Anyone have an opinion about the ride of the 20s on an MKX vs the 18s? I have driven a '13 model loaner while wifes '11 was in the shop, and seemed much more gentle. I don't have to have the 20s, they just came on it with the Ultimate package.
Makes sense to me that there is more rubber between the wheel and the road. Are 20s just for show, or is there a real reason for them?
Joe

 

In my opinion, there is no reason for 20" wheels on any roadgoing vehicle smaller than a semi. Tires and wheels cost a lot more, tire/wheel combo is heavier, ride is usually worse, and the lower sidewalls make for easier wheel damage.

It's just a ploy to make cars look more like the sketches from auto design school with no practical reason at all. It's for people who buy vehicles to "wear", not drive. Like 6" high heels with huge platforms on women's shoes.

George

 

Right, but who doesn't love a girl in 6" heels?

 

I certainly like the looks, but try going for a 5 mile walk with her and it stops being fun for both of you.

George

 

My wife wears heels most of the time, and I would'nt be surprised if she's made 5 miles in a day, going to different malls !! lol

That 5 miles isn't how she gets exercise though, its the hard work of swiping the credit hard constantly, and the hauling of several bags of overpriced junk.

 

Well, that clinches it...gonna get 6" heels for the MKX.
Joe

 

We bought a vehicle with 20's, and it will be the last one.
The tires for those 20" rims are ridiculously priced, and not much selection.
(sorry for destroying your thread. )

 

I don't think you destroyed the thread; reality is that there is no performance advantage in real life. In theory, if you road race or autocross a car, a shorter sidewall theoretically makes the response crisper (on something like a Camaro or Mustang with 450 horsepower), but I remember an autocross test in Car and Driver or Grassroots Motorsports magazine where they increased the wheel diameter on some kind of medium-horsepower car.

The result was that increasing wheel size a bit (from the stock 15" to 16" and going a bit wider) gave the best performance advantage. Beyond that, going to 17" or 18" wheels slowed the car down because of increased wheel and tire weight.

On a pickup truck, the current 10 foot tall designs make 20" wheels look properly scaled to the truck size--but the $ cost is big. I would personally prefer nothing larger than a 17" or 18" wheel as a compromise for weight, cost, and performance on any kind of truck or non-ultra high performance car. There is a legit reason in having to increase standard wheel size from 15" to, say, 17" on even a base truck, because brakes are larger.

IMO the giant diameter stuff is a pure waste of money and is for looks alone. And if you are talking about an AWD vehicle (MKX?) that requires all 4 tires to be the same diameter with very little variation, if you trash one tire (like bubble it by whacking a chuckhole), buying 4 new matching tires gets that much crazier in terms of cost.

Of course, I'm in Detroit and the ghetto bling guys not only spend 4 grand on Chinese made chrome 24" or 26" wheels, they also have to get giant chrome stick on numbers to advertise 24" or 26"... Makes as much sense as wearing pants around your knees.

George

 

Parkland and George,
Thanks for the replies, kind of confirms what I was thinking. I definitely think the ride has a better feel with the 18s without sacrificing the handling.
I am now looking for a set of takeoff 18s from someone who just had to have the 20s--but need to keep the 20s in case I want to sell it.
Joe