20 vs. 19 inch wheels?
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Originally Posted by Schpilky' post='241754' date='Feb 17 2006, 09:25 AM
I'm trying to determine if I should purchase 19" or 20" wheels for my 550i. I lean more towards performance and ride quality rather than looks. But I've been told that even 19" wheels look somewhat small on this car. What do you guys think? 
I think we have really beaten this topic to the groun 
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From: LONG BEACH , CALIFORNIA
My Ride: 2005 530i JETBLACK/BLACK DAKOTA, COLD WEATHER PKG, PREMIUM PKG, ADAPTIVE XENON HEADLIGHTS, AUTO TRANSMISSION WITH 6 SPEED STEPTRONIC, BLUETOOTH SETUP,SAT SETUP AND WIFE AS CO-PILOT
Originally Posted by Znod' post='242217' date='Feb 18 2006, 04:54 AM
Even if performance is not the goal, I definitely would not go larger than 19's unless you drive on excellent surfaces all the time. And, 20's will hurt performance by effectively increasing your rear-end ratio and adding extra weight for both wheels and tires. Check out the 19" style 101's in my sig and my gallery photos to get a feel for whether you think 19's look too small. If I had it to do again, I stick with 18's, have still lighter wheels/tires, higher profile tires, and the potential for running drag radials on occassion.
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My Ride: 2006 550i, Black/Black, every option except HUD
Originally Posted by Ferdie' post='242194' date='Feb 18 2006, 01:37 AM
The drive feels the same as stock, but I'm sure stock (with those big fat tires) are a lot more ride friendly.
My friend has a set of 20's on his e60 (not lowered) and it feels just a tad bit more harsh than mine, but not bad at all. IMO the small sacrifice you give up for ride quality is worth having the 20's, which is a bigger and better looking wheels. They seem more proportional with the E60 body. The way I look at it is if I get tired of the ride quality I can always sell them and go back to my 19's.
My friend has a set of 20's on his e60 (not lowered) and it feels just a tad bit more harsh than mine, but not bad at all. IMO the small sacrifice you give up for ride quality is worth having the 20's, which is a bigger and better looking wheels. They seem more proportional with the E60 body. The way I look at it is if I get tired of the ride quality I can always sell them and go back to my 19's.
Now you got me thinking I should go with the 20's! 
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