman/publi...cle_2705.shtml

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Originally Posted by stevie_t

Unbelievable guys! Never would have thought!
Guess it goes back to the "All show or All go"

Prior to this i was convinced with getting 18's, thinking they were better in most ways... Good points presented.

Thanks Mav

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For the record I have R32 18" wheels fitted to my GTI and would probably do it again but I didn't fit them for performance reasons. And different surfaces/conditions might give better results although I doubt the 18" times would pass the 17".

Here's the excerpt from the EVO Tyre Test.

"Is Bigger Better?

The GTI has always felt pretty good on 18" wheels and slightly lower profile tyres so day one of the test provided a big surprise. For familarisation laps of the wet circuit Bovingdon used the GTI Anniversary on it's standard 18" rims to which Bridgestone had fitted RE050-As. On the fractionally higher profiled 17" tyres, Bovingdon noted significantly more turn in bite and the Golf was around 2.5seconds a lap faster....

Lap times 17"

1. Goodyear F1 Assym 58.06 seconds
.........
10. Yokohama 65.56 seconds"

So 2.5 seconds is a decent improvement considering a lap is 60 seconds.

Hang on, Bridgestone RE050's vs Goodyear F1 Asymmetrics? Pfft - 2.5 seconds could be in the tyre. The Bridgestones (at least on my GTI) were crap -whereas the goodyear is the best tyre you can get right now.

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Originally Posted by coreying

Hang on, Bridgestone RE050's vs Goodyear F1 Asymmetrics? Pfft - 2.5 seconds could be in the tyre. The Bridgestones (at least on my GTI) were crap -whereas the goodyear is the best tyre you can get right now.

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The 17" and the 18" comparison they did had identical tyres fitted.

I posted the results from the 17" tyre comparison to show the lap times around the track because 2.5 seconds on a track that takes 20 minutes isn't that much but 2.5 seconds on a track that takes 58 seconds is.

The Bridgestone RE050's only did 60.23 seconds (5th) compared to the Goodyear F1's at 58.06 seconds so it's almost 2.5 seconds there as well (these are wet times).

The dry circuit had the F1's with 67.67 and the RE050's at third place with 68.23 seconds.

Overall it was F1 in pole position and the RE050's in fourth. The Continental ContiSport Contact 3 came third.

Aah ok. Thanks Mav :)

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Originally Posted by Maverick

18's are a few seconds slower on the Golf around a track (back to back comparison by Evo mag in the UK plus a number of other reviews have shown this). The 17's offer better performance, tyres are cheaper, the ride is better, you have better protection against rim damage from potholes or kerbs because of the taller sidewall. Really the only reason to go 18's are looks.

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A few seconds per lap is heaps (but just read the track is 20mins LOL, not your typical 1:15 track) however i doubt most people would notice it around the streets. Must be the unsprung weight contributing to this not the wider tyres etc as grip would be better? (I'd get a set of 17" with semi slicks for the track which would add 2-3sec per lap over street tyres too).

The 18" Detroits look way better than the 17" (and good value upgrade for $1200). I'm guessing they would still be lighter than other 18" reps. Something about the MK6 nose looks too heavy with 17" wheels IMO. The looks are worth it as there are other lighter racecars to start with.

I think the 18s are definately worth it, for looks alone. I doubt you'd notice any performance hit on the streets.

The 18s are the reason I'm still waiting for my GTI, I could barely find any GTIs in stock when I was ordering in January, let alone one with the 18s. Should be worth the wait.

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Originally Posted by iBoost

I think the 18s are definately worth it, for looks alone. I doubt you'd notice any performance hit on the streets.

The 18s are the reason I'm still waiting for my GTI, I could barely find any GTIs in stock when I was ordering in January, let alone one with the 18s. Should be worth the wait.

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Would off the mark/straight line performance be affected by the 18's?
If we would hardly notice any difference between the 2 if we hit the streets, thats a good thing.

Most of us probably want to get the most out of our GTI but it seems like 18's are for show and 17's for go

I know Mav & many many others have shared information & opinions about the performance effects and differences with the 18 Detroit's VS 17 Denver's. It makes the choice tough...

To me the GTI looks like Detroit's need to be stock -they just look so good and suit the car. But this car is a performance car. And if 17 Denver's are better for speed/handling,etc... its a tough decision.

I want the looks of a Detroit with no worrys about handling/performance.

Just my outlet guys, I'm still unsure.

Anyone have anything to say about differences? Off the mark/straight line performance and also cornering handling, etc?

Thanks Guys

I wouldn't worry about the performance difference unless you plan on actually taking it to the track. 99% of the time you'll be on the road, not the track anyway and the difference on the road would be minimal.

If you look at the other performance cars sold these days, 18 inch wheels are pretty much standard fitment on everything from the WRX, Lancer Ralliart, 3MPS etc.

Unless you plan on getting after market wheels straight away or your main focus is on ride quality (Get ACC) then I wouldn't hesitate in getting the 18s. I guess the exception would be if you found a car in your spec available immediately minus the 18s.

At the end of the day it's your car, so your call of course. Hope this helps.

Thanks iBoost, that's great bud.
That helps a lot.

No my main concern isn't ride comfort (although, I'm certain the GTI on 18's even without ACC is still reasonably comfortable)... rite??

I'd be happy to stick to 18's, not interested in upgrading to aftermarket ones either.

Thanks again