OK, the GranSport wheels look great. The GranSport wheels handle great! I don't even have complaints with the ride always in Sport mode zipping around town. However, painful everytime you hit even the smallest pot hole and you hear that hard sound which must be pavement and metal coming in contact or only separated by a fraction of rubber. I am careful of course, but after 6k miles of driving this has happened a good dozen times. Even worse is curb rash. Come on, I had a BMW 325is with 17" wheels for 100k miles, I have owned the 328 for 8 years, I drove the RX8 with 18" wheels for a year. I know about curb rash and am very careful! The GranSport is a bigger car than I'm use to and there is just something about the visibility or the how the rear tracks that got me in trouble a few months ago. Pulling forward out of a parking place right rear just rubbed a little on a curb and put about 3 inch rash. So she is in for oil change a couple weeks ago and I have them send the rear wheel in to fix the rash. They also inform me both front wheels are bent and need fixed. 3 x $200 and back to good. Last night driving around our Town Center which is very tight and tons of Christmas traffic. I was nice and moved far over to let a car going other way in parking lot, the rear end just trailed inside more than I thought it would and then I heard the most awful noise from the rear wheel. This rash is more than 3 inch, more like 5 inch and on both sides of the wheel. Another $200 down the drain and having to send the wheel in. These are by far the most vulnerable wheels to bending and rash I've ever had. Lesson learned I hope.
heck of a christmas surprise Rob!!lim surprised your costs were only 200 per wheel!when i had the 550 it had the outer lips painted to match the cars color which just added to the painful costs of rim replacement
I know what you mean...the rims are like butter. You just have to error on parking a bit too far away rather than too close to the curb. I've hit a couple of potholes recently and it sounded like someone hit the bare rim with a hammer. My experience has been bends in the rim that are very slight and dont cause air loss.
Take a look at how "easy" it is to align them. Trust me, it is cheaper and easier to swap wheels. What tires you guys running, that makes a diff as you know.
A lot of folks have have re-tired with a +10mm width over stock when replacement is due. 245/35-19 and 275/30-19 fits the current wheels and gives a small 3-5mm "overhang" of rubber beyond the wheel. It won't completely eliminate curb rash but might help with a lighter "brush" impact. Plus this tire size has a slightly taller sidewall that might provide a bit more flex for potholes. Another added benefit is that the overall circumference tends to make the speedometer a bit more accurate - from about 5% off, to 2%.
great idea, will have to think about that more. I've done that with other cars with success. would like to hear from anyone that has done this with a GranSport.
For an extra "cool factor" effect, I am going to go with Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta for upcoming tire replacement of the P-Zeros. The Vredestein's have "Giugiaro Design" molded in the sidewalls. A pretty *****in' tread design and a few people I talked to who had the Ultrac on their QPs were pretty happy with them. http://www.vredestein.com/
I put the larger size Bridgestone REO1R on my Gransport. I run the pressure at 30 and it is amazing how well they handle. Understeer is gone and rim protection is much improved. This tire is fairly stiff so it does make the ride a little tight over sharp bumps. So far I have about 3K miles on them and all is good. Mine just turned 25K miles and running great. Plus I think the car just looks better on the slightly larger tire. This car is quite a great value. Cambiocorsa is not perfect but it is very good. Still original clutch.
What about swapping out to 18" wheels? They use a taller sidewall and should provide more rim protection.
Even if the tire does not have the rim protectors as they I think are called, why not just put a wide tire on the wheel. I used to do that, I could get .75" of tire rubber on each side of the wheel...no problemo...no more wheel rash. Ciao, George
I have 235/40-18 & 265/35-18 Michelin PS2's My wheels are part of the vintage package, so they look good with the car. with regards to avoiding bent rims.. I don't think tires will make too much of a difference here in LA. We have very poor maintenance and quality control. At some intersections, they will lay a pipe/cable pretty much on top of the asphalt, then pack more asphalt on top creating a mini speed bump. There seems be a new work ethic with these guys and if their worktruck can drive over it, it's good enough.
