GTiMK5 Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 We have had the 3 and 5 door poll and it is quite evenly matched at the moment. Thought it would be interesting to see which wheels seem to be the most popular too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTiMK5 Posted October 28, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 18's for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotw Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 Only 17s for me....although the more comments I see from very happy 18s owners the more I wonder if it was the right choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiey Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 I'm really glad I went for the 18's. I really swithered but they really set off the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRobin Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 I chose the 17s because I thought that the 18s would feel a harder ride. I have read worrying stuff about the 18s with their special finish....Durability of surface in Winter etc but I wouldn't like to judge that myself. Having driven a very modified 270 bhp GTI on 19s recently I was amazed how good the ride was. But suspension was modified as well. I'm expecting the 18s to 'win' this poll by a big margin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRISSAW1 Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 18's for me aswell- the best option I have ever put on a car- couldn't believe how little it cost to upgrade Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gribs Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 18"s here. The cabin is very well soundproofed so any additional road noise over the 17"s is not really a problem. The ride also seems fine to me. I've driven both but never back to back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spankit Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 18's best value option, along with dsg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotw Posted October 28, 2005 Report Share Posted October 28, 2005 The Poll's closer than I thought, but it does look like the 18s have it. I choose 17s for similar reasons to Red, namely the ride and noise, but people with 18s say its fine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peugeot6 Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Hi I chose the 17", felt they gave a softer & quieter ride compared to the 18"s, with no loss in grip. Plus had to draw the line somewhere, the cost kept mounting. 18" $2,000, Leather, $4,000, Xenon's $2,000, price then $63,740. Spoke to dealer who thought the mark v R32 would be well over $70k NZD as that was the price of the Mk 4. Don't think I could justify the extra dollars as in the pics the GTI looks far more sporty at the front. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skifly Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 what worries me is the stuff that had attached itself to my 18's the other day. looked like the rain had made the disks slightly rusty and had splattered onto the edges of the alloys and almost bedded into the surface... bit worried about it as have only had the car 2 months and i had to scratch the stuff off with my fingernail. Any ideas folks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 Thats just the rust off the disc as you drive along and brake it wares off and due to it been hot trys and melts itself into the alloy wheel finish. Had this with many other cars in the past. VW brake discs of late do seem to like to rust up more than they use too but maybe its just wetter lol or as some other makes seem to be doing there making the pads harder and the discs softer. I just use to clean the bits of rusty metal that came off the disc onto the alloy with a bit of either tar remover or polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skifly Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 dont want the rusty bits eating into the lacquer though - plus the alloys had a nice thick coating of tech wax to stop nasties like that sticking!! Any ideas as i am sure its going to cause damage in the long term. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 drive slow for example to the end of your street with a slight brake pressure on and off at first to clean the rust off the discs that way you will not clean the discs at speed and so make the rust/metal/disc hot enough for the rust to fly off and stick to the alloy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OzGTI Posted November 1, 2005 Report Share Posted November 1, 2005 The 18's really aren't an option in Australia. Yes, there is an 18" option but they are not the same wheels as you have in the UK and Europe. I think they are a Toureg wheel, which has a different offset and requires little wheel arch extensions to the car to comply Australian Design Rules. So most Australian GTI's are running 17"s I think unless the owners have gone and got after market 18"s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 I have seen the Australian 18 option and after seeing it i can understand why people opt for the 17s over there the wheel arch extensions do it no favours at all with the 18 option. Must say im quite suprised at how close the ratio of 17s alloys to 18 is i was expecting it too be mostly 18s owners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rouse Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 glad i got 18 with what they cost from dealers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rouse Posted November 2, 2005 Report Share Posted November 2, 2005 snoopy do you have any pics of wheel arch extensions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTiMK5 Posted November 3, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 [ QUOTE ] Must say im quite suprised at how close the ratio of 17s alloys to 18 is i was expecting it too be mostly 18s owners [/ QUOTE ] This may have been slightly different if the option was more easily available in Oz though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melchior Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 I went for the 17's to be on the safe side as I've had two cars in the past whereby speccing bigger wheels has compromised the ride and handling. I have to say though, that since getting the GTi I haven't heard anyone else reporting that larger wheels compromise the ride. I'm happy with the 17's but if I were to spec my car again today I think I would opt for the 18's on the basis of aesthetics and the fact that they don't appear to have any major drawbacks in terms of ride, handling, noise, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 [ QUOTE ] snoopy do you have any pics of wheel arch extensions? [/ QUOTE ] Not sure if it was a thread on here or http://www.uk-mkivs.net/forum/uk_home.asp Theres quite a few pictures of a white one floating about somewere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRobin Posted November 3, 2005 Report Share Posted November 3, 2005 Hi Melchior, My views exactly. However, having now driven a Mk5 GTI with 19s and modified suspension, I was totally amazed how smooth the ride was. Our beloved GTI has been well designed methinks . I like Milltek's GTI BBS 19s too, but saw some pics of a Black Mk5 Golf (not GTI) on 20s and it looked gross! Yuk! Chav! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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