[Polarican90L]

This past weekend I threw on a set a 16" CL Rims on my car. I like the way they look, but my car's ride feels so poor compared to when I had my stock rims... I only went up one inch, and was expecting the ride and handling to be better...

I now get a lot of steering wheel "jerking" when slowing down, and the car seems to be all over the road at highway and city speeds??? When I had the stock Rims on my car it drove amazingly straight...

Was i wrong to expect a better ride with an upgrade in size? Has anyone else experienced this with their ride after an upgrade in Rim size?

Maybe there is something wrong with the Rims I just installed, but the car has 0 vibration even at highway speeds. It is just all over the road and I never had the steering wheel jerk around when i'm slowing down (like over bumps or over uneven surfaces)...

Any input would be appreciated...

 

[Black_Panther]

I would measure the distance between your front tires (the front edge of the tires should be about 1/4" closer to each other than the rear) this is what is called toe in
If your tires are toed out then steering is a bit erratic (it'll wander), it is easy to adjust. make sure your wheels are straight before you measure.

BP

 

[5speed]

Polarican90L;
Check out what Cruz'nLegend has to say in the Rim size=Performance threads. Lot of interesting info.
http://www.acura-legend.com/vbulletin/search.php?searchid=497553

 

[Black_Panther]

That link is busted, I think the consensus of that thread was that lighter/bigger rims give better performance unless they're 18" or bigger.

here is a recent thread
http://www.acura-legend.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=68330

BP

 

[5speed]

Black Panther;
The link works fine on my computer...don't know what happened when you tried. There was a post by GREYLEGEND about WHERE the weight on a rim was located relative to the center. Cruz'nLegend mentioned the lower aspect ratio tires(smaller sidewall) results in a rougher ride. Apollogies if I've misrepresented anyone.

 

[chuckee98]

This past weekend I threw on a set a 16" CL Rims on my car. I like the way they look, but my car's ride feels so poor compared to when I had my stock rims... I only went up one inch, and was expecting the ride and handling to be better...

I now get a lot of steering wheel "jerking" when slowing down, and the car seems to be all over the road at highway and city speeds??? When I had the stock Rims on my car it drove amazingly straight...

Was i wrong to expect a better ride with an upgrade in size? Has anyone else experienced this with their ride after an upgrade in Rim size?

Maybe there is something wrong with the Rims I just installed, but the car has 0 vibration even at highway speeds. It is just all over the road and I never had the steering wheel jerk around when i'm slowing down (like over bumps or over uneven surfaces)...

Any input would be appreciated...

Polarican - You may be needing a wheel alignment. Going up in rim size amplifies any alignment issues. The difference in the CL rims and the stock rims is small, but still noticeable - you should feel a firmer ride, but not harsh. On the highway, the car should react quicker to steering inputs, but not be all over the road. If the front end is toed-out, you'll get the symptoms that you indicate.

I would get an alignment first, then check the front end (ball joints, tie rod ends, etc.) Usually the place that does the alignment will check all that stuff first because they can't do a proper alignment if they are worn.

A good place to go is Eurotire in Fairfield - I think it's on route 46. Believe it or not, that is where I bring my truck to get aligned.

 

[5speed]

Oops! I'll put my dunce cap on. I was in a rush and didn't read very carefully. Didn't realize you were talking about CL rims and just assumed you were talking aftermarket... I agree with chuckee98. Like Gilda Radner used to say at the end of her commentary on SNL..."never mind". LOL..

 

[GREYLEGEND]

OK, I'll chip in here. If the tires and wheels that you put on had not been regularly rotated, they would develop a "set". Depending on the tires you have, this can be quite noticeable when you "switch the tires around now. Next question, are the tires asymetrical? i.e meant to rotate one way as well? Check this out.

 

[2.7legend]

hmmm at first i thought you threw on some 17's or 18's....but i read you threw on some 16's cl rims.....should be fine.

i have a set of 16's with 205/50r16.....it the ride is even better....

 

[slartibartfast]

Tires themselves have a lot to do with ride quality.

How much air pressure? I like ~ 40 psig, but I'm an ex-autocrosser and prefer sharp turn-in to a pillow-soft ride. 32 to 34 psig should be adequate for most people.

Shorter sidewalls (assuming your 16" tire has same circumference as the 15) will harshen the ride to some degree. How much depends greatly on tire construction.

Wider tires (don't know what size you have now) are more susceptible to "tramlining" (following longitudinal irregularities in the road, such rain grooves), that could explain some of the "all over the road" feel. Wider tires also negate some caster effect.

If the tires are used, well, there's no telling how they've worn.

 

[chuckee98]

Polarican - just one other thing: Make sure that the same brand tires are on the fronts vs. the rears. Don't mix brands from side to side, because that may cause an imbalance. So it should be either the Tiger Paws up front, or the RE92's - either pair should be fine.

 

[2.7legend]

well you basically answered my question slartibartfast.
i was thinking of going with wider tires.
but i think i'll keep the 205/50r16

 

[chuckee98]

Polarican - Any update on this? Just curious.

 

[Polarican90L]

Hey chuckee98, I decided at least for the next few days to leave all as is... I am going to chalk it up to be "over tuned" to the way my car has driven for the past year or so, so any change in ride quality was going to feel drastic...

I am still going to get them balanced again and swap them around next weekend. I want them (I guess for comfort sake) installed the same exact way you took them off your coupe...

I will take pics soon so you can see how they look on a sedan verses the coupe. I like the way they look, I think they suit a sedan a little better than a coupe. Also, my 12 year old daughter gave me the thumbs up, so that's good enough for me!!

Thanks for everything chuckee98...

 

[chuckee98]

Hey chuckee98, I decided at least for the next few days to leave all as is... I am going to chalk it up to be "over tuned" to the way my car has driven for the past year or so, so any change in ride quality was going to feel drastic...

I am still going to get them balanced again and swap them around next weekend. I want them (I guess for comfort sake) installed the same exact way you took them off your coupe...

I will take pics soon so you can see how they look on a sedan verses the coupe. I like the way they look, I think they suit a sedan a little better than a coupe. Also, my 12 year old daughter gave me the thumbs up, so that's good enough for me!!

Thanks for everything chuckee98...

Cool. My personal feeling is that you don't need to have them rebalanced since there are no vibrations when you drive, but that's totally your choice. If you do, I would suggest that you see if they can rebalance them WITHOUT removing the existing ones on the front of the rims, and add any new ones either on the back side or with stick-ons. Why? Because I would be afraid of the paint flaking off on the lip when they gorilla the old wieght from the fronts, and destroying the pristine look of the rims. I've had the guys at the local Good Year do this for me on one of the rims after I explained my concern, and they did it wihtout an issue. (One of the tires had a flat, and was patched from the inside.)