Greetings. I have just become the proud owner of one of the last MY05 STIs . My last car was a Civic Type R and compared to that my STI's ride is a revelation. However, I fear that my new steed is going to require some 18s and probably some lower suspension as it is sitting a little high. Can anyone who has made these changes comment on whether the ride quality deteriorated significantly? I live in a town of speed bumps and don't want to go crashing over them so won't change if the ride quality is going to be oblitorated. If a suspension and wheel change is a little extreme has anyone found a nice compromise of 18s with the standard suspension? Cheers

 

welcome to the fold matey!
I have 18's on my 03 sti and personally i think the car behave's alot better with the upgrade in wheel tyre size,from a 225/45/17 to a 225/40/18,the car feels a touch heavier on the steering but far more planted and less twichy then before,You will probably hear people ranting on about tyre choice for the sti,Just do yourself a favour and choose your tyre wisely,general feedback around the forum is goodyear eagle f1/michelin pilot 2/yokohama parada/toyo proxe are all worthy of gracing the sti,and stay well clear of budget's

As long as your geometry is set up correctly,your motor should fair well wearing 18's,i recently had mine done to prodrive figure's and a full set of yoko parada's fitted and it has transformed the handling of my car

mark

 

Thanks for the quick reply Mark. Prodrive is probably the safe option and the one I would go for. As for tyres, the F1s on my Type R we so good that I will definitely be trying them again.

One further question for everyone. Do you think there will be much of a market for an immaculate set of 05 STI alloys with basically brand new tyres?

 

Stick them on ebay matey
They are a differant offset to the earlier model's,so may be a problem for peep's wanting to upgrade