19 vs 18 inch wheel option

[spycarrussell]

Someone wrote that the great Walter Rohl has a preference for 18 inch as opposed to 19 inch wheels on the 987. Does anyone know where this opinion was published, likely in one Excellence issue?

I'm about to order an '06 "S" with the PASM option and am still on the fence about this. Unsprung weight may be what influenced Walter if, in fact, this is true.

Thanks

[j_brown]

Someone wrote that the great Walter Rohl has a preference for 18 inch as opposed to 19 inch wheels on the 987. Does anyone know where this opinion was published, likely in one Excellence issue?

I'm about to order an '06 "S" with the PASM option and am still on the fence about this. Unsprung weight may be what influenced Walter if, in fact, this is true.

Thanks

It was in the August 05 issue of Excellence. The article does not go into detail about his reply, but does say that without PASM to go with 18s.

I have an 06 S on order for June delivery and after driving 3 versions, 18s, 19s without PASM & 19s with PASM, selected the 19s with PASM (and sport crono plus). I thought the ride was great, tighter than the 18s and looked the best (Carrera Classic).

[spycarrussell]

Someone wrote that the great Walter Rohl has a preference for 18 inch as opposed to 19 inch wheels on the 987. Does anyone know where this opinion was published, likely in one Excellence issue?

I'm about to order an '06 "S" with the PASM option and am still on the fence about this. Unsprung weight may be what influenced Walter if, in fact, this is true.

Thanks

It was in the August 05 issue of Excellence. The article does not go into detail about his reply, but does say that without PASM to go with 18s.

I have an 06 S on order for June delivery and after driving 3 versions, 18s, 19s without PASM & 19s with PASM, selected the 19s with PASM (and sport crono plus). I thought the ride was great, tighter than the 18s and looked the best (Carrera Classic).

Thanks, J Brown, for the info.

I'm also wondering how the PASM-equipped car with 18's would ride on the "sport" setting, as opposed to the

somewhat jarring ride one gets with the 19's on that setting. Great for handling, less for anything else.

My thinking is that if the "tight" setting with 18's is acceptable, then I would probably usually leave it on "sport" all the time and enjoy the improved steering feel as well as the better handling. I'll bet you felt the wheel come alive when you hit the "sport" button also.

I am also giving the "Chrono" some serious consideration as I've heard it lets you hang the back out.

[j_brown]

Yes, you could feel the difference when the sport button wash pushed. The sales guy made a point to activate it as I was driving around a bumpy corner.

The dealership I used had 3 or 4 cars with PASM, but none with 18s and PASM.

I did find a set of 18" rims (Standard Boxster S Wheels) that I plan to use for snow tires (Chicago) but if the ride is "much" better I would switch permanently.

[MikenOH]

As the new owner of an '06' Boxster with PASM, Sport Chrono and the 18" wheels (and all of 700 miles on it) I'd like to share my experience with the those options:

18" rims with in Sport mode:

On the back roads in rural Ohio, while the Sport mode does tighten things up handling wise, it is not the mode that I'd care to do any extensive driving in except at the track. Not punishing but your head is moving up and down with the undulations of the road. In normal mode, these undulations would be barely noticable. On a smooth highway there probably wouldn't be much difference between the two regarding ride quality but on typical midwestern roads the sport setting would get tiring after a while.

19"rims standard suspension:

We drove a demo with 19" rims on city streets and while they felt good on good pavement, I'd be concerned about how they'd fare on pot-holed streets--not much sidewall. Also, the standard airpressure goes up to 32lbs in front with the 19s, which will protect those rims a bit more but also firm the ride up a bit.

Sport Chrono:

We haven't tracked this car yet, but I enjoy the more responsive throttle settings even on the street. The stop watch function looks problematic for auto-x but I'm thinking you could probably use it occsionally during a track session just to get a feel for what your time was. It would definately work best with the PCM but that a lot more $..

Don't forget the sport seats for $700--they are great!

[spycarrussell]

Thanks for the input.

I placed my order yesterday and went with the 19's and PASM for ultimate handling on "stiff" as well as decent ride on "normal" settings. I figured even w/18's my head would bob around like one of those dogs people used to have in their rear windows (on the sports mode).

Also ordered the sports chrono. Stayed with the standard seats as I find the extra bolstering bothersome unless on the track, which will be a very rare occurance.

Went with the 's' in Guards red with beige interior. Should be sweet.