Question for 987 owners with 19" wheels

[Even Steven]

Okay, so if you have 19" wheels, please tell me if you find the ride harshness tolerable. I realize this is going to be subjective, but I just want to get a feel for the general consensus.

My last sporty car was a 99 M3 with factory 17" wheels. It had a stiff ride, but nothing that I couldn't handle even as a daily driver.

Am I making a mistake going with the 19" Carrera wheels on a 987? I kinda wish they offered the 18" Carrera wheels, but I don't think that's even possible.

Opinions?

I have 19" Carrera Classics...and love them. Ride quality is just fine. I also have 5mm Porsche wheels spacers all around. Tires are Michelin PS2's. I run about 31-32 PSI front and 35-36 rear. Nitrogen fill.

I just measured the tires yesterday and still have 7/32's front and 4.5/32's rear. New tires are 10/32's.

[SD987]

Porsche generally shod their press-fleet cars with 19s and the whole notion of the 987 riding rough on 19s came from a few early reviewers in 05-06 mentioning the severity of the ride. This mantra was picked up on internet boards and is a frequently discussed question, however, 987 owners who actually have the 19s and respond to these posts generally seem to agree that it is not an issue. I've had the 987 base with the OEM 17s and ride quality is little different between that car and my current 06S which has the 19 C-S rims.

I do have PASM which is reputed to soften the ride on 19s in normal mode, however, in Sport mode the ride is quite stiff and I wouldn't stay in that mode for regular street use, nor does anyone else I reckon.

[MartinJ]

I have the Sport Design 19s on my car. To tell the truth I was nervious getting them, but the ride is fine and does not shake my bones.

I run 32 in front and 36 in back on the street.

The 987 looks great with 19s go for it.

[joyfrog]

I have an 02 Boxter S I know its not a 987 however I`m running 19x10`s with 295 on the rear and I believe 19x8`s w/235`s in the front its a little rougher a ride than the 18`s I had on that were stock however the boxster isn`t an insanely smooth car as it is so no biggy to me. But whatever the case on the ride its not that much rougher to negate the fact that the rims and wheels look so much better. IMO definately 19`s are worth it.

[super66]

I'm with SD on this one....some sally bought 19's and didn't like them and tarnished their rep I say do it...I went from 18's to 19's and its just fine

[drburton]

I originally had 18" and switched to 19". I noticed no difference in ride quality and the wheels look much better.

Are you ordering a new car?

If so you may want to consider getting the 18's with the car, then get 19" replica wheels (cheaper) and you have your 18's for track use.

[Middle Age Crazy]

I have the same setup as bmussatti (but without spacers) and I agree.... the ride is just fine. Looking at them you would wonder how so little sidewall could offer as good a ride as it does. Go ahead and get them without worries. They do look great!

[1JB]

I have the OEM 18s not the 19s but it had nothing to do with ride quality. The people at the dealership where I bought the car after test driving Cayman's, Boxsters and 997s in various configurations actually got me to drive the Boxster with 18s and 19s without me knowing which was which. I don't think I knew but suppose sublimally maybe I could have looked at the rims before I got in. I didn't notice any difference at all. Granted just test drives of several miles. The reason I kept telling myself to get 19s was the look and belief that the car would handle better. When I finally had to make a decision on which car to buy and realized I was going to actually write one big check I got very practical except for the convertible part. No 997 and a relatively basic configuration on the 987. I put the money from the upgrade to the 19s into an SRX radar/laser system. I wouldn't worry about a harsh ride.

[fritz]

I have the 19 inch Carrera wheels on an 06 Boxster S and I like them - the ride is not harsh to me. But then again I used to have an 06 Corvette z51 with run flats that I thought were very harsh.

[P-DUB]

I am running 235/35/19's on the front, and 275/35/19's on the rear, and even with the sport mode on, it seems to ride good enough that I am going to lower it this weekend. If you have 18" pilots on there, those tires kind of are hard, so there is really not much difference.

[blkflg]

Pdub,
What wheels are those in your photo? They look really good!

[BOXZING]

Originally Posted by blkflg

Pdub,
What wheels are those in your photo? They look really good!

Check www.wheeldynamics.net (and/or .com). Picking up some black centers this weekend.

[P-DUB]

They are Ruger Sport R10's. I think wheel dynamics sells the same think under RPK's or something like that. I liked them so much I put them on the new car instead of changing to something different.

[cbenitah]

I have an -02 S and Also got the 19" Ruger as on the White 987 further up.. Love them.. Not sure i like my tires though, the seam slippery. Toyo T1R I think they are called.. Anyone else have them?

[eslai]

The Toyo T1R is a good tire for the money, but it's nowhere close to the stickiness of the OEM tires or a top-of-the-line Yokohama. You're doing yourself a disservice.

[edevlin]

For what its worth, the ride on my 2000 986 with 18" wheels is harsher than that of a 2006 987 S that I test drove with 19" wheels, quite a suprise to me.


Ed