Wild thing got Wilder!

Hi Guys, I seem to remember someone saying " I wonder what an Xpower would look like with 20s". I did actually suggest to my Wife when I bought the car back in April that it should either be lower or be on 20 inch wheels. Well it wasn't cheap and not without hassle, but I think most would agree it looks terrific. I nearly went down the lowering route but worries about warranty and camber issues put me off. Then I saw some images of cars with 20s in Europe, but they were all with multi spokes which I do not believe suit the car. Then I saw modular OZ wheels with the "pick" shape holes (and being a guitarist) they were a must have. We thought initially that the extra 12mm offset would be an issue, but after intense calculations and upping the tyre size to 255/35/20 the extra projection is negligible. Of course spigots had to be fitted to accommodate the larger bore size and also 7mm longer wheel bolts were needed, the final touch was fitting MG centre caps which are 60mm. So what about the dreaded kerb and white line tug I hear you say, well I have to say that it's way better now, I actually have to virtually get on the kerb or white line before I get a bleep or tug. OK so what about the dreaded 70mph vibes, I have to say I never had them before and still haven't! So I'm delighted to have a car that ( to my eyes anyway ) looks a hot should - and not an SUV.

 

[Chrisdriving]

I think the wheels look great on there, and really like the car in White, i love the White/Black contrast.

 

[salty]

Looks great! Like the alloys, very Alfa'ish. But personally think, it does need lowering ??

 

[Wildthing]

Yes you're right, it doesn't need lowering, that's another reason for not going for the lowering kit. In actual fact it's very slightly higher than before, we checked for that in the calculations and that would account for when I go through our local village solar speed guide , it reads the same as the stock wheels/tyres. It's just an optical illusion that because wheels are bigger, it appears to fill the arches better. So some may (rightly say) that it's a great expense to achieve that look.
In fact it would not have come about if we hadn't had our garage raided and all my old Bands music gear stolen (which I didn't want to replace - too old now for all that!) and were insured, I wouldn't have had the funds finance this venture.

 

[Wildthing]

Sorry, I thought you said it doesn't need lowering. Like I said, I just wanted the look, to fill the arches

 

[salty]

Sorry, I thought you said it doesn't need lowering. Like I said, I just wanted the look, to fill the arches

They do fill the arches as such, but as you say, the overall size of the wheel is still pretty much the same as the 18s, and imo
still sits too high. H&R Springs lower it 30mm, would be perfect. All this is only my opinion of course. It's your motor. ??

 

[Wildthing]

Yes you would be better off going with H&R and the stock wheels if you want it lower, I couldn't do that with these 20s, they could possibly foul the arches