I can not find a thread about this, which puzzles me as it has been an issue as I've read elsewhere. I am about to order a F-Type 2 liter coupé. The new type of seats do not allow for bolsters. As I have problems in my lower back, ride comfort is an issue. Now I think about selecting 19" wheels, above the 18" standard wheels. What would be the effect on the ride ? We have mostly asfalt here, but also cobbled roads and dirt tracks [ these I'll try to avoid given the small geound clearance]. Please advise..

 

i have 19'' great comfort !

 

Hi Indietor,

Good to know. But what model car do you have ? A V6/V8 with dynamic suspension ? Or normal suspension, what year ? This all translates in ride quality it seems..

 

As a general rule, the smaller diameter the wheel the taller the tyre sidewall and the softer/smoother the ride. So if you want the softest/smoothest ride possible on a new F-Type then go with the 18" wheels, and bugger the looks.
That said, the type and construction of the tyre also play a part and I have no idea which tyres come stock with new 18" wheels and which ones come with 19" wheels. If at all possible you should test drive a selection of new F-Types with and without Dynamic suspension and with a range of wheel and tyre sizes. You never know, you might find that the 19" wheels/tyres offer the same ride comfort as the 18".

 

@OzXFR. As you say, al these things have an effect. But sadly no car they offer for testdrives come with 18" . For some weired reason they plonk 19/20/22 under it... The bigger the better...
But the car comes with 18" standard, so I guess suspension and all would be set up for that. I wonder why they even bother to make the 18" as nobody buys them...

 

The suspension and set up / calibration is exactly the same regardless of wheel/tyre size, the only difference is with or without Active Dynamics.
With the exception of the SVR.

 

Without the active suspension, you’re permanently set on soft mode.

 

I thought it was the other was round Lance, and the "base" suspension rides harder than the dynamic suspension?
Either that or the non-dynamic set-up is a little harder than the dynamic "normal" (off) setting.

 

Based on the test rides I had taken, that was my sense. But you may be right since those test rides weren't done back to back and probably also not the same wheel sizes.

 

Hey, so I have the V6 without adaptive suspension. Summer and winter tyres are 19". I find the ride overall smooth. Only gets quite bumpy when you have a realy bad part of street with a lot of damage or short corrugations in the surface.
Which seats are you looking at? I suspect that the difference in seating "quality" was bigger before, but with MY 2018 models onwards the seats are quite similar between standard and performance.

I was considering the 18" for winter tyres due to the smaller surface as we have more rain than snow here. There are quite a number of pictures on the web with the smaller tyres and found it okay. In the end the 18" were not availabe.

 

I had a similar concern about ride comfort, and previous year-round experience on 19s with the mix of roads and weather in New England wasn't ideal. Before buying I drove it with both 19s and 18"s. The ride difference was not great - but just noticeable - with perhaps a slight advantage of 19s for turn-in at the expense of a bit less ride compliance. But overall I felt I wasn't giving up any significant performance with the 18s and they were the better choice for me, not to mention the advantage of a bit more tire height for dealing with rough surfaces, pot holes, etc, and less unsprung weight.

In terms of the base suspension, I haven't experimented with the suspension settings on the S, but for me the Base set-up is ideal: plenty firm without being punishing; a well-judged compromise which I have no desire to change (I don't track the car).

 

I am very reluctant to disagree with a fellow australian, but my experience with the XFs was that the ride on 19's with standard suspension was better than that on 18's, but then 20's were worse. in that car at least the 19's were a sweet spot.

With the F type (19's) and the XKR (20's), I have found that the ride is hard in the beginning but as the seat softens up it starts to absorb some of the jarring, so in my cars where my wife is only an occasional passenger, the ride as driver is very, very good whereas the ride as passenger is still a bit **** numbing.

Cars with active suspension do have a softer ride in "normal" but a harder ride in dynamic. I wouldnt buy the car without active suspension, they seem to make up the most of the cars which are up for resale at low kms.

 

OK Guys,

I'm ordering the 19" ! This car has 'normal' suspension, no fancy settings. It will take until april untill I get it, as its the new model as of march produced [ new central display and other gizmos].

Thanks you all for the info !

As soon as it arrived I'll post some pics.

Dan
The Netherlands
W-Europe

 

One other possible factor to consider is that 19" or 20" wheels plus tires are heavier than 18" wheels plus tires. Especially with the 2.0 F-Type which is a little down on power compared to the V6 models, you might consider that you may get better performance with the smaller 18" wheels, as well as future tire purchases being less expensive as an added bonus.

 

Another downside to the 18" wheels is you can only use the most basic brakes with them, the "performance" 355 mm front brakes. If you want the bigger/better 380 mm front brakes that come with the "high performance" and "super performance" brake packages then you must go to at least 19" wheels.

 

Hi Guys,

I ordered today. With 10-Spoke Style 1023 Silver ... Ultra Blue coupé 2L...
Will take untill may to be delivered...

Thanks for the advice !

Dan