18"vs 20" wheel ride quality

[RocketFistMooga]

Hello friends. Is there a discernable difference between 18" and 20" wheels in relation to ride quality? I just recently had my dealer update my order to include the 20" six spoke dark alloy wheels and I am starting to wonder if I could be sacrificing ride quality. The truck will rarely see anything other than pavement. Thank you for your help and input!

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[Graygoose2021]

If pavement princess, the 20's will look better IMHO, I think you will be fine. My 2021 STX 20's rides amazing.

 

[tony72cutlass's']

i know it's not what you're asking, but my 17's are like riding on a cloud

 

[RLTW175]

Hello friends. Is there a discernable difference between 18" and 20" wheels in relation to ride quality? I just recently had my dealer update my order to include the 20" six spoke dark alloy wheels and I am starting to wonder if I could be sacrificing ride quality. The truck will rarely see anything other than pavement. Thank you for your help and input!

20" wheels mean a shorter sidewall on the tires, which means a little more firmness in ride than over a taller sidewall. But its unlikely you will notice a difference. I've had 20" wheels on the last 5 trucks/suvs I've owned and they are very comfortable. The only significant difference is if you're doing serious offroading, in which case a taller sidewall will allow you to airdown the tires.

 

[Sundancer330]

I have 20s on my 21 and also had them on the 18. Have driven trucks with both and cant feel any difference. Looks wise the 20s rock and 18s make it look like a cheap Chevy truck. You wont be unhappy with the 20s

 

[Pedaldude]

Some of the 20" options have a tiny bit more diameter than the 18" tires but you still lose up to 4" of sidewall. That being said, there's still plenty of sidewall and suspension on pavement that most people would not even notice.

Everything else being equal, you are going to notice a more significant difference between tires than the wheel diameter.

I just picked up a second set of OEM 18" wheels identical to the ones that came on my truck. The difference is my truck came with C rated General Grabber tires and the the other set has Michelin Primacy eco tires mounted that are a tiny bit smaller in diameter and nearly 10lbs lighter per tire. I recently mounted the Michelin tires to see if they could get me better MPG.

The ride from the stock Generals is incredibly stiff and you can feel every road imperfection, driving over road sealer joints shakes the whole truck. With the Michelin tires, I knew that there would be a difference in ride quality but I wasn't prepared for it. The Michelin tires, even with the same 45PSI tire pressure that I had in the Generals, make it drive like a completely different truck! I don't feel road sealer joints at all, the truck is quieter and big bumps seem to be reduced by half. I always tell people that the biggest change you can make on your car is changing the tires but this was night and day. The only thing that didn't change is my mileage! I am still getting around the same MPG as the heavier General tires.

Good luck with your new truck!

 

[Polo08816]

I think the real harshness comes into play if someone upsizes from a 20" wheel.

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