suv wheel sizes 20 vs 17 inch

redmill · 03-29-2011, 09:06 AM

looking at an 05 suburban/yukon xl for trailer duty, family trips, occasional commuting

live in nj where roads are terrible

I assume the 17s usually come with a more winter friendly pattern than the 20s
Used 20" are 500 per rim vs 300 and i assume tires are more.

I dont want to deal with 2 sets of rims for this vehicle.

Whats better? 20"*8.5 or 17"*7.5 for
towing ,
ride comfort , gas mileage ,
handling

kaisen · 03-29-2011, 09:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redmill

Whats better? 20"*8.5 or 17"*7.5 for
a) towing ,
b) ride comfort , c) gas mileage ,
d) handling

a) 17 kinda, both have same load rating, 17s squirm a little more but break away more progressively
b) 17 no contest
c) 17 no contest
d) 20 less sidewall, 275 treadwidth

It also depends on the wheel. Typical 20s are VERY heavy and poorly made and will really hurt the dynamics. I'd suggest GM wheels, or maybe Centerlines, if you're set on 20s.

20s and bigger worked much better on the 'new' 2007-up rigs as the suspension components were engineered for it

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

20s are only good for image.

17s are superior all the way around for unsprung mass, durability, cost etc.

Why people put gigantic heavy wheels with much higher rotational inertia on vehicles with teeny tiny stock brakes is beyond me. Bad idea.

ODDJOB UNO · ODDJOB UNO's Garage

hmmmm so why does GM offer 18" also? on all silverados?

UconnTim97 · UconnTim97's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by ODDJOB UNO

hmmmm so why does GM offer 18" also? on all silverados?

Not sure, but we have them on our GMC Envoy. I am happy with their all around performance, especially on pot hole laden Philly streets.

emcon5 · emcon5's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by ODDJOB UNO

hmmmm so why does GM offer 18" also? on all silverados?

Because consumers are image driven morons?

redmill · 03-29-2011, 07:14 PM

thanks for the info

seems like the seller made the decision for me.(20s made by GM for 2006 denalis) with a good set rubber coming off another set of 20s ( he is a little goofy). factory 17s are now gone.

Now if I can only get him to ensure the tire pressure monitors will work.....