20” wheels on an AWD car? Why?

There is only so much space before the brakes cannot fit anymore.
It's not an issue here, but vehicles are getting heavier, and so are brakes.
100% agree. I think it stated off as a look thing.....but yes cars are heavier than they used to be, and brakes are better and bigger.
 
Our Signia has 21's, I'm amazed on how smooth the ride is. I figured it would be awful. I like the look of a larger wheel if it's done right. Not looking forward to buying tires for it though...
 
I miss our old (2021) Prius Prime and my 2016 VW Sportwagen - 195/65r15
Great, cheap tire size!
My Maverick has 17s from a Bronco Sport, and our AWD Sienna has 18s. Would have preferred 17s, but not worth the cost to hunt down the LE wheels. Recently upsized our tires and gained 1" diameter, so we have more sidewall anyways (and now 7.4" ground clearance! lol).

Big wheels and thin tires is a stupid trend, and unfortunately you have to work to avoid it if you want to buy a modern vehicle. A freaking Sienna comes with 20", if you buy the wrong model. WTH
 
Wife's 2014 Armada came with 20" wheels...but the tires are 275/60/20 so they visually fit together. That is equal to a 33x10.50 tire and actually is a 33x10.80
 
Wife's 2014 Armada came with 20" wheels...but the tires are 275/60/20 so they visually fit together. That is equal to a 33x10.50 tire and actually is a 33x10.80
IMO 20's work Ok with big tire sizes that still give 6"+ of sidewall, and the tires aren't 12" wide...
I was behind AMG MB SUV with steamroller tires on it(snow tires though), on some slightly slushy highway with some ice patches and I could see the back tires fighting each other with all the rear toe in and camber, and every time one side hit an icy spot the rear would shift over, and then back. The driver was not having a good time and was doing 25mph wondering why they felt like bambi on ice while people are passing them with no problems...
 
The 19's on my Rav4 are bad enough. The tires are getting close to needing replacement anyway, so I am dumping them and going to somethin with a sidewall. Need to find some rims the boss will accept first, better get looking I guess.
Enkei wheels on Tire rack look nice. Looks like you go down to a 16" rim on a '19 RAV4. For the tire size I'm guessing 205/65r16.
 
My 21 HRV Sport has 225/50/18.... I would rather have a smaller wheel and more rubber between the wheel and the road...
 
IMO 20's work Ok with big tire sizes that still give 6"+ of sidewall, and the tires aren't 12" wide...
I was behind AMG MB SUV with steamroller tires on it(snow tires though), on some slightly slushy highway with some ice patches and I could see the back tires fighting each other with all the rear toe in and camber, and every time one side hit an icy spot the rear would shift over, and then back. The driver was not having a good time and was doing 25mph wondering why they felt like bambi on ice while people are passing them with no problems...
That’s the traction control in action. I always turn off the traction control devices on ice and snow.
Some people pull the fuse on off-road trucks so they can spin the tires without the brakes going on automatically.
 
That’s the traction control in action. I always turn off the traction control devices on ice and snow.
No tire was spinning, and the subtle shifts probably won't wake up the stability control either at 25mph. But it is unnerving, my first focus wagon had pretty much maximum rear camber and toe in that was allowed and it would do the same thing once the snow tires were nearly done down near 6/32. I was doing 55mph on a long bridge and the back end started moving on uneven ice patches with bare pavement between them, so the back end would dart side to side a couple inches quickly, which was very "exciting"! I wasn't going to do that again, so I went to an alignment shop and told them what happened and what I wanted, and he set the rear camber and toe to the minimum spec, and the car drove great after that.
Taller sidewalls and taller tread blocks allow the contact patch to "squirm" a bit more before sliding which is key for winter as static grip is often much better than sliding grip. With tall tread my car didn't often have that problem too often, but once they wore down, that was quite the wake up call.
 
I miss our old (2021) Prius Prime and my 2016 VW Sportwagen - 195/65r15
Great, cheap tire size!
My Maverick has 17s from a Bronco Sport, and our AWD Sienna has 18s. Would have preferred 17s, but not worth the cost to hunt down the LE wheels. Recently upsized our tires and gained 1" diameter, so we have more sidewall anyways (and now 7.4" ground clearance! lol).

Big wheels and thin tires is a stupid trend, and unfortunately you have to work to avoid it if you want to buy a modern vehicle. A freaking Sienna comes with 20", if you buy the wrong model. WTH
Man, LE wheels for Sienna are $150 on Facebook.
 
Looking at AWD vehicles online I saw a Toyota Venza that has 20” wheels. Why? Does anyone even make a non-truck winter tire for a 20” wheel that isn’t $$$? I hate the big wheel trend.
I have 21s on mine. Why? Because they ride better and get better traction. The smallest I can go is 19's, I believe. That's the only way 15" brake rotors fit.
 
Our Signia has 21's, I'm amazed on how smooth the ride is. I figured it would be awful. I like the look of a larger wheel if it's done right. Not looking forward to buying tires for it though...

Fortunately [or not], there are currently only 5 tires offered in the Crown Signia's 21" OEM tire size. They are all expensive averaging about $300/tire, but choosing is easy. If you like what it came with, buy another set. If you don't, there are only 4 others from which to pick.
 
Typically there will be a winter tire/wheel fitment that is smaller by 1-2 sizes (wheel) but brake size will limit this. On this car I'm sure you can do an 18.
 
I keep an eye on CL myself. IMO a Venza looks like it's on wagon wheels. Surely that can't help the ride quality?

1737727941515.webp


I'm guessing some don't care about tire costs on something quite so fancy (a tarted up Camry wagon, I know but to me it's fancy). But I know that I like to look at tire costs when car shopping; where I live, AWD or not, snow tires a really good idea, and regular tires wear out every 40k.

But I drive a Corolla and consider 15" tires a decent size, so what do I know.
 
I keep an eye on CL myself. IMO a Venza looks like it's on wagon wheels. Surely that can't help the ride quality?

View attachment 260336

I'm guessing some don't care about tire costs on something quite so fancy (a tarted up Camry wagon, I know but to me it's fancy). But I know that I like to look at tire costs when car shopping; where I live, AWD or not, snow tires a really good idea, and regular tires wear out every 40k.

But I drive a Corolla and consider 15" tires a decent size, so what do I know.
I 100% have always looked at tire costs when shoping for family-type vehicles like this, it's why I've never had more than an 18" wheel. For a sporty car, sure, whatever big wheel/low-pro tire is fine and we don't need winter tires here so no drama. Those look like fairly large sidewalls so the aspect ratio has to be what 50?
 
Those look like fairly large sidewalls so the aspect ratio has to be what 50?
I think so, I took a quick look (before moving on) and I think 50 is the aspect ratio for the optional 20's for that year.

Umm, I was thinking 50 was low profile! :ROFLMAO: I don't care for the 55's that my Corolla came with, and think 60 is the lowest I care for.
 
I think so, I took a quick look (before moving on) and I think 50 is the aspect ratio for the optional 20's for that year.

Umm, I was thinking 50 was low profile! :ROFLMAO: I don't care for the 55's that my Corolla came with, and think 60 is the lowest I care for.
ha...no....50 is monster truck dude haha. I run 40s on my Sportwagen and even that isn't rubber band.
 
Big wheels and thin tires is a stupid trend, and unfortunately you have to work to avoid it if you want to buy a modern vehicle. A freaking Sienna comes with 20", if you buy the wrong model. WTH
It's not really a trend though, it's just the natural progression of the industry. Look at the wheels and tires on a Ford Model A. Things change to suit the current needs.
 
Back
Top Bottom