OK tell me if you have ever herd this before. I have a cuz. and their fam own a VW dealership in AZ who told me that "you always want to go with OEM rims because aftermarket don't ride as well". What do you think?

 

I think oem rims will ride the best because the car was designed and tested with those rims and tires.

 

I think your "cuz" has no real working knowledge of car mechanics

 

comin from someone who upgraded to oem 19's on a sedan i would have to say it depends what kind of rims/tires ur rolling on....im sure a nice light set of 3-piece iforged, asantis, HRE's, volk wheels wrapped with some continentals or michelin pilots and hub rings would be one smooth a$$ ride!

 

I guess it may come down to what is meant by "don't ride as well". Clearly, 19" or 20" rims w/ performance tires are a slightly harsher ride than OEM 17's (but not that bad...I drive a 24K miles per year & have 19's and the ride isn't bad at all). Now if you're talking performance, 19's with performance tires KILL the handling of the 17's w/ Turanza's on them!

I was actually told the same thing by my local tire shop a few years ago. I don't really agree with them whole heartedly....I think it comes down to what aftermarket rims & tires you buy. Maybe it's true for rims that cost new, around $100-150 each with ok rubber (they may not ride as well as OEM), but if you buy a reputable brand, if they're balanced properly & with the right rubber, and with hubcentric rings, I think they're wrong. My 19" Milano's with hubcentric rings ride & handle really well and I will not be going back to OEM at all.

 

That's true. If you get crappy cast wheels they may not balance as well so you will always have some vibration. Also chrome wheels are harder to balance.

Tire size has a lot to do with your ride. The small rubber band tires I have on my 20's make the car ride a lot rougher than the oem 17's. It's not bad, just much sportier than the stock ride.

 

i was thinking of putting hub rings in my oem coupe wheels....good idea?

 

it would really be tire size and brand, more size tho, like a 245/40/19 vs 245/35/19, u know which will ride better, a lil more meat is never a bad thing, i use to have 225/35/19 toyo proxes4 on my xb and u would imagine it rode horrible, right? Wrong, it was the same as 15's, if not better, but say if they were 225/40/19(something like that) with more rubber, it would definately be way better

 

Why? OEM wheel hub bore = 66.1mm hub bore. Hub rings for Nissan/Infiniti = 66.1mm Don't need them and they wouldn't fit anyway

 

In terms of weight are the oem 19s and 18s forged rims lighter or heavier than most medium priced aftermarket rims? If so does it significantly hinder/improve our cars performance?

 

why?= self explainatory

and thanks for the useful info

 

OEM Coupe 19s being forged and made by Rays, makes for a pretty light wheel. On par to most of the pricey forged 19s. Might not be the lightest though.

As far as 18s, the G doesn't offer forged 18s. Only the Z had forged track 18s and now the 19" staggered track 19.

 

Why did you need hub centric rings for your milanos this is new news to me?...

 

I had to use rings for my 20's. Just make sure and get the good metal ones and not the plastic ones.