19" rims on 2002 S; off a 2006 Cayman

[Jaak]

Folks, I can't seem to find the answer and the manual shows a maximum of 18" rims listed for the 2002 S. I have a chance at getting a set of rims & tires from a 2006 Cayman. They are 245/35 R19 fronts and 275/35 R19 rears. The rims are ET 46?

Will these fit my car?

Thanks,

Jaak

[Quickurt]

There may be some info if you go through "The Wheel Thread" in show and tell section.
I believe you will need spacers on the rear to put 987 wheels on 986.
Maybe do a site search for 987 wheels on 986, I know I've seen a thread about it.

Good luck! Cayman and 987 BoxsterS wheels look great on 986's!!
I have a set of 987 BoxsterS wheels for sale, if you know someone interested.

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by Quickurt

There may be some info if you go through "The Wheel Thread" in show and tell section.
I believe you will need spacers on the rear to put 987 wheels on 986.
Maybe do a site search for 987 wheels on 986, I know I've seen a thread about it.

Good luck! Cayman and 987 BoxsterS wheels look great on 986's!!
I have a set of 987 BoxsterS wheels for sale, if you know someone interested.

Thanks!!!

Did a search and a few stated that Porsche did not recommend the 19" ...

Oh well, need to find 18" Sport 2 BBS rims. I did order a set from a PCA member who was tracking his Boxster ... UPS lost 3 out of the 4 rims/tires and sent the forth to the wrong address as well.

Waiting for a refund (Alabama) to upgrade from the 17" stock S rims & tires.

[stephen wilson]

19" wheels won't put any more stress on the car than 18's, as long as the overall diameter is the same, which it is, due to lower profile tires. Manfacturers are very conservative by nature!

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

19" wheels won't put any more stress on the car than 18's, as long as the overall diameter is the same, which it is, due to lower profile tires. Manfacturers are very conservative by nature!

Friends P-Car Indy shop does not recommend I do it as well ... Thanks!

[stephen wilson]

I'm confused! You "do it as well" recommend, or not recommend it?

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

I'm confused! You "do it as well" recommend, or not recommend it?

Sorry ... my Canuckism is lost in translation ...

They suggest I do NOT install the 19" rims. They say I should stick to the 18" (upgrade from the 17") as the suspension etc is not really geared for it.

[Quickurt]

If you go to the wheel thread, you'll find about a hundred guys with 19" wheels on their 986's who don't seem to be having issues with them. If they were, the classified section would be full of cheap 19" wheels that fit 986's, along with spacers, lugs, etc. for them.

The Wheel Thread - http://986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14078

[stephen wilson]

I agree. Hell, Toyota doesn't recommend 36" tires for my pick-up, but I've been running them for over 10 years with no problems!

[Jaak]

Don't know if these would fit ... here's the ad ---> http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-auto-parts-tires-tires-rims-19-Genuine-Porsche-OEM-Boxster-Cayman-Wheels-Tires-W0QQAdIdZ179420524

It seems they are all 9.5 " wide ... ET 46. I am not too sure about the fitment.

Jaak

[Johnny Danger]

Jaak,

At the risk of sounding immodest, when it comes to boxsters and caymans, nobody knows wheel fitment better than me. If you can clarify just exactly what you are attempting to do, I can advise you accordingly. Incidentally, whoever told you that you cannot utilize a 19 inch wheel on a boxster should take up bird watching. Probably 99.99% of all boxster and caymans enthusiasts who upgrade their wheels opt for a 19 inch application (that in itself is another discussion). If you can provide me with the exact specs of these wheels and I will gladly calculate the fitment for you.

Johnny

p.s. In regards to the cayman wheels that you referenced, its most likely the rears that are 9.5 inches , not all around. Porsches always have a staggered wheel set.

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by Johnny Danger

Jaak,

At the risk of sounding immodest, when it comes to boxsters and caymans, nobody knows wheel fitment better than me. If you can clarify just exactly what you are attempting to do, I can advise you accordingly. Incidentally, whoever told you that you cannot utilize a 19 inch wheel on a boxster should take up bird watching. Probably 99.99% of all boxster and caymans enthusiasts who upgrade their wheels opt for a 19 inch application (that in itself is another discussion). If you can provide me with the exact specs of these wheels and I will gladly calculate the fitment for you.

Johnny

p.s. In regards to the cayman wheels that you referenced, its most likely the rears that are 9.5 inches , not all around. Porsches always have a staggered wheel set.

Hi Johnny,

please see the ad for the rims/wheels a few posts above. That is the information I am going by. I am not familiar with the 2006 19" Camen rims that he has for sale and how they would fit on my 2002 Boxster S. The new cars I know have a 19" chart associated with the cars, have not found one for my 2002 S. The stock wheels on mine are boring and takes away from the car and my earlier attempt failed thanks to UPS ...

Friends P-Car shop did not recommend the 19"s for mine .. on newer cars he said would be OK.

Thanks for the assistance,

Jaak

PS ... I know about the staggered sizes (this is my second Porsche in 7 years, hang around friends shop) but I can only go by what is in the ad. Don't want to assume ...

[Quickurt]

The ad says OEM Cayman wheels. Here are the standard offsets for 987S (18")

Stock 2006 Boxster S wheels.
Front Rim: 8 J x 18 H2 offset: 57 mm
Rear Rim: 9 J x 18 H2 offset: 43 mm

The ad said 46mm offset for 9.5 wheel (rear)
With 12.5 mm more total width, the backspacing will be 3mm more than stock 987 wheel above.

My OZ wheels have 10mm more backspace on the rear and 8mm more on the front and still have PLENTY of clearance.

Again, you are dealing with 986 rather than 987 so I don't know what you need for offset and backspace.

[Quickurt]

My parts manager friend of 30+ years gave me a late Christmas/early birthday gift today.......a pair of clear front side marker lights. I put them in this afternoon and WOW!!, more difference than I thought it would be.
Now I look at my pic below and those hideous orange things look like big friggin tumors on the front of the car!

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by Quickurt

The ad says OEM Cayman wheels. Here are the standard offsets for 987S (18")

Stock 2006 Boxster S wheels.
Front Rim: 8 J x 18 H2 offset: 57 mm
Rear Rim: 9 J x 18 H2 offset: 43 mm

The ad said 46mm offset for 9.5 wheel (rear)
With 12.5 mm more total width, the backspacing will be 3mm more than stock 987 wheel above.

My OZ wheels have 10mm more backspace on the rear and 8mm more on the front and still have PLENTY of clearance.

Again, you are dealing with 986 rather than 987 so I don't know what you need for offset and backspace.

He is selling 19"s.

[Johnny Danger]

Originally Posted by Jaak

Hi Johnny,

please see the ad for the rims/wheels a few posts above. That is the information I am going by. I am not familiar with the 2006 19" Camen rims that he has for sale and how they would fit on my 2002 Boxster S. The new cars I know have a 19" chart associated with the cars, have not found one for my 2002 S. The stock wheels on mine are boring and takes away from the car and my earlier attempt failed thanks to UPS ...

Friends P-Car shop did not recommend the 19"s for mine .. on newer cars he said would be OK.

Thanks for the assistance,

Jaak

PS ... I know about the staggered sizes (this is my second Porsche in 7 years, hang around friends shop) but I can only go by what is in the ad. Don't want to assume ...

Jaak,

I think its fair to say that perhaps the 2 most important reasons why Porsche enthusiasts upgrade their wheels are for both aesthetic and performance benefits. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. With that said, its up to the individual to choose a wheel of his or her liking. However, as far as performance is concerned, as I am sure that you know, the objective is to reduce rotational mass. By reducing rotation mass acceleration and braking are improved .. blah blah blah..so forth and so on. As far as I'm concerned the wheels that you are considering really don't meet the aforementioned criteria. Yeah, I'm sure that they are nice wheels and that they would probably look good on your vehicle, but in reality you would simply adding another heavy cast wheel to the equation. Moreover, given the sizes and offsets of those particular wheels, I don't think that you would achieve the look or "stance" that you are likely hoping for. My advice would be to look into a light weight forged wheel with a low offset. Something in the range of 19X8.5 (front) and 19X10 (rear). And depending upon your suspension set-up, offsets in the range of + 40 to +45 in the rear and +45 to +47 or so in the front. Keep in mind, that these are summary recommendations.

[Quickurt]

Originally Posted by Jaak

He is selling 19"s.

As long as the total diameter of the TIRE and the cross section of the TIRE are no larger, which they are not with corresponding sizes, there is basically no difference between clearance for an 18" or 19" WHEEL. Back spacing needed will be the same for either size. Backspacing is the distance between the mounting face of the hub and the overall back side of the wheel rim. MOST, not always, but MOST of the time, the tire sticks out farther than the wheel.
Clearance issue for the wheel are the backside of the spokes not hitting the face of the caliper, or in the case of SMALLER diameter wheels, the inside of the rim not hitting the caliper on it's outside edge.
Inside face clearance (determined by backspacing) is not hitting the coil spring and not rubbing the inner fender when turned all the way one direction or the other and this is almost always the tire rubbing, not the wheel.

[Quickurt]

Originally Posted by Johnny Danger

Jaak,

I think its fair to say that perhaps the 2 most important reasons why Porsche enthusiasts upgrade their wheels are for both aesthetic and performance benefits. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. With that said, its up to the individual to choose a wheel of his or her liking. However, as far as performance is concerned, as I am sure that you know, the objective is to reduce rotational mass. By reducing rotation mass acceleration and braking are improved .. blah blah blah..so forth and so on. As far as I'm concerned the wheels that you are considering really don't meet the aforementioned criteria. Yeah, I'm sure that they are nice wheels and that they would probably look good on your vehicle, but in reality you would simply adding another heavy cast wheel to the equation. Moreover, given the sizes and offsets of those particular wheels, I don't think that you would achieve the look or "stance" that you are likely hoping for. My advice would be to look into a light weight forged wheel with a low offset. Something in the range of 19X8.5 (front) and 19X10 (rear). And depending upon your suspension set-up, offsets in the range of + 40 to +45 in the rear and +45 to +47 or so in the front. Keep in mind, that these are summary recommendations.

Wow. Nearly a perfect description of the OZ wheels and my reasoning when shopping. They are not forged, but the HLT pressure casting is still much lighter and stronger than the stock cast wheels. The 18x8.5 fronts are about 7lb. lighter than the stock 987 Boxster S wheels (which are lighter, I believe than the wheels Jaak is looking at) and the 18x10 rears are 8.5 lb. lighter.
I went with 18" wheels and 40 series tires because we travel allot in the car and I am not interested in needing a new 19" wheel and 30 series tire 95 miles from someplace like Boise Idaho!!

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by Johnny Danger

Jaak,

I think its fair to say that perhaps the 2 most important reasons why Porsche enthusiasts upgrade their wheels are for both aesthetic and performance benefits. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. With that said, its up to the individual to choose a wheel of his or her liking. However, as far as performance is concerned, as I am sure that you know, the objective is to reduce rotational mass. By reducing rotation mass acceleration and braking are improved .. blah blah blah..so forth and so on. As far as I'm concerned the wheels that you are considering really don't meet the aforementioned criteria. Yeah, I'm sure that they are nice wheels and that they would probably look good on your vehicle, but in reality you would simply adding another heavy cast wheel to the equation. Moreover, given the sizes and offsets of those particular wheels, I don't think that you would achieve the look or "stance" that you are likely hoping for. My advice would be to look into a light weight forged wheel with a low offset. Something in the range of 19X8.5 (front) and 19X10 (rear). And depending upon your suspension set-up, offsets in the range of + 40 to +45 in the rear and +45 to +47 or so in the front. Keep in mind, that these are summary recommendations.

Johnny, thanks for the data, always welcomed!!! .

The car is basically stock USA model that had been imported here a few years ago and I got if for a song as PO put 4 extra litres of oil into her. Had engine rebuilt etc and now she's mine. I like the 18" as shown and if UPS did not screw up ... they would be on my car now!!!

I moved from a 951 which was rather fast to the 986S and I feel it needs a better set of rims. I am going more so for a nicer looking car than for the track (and keep the wallet moth free) so this is more what I am leaning towards.

Thanks again!

Jaak

[Jaak]

Originally Posted by Quickurt

As long as the total diameter of the TIRE and the cross section of the TIRE are no larger, which they are not with corresponding sizes, there is basically no difference between clearance for an 18" or 19" WHEEL. Back spacing needed will be the same for either size. Backspacing is the distance between the mounting face of the hub and the overall back side of the wheel rim. MOST, not always, but MOST of the time, the tire sticks out farther than the wheel.
Clearance issue for the wheel are the backside of the spokes not hitting the face of the caliper, or in the case of SMALLER diameter wheels, the inside of the rim not hitting the caliper on it's outside edge.
Inside face clearance (determined by backspacing) is not hitting the coil spring and not rubbing the inner fender when turned all the way one direction or the other and this is almost always the tire rubbing, not the wheel.

Understood ... don't forget the e-cable rubbing as well.

I would prefer not to go with spacers if at all possible as I do at times like to take corners a wee bit faster & harder ... Faster is not better and if caught doing 50 km over the limit, car is impounded, lose of licence for 7 days and possible $10,000 fine for "stunt driving" ...hence the mover from a turbo to a bit slower ...