how tough are 19" wheels compared to 18"? I know a big part of it is the quality of the wheel. I had a set of 18" AXIS wheels on my VW for about 5 years which was a daily driver, about 25k per year. I drove all through NYC and hit some really nasty pot holes. At times I thought I definitely bent the rim. But out of all those times and years I only bent a rim once and had to have it straightened. So would a respectable, not the "best" set of 19" wheels hold up as well?

 

short answer is no - they won't hold up 'as well'...maybe 99% as well, or maybe 50% as well. A 19" will have less tire underneath it vs an 18", so only you can answer if this will be a problem for your local roads and driving style. If it were me, and I lived in the NE, I'd run 18's and slam the car to make em look good. good luck

 

ive hit hella nasty pot holes. no bents or anything here. My wheels are high quality though, no replicas or anything

 

i bent 2 forged 19 inch wheels on the ****ty roads of nj.

 

You guys have it easy in Cali lol, my local dealer takes in loads of OEM 17" to fix for bends during the winter months.

 

my lexus now I only drive on the weekends. so im only doing about 10k a year or so. But it only takes that one time when you're not paying attention that you bend a rim. I dont want to deal with the hassle of bringing rims to get repaired and what not. I guess ill just look for a set of 18"s, get some spacers and drop it on coils.

 

18 or 19, what does it matter. If you drive crazy enough and the pot hole is crazy enough to bend the 19, wouldnt it most likely do the same for the 18 unless the 19 was really ****ty rims

 

It all depends on the size of the tirewall you put on them

on my M5 I put 20's on it and most do a 30/25 tirewall, but I opted for a 35/30 tirewall and a wide tire so it's almost square and I hit potholes with ease and peace of mind.

so if you're stretching a tire or putting a rubberband on it, you're begging for a bent rim

 

Yeah when you hit that pothole that would have bent your 19" wheel, ask yourself if you had hit that SAME pothole with your 18", do you think it would have held up? Probably not. Your best bet is to dodge all the potholes like we all do here in massachusetts

 

I'm running 19's in CA, no problems (since May 2009).

But for crashing into potholes my Jeep with 16'" wheels and 70 series tires is more cushy.

 

the point is that the same exact rim (brand and model) will hold up better on 18 inch, but also depends on the profile of the tire and how many psi are you running too