18s vs. 19s vs. 20s: Form over Function?
 

So I'm currently running 20s in a 255/305 setup. They're really pretty to look at, but I'm already starting to grow tired of being too careful (for potholes) and the ride comfort.

That being said, I guess 20s are strictly for form. It seems like I slip a lot more in a canyon carving driving scenario even though I have a lot more feel of the road. My ride is a little bit more stable when I'm cruising in the highways, but thats about it.

What wheel setup would be perfect for handling/grip in general?

That being said, I'm pretty tempted to trade my wheels in for Nismo 19s.

Ask the track guys in the forum with 18" grippers. They'll swear by it. There are 20's that should hold up well. Porsche has 20's in their line up.

I was in the same boat you are in now I sold my 20's for the same reason and kept my 19in Nismo wheels and the ride is a hell of allot better.

I think they also do 18's because tires are cheaper and if you go with a small side wall, it makes the acceleration of the car quicker (Its like changing the gear ratio)
The issue with 20's on our cars is that you have .5" less of a sidewall (Compared 275/35R19 vs 275/30R19 which is almost the same diameter), while that IS less flex/roll (but sometimes it's not a bad thing), it makes the biggest difference in day to day street driving, you'll FEEL a LOT more because the sidewall has less give and the PSI of the tires is more

So, IMO, 19" is the happy medium. I hate the tire costs, but at the same time i wouldn't go to 18's because I like the form over function of 19's

I think I have less grip than people running 255/305 on 19s compared to my 255/305 on 20s, or would the difference be so little that its negated?

Well......, what tires do you have?
That will play a HUGE roll in seeing why you have a traction issue

If you've got some ghetto Nankang tires, that may be your problem

Too many variables in this question such as which tires are you running? What are your camber settings? Width of the wheels? 18's are not primarily used to running a smaller tire. They are used because track tires and sizes we prefer to use are more available. Mike the powdercoater is running a much larger size then stock. 275/40 is what is OEM diameter at 26.7" and he runs 295/40's which are 27.3" diameter. It's more for lighter wheels and better tire choices more then anything.

My current settings are 9.5x20F 10.5X20R 255/30/20F 305/25/20R, on hankooks v12s and stock camber settings with offsets of +22 on the front and +25 on the back.
Say another owner had the exact same settings but was running 19s with 255/35/19F 305/30/19R. Obviously, this guy would have bigger sidewalls than mine. But would the difference be like night and day?

I know the hankooks aren't sticky like RE11s or P Zeros, but still, I can tell they're much better than my 18s that had those yokohamas.

Hankook V12's are not for canyon carving. They are decent straight line grip with long lasting wear. A great everyday tire not so much for medium or higher spirited driving. They have more sidewall flex then most of the tires in the same class and no traction would not be much different if any at all from 20's to 19's. Any suspension upgrades? Springs/coilovers or sway bars? BTW the Advans are just plain out terrible. I threw them at out 5k miles lol.

I'll add to this, 18's are generally going to be lighter. Not by much, but some people are real maximizers (or minimizers) about weight.

What a disappointment, I thought they would be decent enough for medium spirited canyon carving at the very least. I was running Mulholland and just felt like the tires weren't confidence inspiring at all, I thought it was the 20s size causing it, therefore me thinking that 19s were so much better. As for suspension upgrades, I'm planning on getting stillen sway bars, I decided not get those coilovers that drop your car by more than 1", so I settled with nismo springs (but not the shocks).

Getting back on those Advans, they were some pretty fun tires to burn out in lol.

A lot of tires dont come in 19s!

Sway bars will make your car stiffer but which could help but at the same time could make it worse because the tires cant hold the traction as is, could cause for some full off sliding and drifting. The tires are now the limitation of your traction/handling. No longer your car.

I'd rather not want to slide off of a cliff, guess I have no choice but to wear these out until I can get new tires. :driving: Thanks for the input :tiphat:

V12s
 

I agree. The Hankooks are great for me as my Z is for show and easy driving, more or less.