18" vs 17" vs 16" Rims

[Newby]

I have just purchased a 2016 NX GLX. A newby to major off road experiences.

I was wondering if 18" rims with limited A/T options performs okay.. I have been getting advice that there isnt enough cushioning.

Also interested as to whether 17" rims are a better way to go as there are more A/T options and better performance? Would it affect speedo readings , suspension etc?

[MSF]

I see you have 16" in the thread title... just a heads up - 16" rims will NOT fit any Gen 4 LWB models due to the brake rotor size, so 17" is the smallest you are able to fit.

I swapped my 18" to 17" for the exact reasons you mentioned...
Wider choice of tyres
Cheaper tyres
Don't need to air down as much off road for the same footprint / bigger footprint for the same pressure
More comfortable ride - debatable - sure, there is extra sidewall, but I have LT tyres now, - so any benefit in sidewall height is probably negated by the stiffer sidewall construction.

for the first 12mths - I kept the 18" rims and H/T tyres in case I wanted to swap back... I ended up selling them as I have no intentions of swapping back to 18's now....

As for the speedo being affected - the factory 265/60R18 tyres are close enough to the 265/65R17 tyre that there is bugger all difference...

[Lost1]

Going to 17 inch rims means you will have a greater choice of cheaper tyres. Plenty here have gone to 265/70 x 17 tyre. Running this tyre size has affected torque convertor lock up in some situations. the 265/70 x 17 tyre will provide real benefits offroad when airing down in the soft stuff. By reducing tyre pressure you are lengthening the contact area of your tyre improving traction or flotation, depending on circumstance.

But before you decide to head offroad I recommend you do a 4wd training course. Getting there is always fun, but recovering a vehicle when you get stuck along the way does have its dangers.

[pajeromack]

As above. Running a smaller rim means the tyre & sidewall makes up a greater proportion of the total wheel. You can usually keep the total wheel size about the same if you like but most offroaders prefer to run a slightly larger wheel when possible.

Having a smaller rims means tyres are cheaper (go figure), less chance of damaging or buckling the rim (more sidewall and air cushioning), smoother ride on rough roads and gets you a larger footprint when you air down.

Downside is that it may increase your unsprung weight and lean more in corners.

[Newby]

Thanks, what brand of 17" rimim did you go? NT/NW alloys of 3rd party steels/alloys?

[rotare]

Really comes down to the extent of 4wding you're doing, and where you're driving off road. For most people the stock 18inch rims will be fine. I've done a moderate amount of off-roading with 18inch rims and standard sized AT tyres and had no issues.

17 inch rims might be a nice to have so you can select from a greater range of tyres, but really, how often is this going to be a dilemma for you?

I've also seen the trend from 15 inch rims, to 16 inch rims ...... and now 17 inch rims are in vogue. Give it a couple more years and I'm sure there will be greater selection of tyres for 18 inch rims as all vehicle manufacturers move to larger diameter rims on their vehicles. It's just what happens.

[MSF]

Those of you who are changing from the OEM NX wheels to a 17", what sort of wheel are you going to? Personally I'm not a fan of the 17" Pajero wheels, just wondering if you looked at any other options, perhaps aftermarket?

I went with ML Triton GLX-R Wheels on mine..

[Nxsr]

G'day mate,
I've been up at the finke desert race for the last week, where I had a stick go straight through a side wall of one of my mickey Thompson Baja atz. A replacement 18" tyre in Alice springs was drug money so I managed to get a used tyre just to use as a spare for my return trip to Melbourne.
Food for thought, I wanted to change the 18's to 17's when we got our nx. Would have been easier and cheaper to source a 17" tyre if I had them.
Cheers👍

[chrisceke]

I have just changed to 17s from 18s with the original tyres. Spent the weekend doing some country dirt road travel. Was pleased with the improvement in ride. I posted something about this a week ago.

Chris

[Ian H]

I've got a set of 17" steels for off road travel with 265/65 Toyo tyres and kept the original 18" alloys and tyres which I put back on for use around town. I can't tell any difference in ride and not much in road noise.

[pusspuss]

Ian H would be interested in the details of the steel wheels you run on your NX
I ran CSA Raptor 17x8 +25 on my NW and now run CSA Krawla 17x8 +20 on my NX
Both had 265 x 65 x 17 BFG's
The NX 18 inch rims with new tires are in the shed

[Ian H]

From what I could find, the only 17" steel wheels available are the genuine MM wheels. There are no after market wheels which the required offset so we are stuck with what we have and they aren't cheap. $176 each.

[Newby]

I've got a set of 17" steels for off road travel with 265/65 Toyo tyres and kept the original 18" alloys and tyres which I put back on for use around town. I can't tell any difference in ride and not much in road noise.

Thanks Ian
What sort of steels did you get?

[Ian H]

Thanks Ian
What sort of steels did you get?

See my post above

[signo1985]

So is it definitely possible to install 17" wheel on the nx without problems (apart from the cost)?
just trying to decide between a nw glx-r or nx glx. the second one has got slightly better specs and would be my pick, but the 18" wheels ...not a fan of.
Im in wa (perth) and most of my 4wd-ing would be on sand and that extra sidewall the 17" have got is really handy.
What are your thoughts guys?