19 inch wheels on a 2022 Kia Stinger GT Line

[Volfy]

If you just like the looks of the larger 19" wheels, there is nothing wrong with that. Go for it.

However, if you care at all about ride and handling, 18's have a much wider range of tuning options. If you are buying aftermarket wheels, an 18" wheel will be lighter weight than a 19" wheel of the same width and design. It would also have less rotation inertia, which will accel/decel quicker than a larger hoop. It's pure physics. Stock G70/Stinger 19" rims are very heavy, upwards of 35 lbs/wheel. Going aftermarket, you can easily pick out 18's that are 20 lbs, or less.

The more mass the wheel has, the more it wants to stay exactly where it is/was, when you hit a pothole. Not only is that bad for handling, as the unsprung assembly reacts lazily, it can also be more prone to impact damage. Seems like every winter/spring, there are lots of forum/FB posts of bent, or even cracked, stock 19" wheels. Yes, you can always wrap larger tires with more sidewall height to protect the 19"s, but now you are adding on even more weight and rotational inertia. That's going the wrong way, if you ask me.

Aesthetics are just want a guy is used to and is mostly objective. To me, what works right looks right... not the other way around.

The 3.3T drivers can count on the HP/TQ to overcome the heavy wheel deficit and not notice much difference. GT-Lines cannot. Keep it lightweight so you can maintain momentum and make youself a happier - and better - driver.

 

[7Andrei7]

The Gt Line comes with 19” in the EU and I can tell you from direct experience it is very hard to feel the difference between the 18” and the 19”.
I think tires are WAY more important to overall grip and feel. I often see people talking about saving 2-3 kg on wheels and then putting on some shady tires that kill all the joy of driving.

 

[Volfy]

The Gt Line comes with 19” in the EU and I can tell you from direct experience it is very hard to feel the difference between the 18” and the 19”.
I think tires are WAY more important to overall grip and feel. I often see people talking about saving 2-3 kg on wheels and then putting on some shady tires that kill all the joy of driving.

Whether you can feel the weight difference depends on how you drive and what type of driver you are. However, that doesn't mean the difference isn't there. It's like a difference of, say, 10-15HP. Depending on how you drive and what type of driver you are, that difference might not be felt.

As for shady tires... suffice it to say, if you are the type of driver that care enough to pay good money to upgrade to lightweight alloy wheels, you would also care enough to pick out the right tires for your application.

 

[antoneloc]

If you're going for the stock, heavy 19s then aesthetics are the only positive. Some (most) aftermarket 19s are still going to be much lighter than the stock 18s, and that weight difference is more than enough to make up for the 1in diameter difference from an inertial standpoint.

 

[RM7]

Well, some would say the aesthetics of big wheels with tiny brakes inside is also…questionable. If theres a big wheel, there better be a big brake IMO.

 

[Volfy]

Well, some would say the aesthetics of big wheels with tiny brakes inside is also…questionable. If theres a big wheel, there better be a big brake IMO.

Precisely.

Brembo retrofit was my very first mod on the Stinger and they fit inside the OEM 18" wheels with plenty of clearance to spare. Realistically, the OEM 4-pot Brembo over 350mm (13.8") rotor aren't even the biggest brakes that would fit inside 18" wheels. GM squeezed 6-pot Bremob Monobloc over 380mm (15.0") rotor in the CT4V Blackwing's front 18" OEM wheel. But, I'll cut Kia/Genesis some slack, since Stinger/G70 are more Gran Turismo than track weapon.

The only reason I would go with 19" wheels on the Stinger/G70 is if I upgrade to even larger brakes that won't fit inside 18" alloys.

 

[7Andrei7]

The gt-line has 345mm rotors. Again, unlikely you're gonna spot the 5mm difference.

I like how you all talk about 1-2% performance gains for cars that MAYBE see a track day once in their life. With gt cars like the Stinger it is a lot about esthetics, balance and confort.

Also, there were a bunch of engineers that did a bunch of measurements to ensure the best possible mix of ET, J and tire width to maximize looks, confort and performance.

Surely, you know it's almost impossible to get the exact same fit from aftermarket wheels without shady spacers.
Most people here will buy a set of identical 4 aftermarket 18" and slap some wide square tires to be able to rotate them but will then preach about 1% gains in performance that they CAN feel in everyday driving.

Yes, I appreciate people that are really improving their cars to get the most performance out of them. But that's crazy expensive to be done right. You need 5k wheels and 1.5k tires to improve what the stinger already has as stock.

All the best!

 

[Ohiocruiser]

The gt-line has 345mm rotors. Again, unlikely you're gonna spot the 5mm difference.

I like how you all talk about 1-2% performance gains for cars that MAYBE see a track day once in their life. With gt cars like the Stinger it is a lot about esthetics, balance and confort.

Also, there were a bunch of engineers that did a bunch of measurements to ensure the best possible mix of ET, J and tire width to maximize looks, confort and performance.

Surely, you know it's almost impossible to get the exact same fit from aftermarket wheels without shady spacers.
Most people here will buy a set of identical 4 aftermarket 18" and slap some wide square tires to be able to rotate them but will then preach about 1% gains in performance that they CAN feel in everyday driving.

Yes, I appreciate people that are really improving their cars to get the most performance out of them. But that's crazy expensive to be done right. You need 5k wheels and 1.5k tires to improve what the stinger already has as stock.
All the best!

Gt trim came with 18 inch square setup from the factory, even though it's technically the same as gt2 which came with 19inch staggered setup. So I think you are giving to much credit to engineers there. Also there're a lot of videos with measurements of significant improvements from lightweight wheels, which are not as expensive, as you think. You can get a set of good quality lightweight wheels for under $1k any day. Usually that day comes when it's time to replace the tires. So you are really not spending anything extra on that.Considering how heavy stock wheels are, (I assume 35lbs range to be correct) replacing them is one of the most practical real improvements. Don't have a lot to say about brake difference though.

 

[7Andrei7]

1k wheels are not nearly good enough. I actually had a set of 1k 18" MSW OZ for 3 seasons, for my winter tires. Used them with 225 tires, square, as the OEM spec. Had Pirelli Sottozero 3 for 2 winters and Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 for 1 winter. Two of the best UHP winter tires you can buy.

What I can tell you is I did not feel any significant improvement in comfort or sportiness. The opposite, actually. The 18" transmitted every single vibration and harshness to my steering wheel. Way more than a PS4 does with oem wheels.

As an extra bonus, I had to fix 2-3 wheels after every single winter because they were too soft and became slightly deformed from potholes or bumps in the road. Nothing serious but I still had to do it to prevent vibrations.
In the same period I only had to do that once to my front OEM wheels and never on the rear ones.

The 18" (1k) aftermarket wheels were a pretty bad experience for me and is why I chose to stick to OEM wheels for the Stinger with its MEGA sensitive steering. My 4th winter with the Continental TS860S on the 19" oem wheels was a dream!

 

[Ohiocruiser]

You can't compare winter setup with summer.Winter dedicated tires will feel a lot different from summer set. I am taking about wheel difference, not tires. Maybe you got crappy wheel set. I don't know. I am running 18inch enkei tfr with all season tires. Never had to fix anything. But, of course, if your setup works for you, who am I to say otherwise. Edit: actually, I did have to replace one wheel. I hit a big pothole. Bent a wheel,destroyed wheel bearing and damaged the tire. But I have no doubt, I would have the same outcome even with stock wheels.

 

[Volfy]

I paid less than $1k for my first set of TFRs back in 2021.



My 2nd set bought last year was just over $1k.



I absolutely agree not every driver will feel the difference. My son and I, fortunately, can. This is our 2nd season doing Track Days and AutoXs. The TFRs have thus far performed brilliantly. Not only are they light weight (20 lbs each). The open spoke design provides excellent brake cooling and easy cleaning, which is importantly when we are running track brake pads, so both heat and dust production are higher than a street roller.

As for spacers, we don't go nuts with 20mm spacer, because we don't much care whether the wheels are flush with the fenders or look right with the "stance". Not our gig. The TFRs came with ET38, so we installed hub-centric 5mm spacers up front to correct the scrub radius back to within 1mm of stock 34mm. TFRs go on rear as it, no spacers necessary.

 

[Volfy]

1k wheels are not nearly good enough. I actually had a set of 1k 18" MSW OZ for 3 seasons,

MSW used to make some pretty good rollers, back when they were made in Italy. I had a set on my VW GTi and AutoX'ed them in the early '90s. Good stuff.

These days, like so many of the once great wheel mfrs, MSWs are mostly just rebranded asian production wheels. Not exactly bad, but more or less just like any other generic cast alloys. O.Z. still make some excellent lightweight stock I'd consider. However, many of the others are their formal glory no longer, and I wouldn't bother... regardless of price.

 

[7Andrei7]

You can't compare winter setup with summer.

In Europe we have UHP winter tires that are not the same as snow tires. Most premium UPH winter will be better handling than touring all-season tires at temps below 10 celsius.

But, in any case, you raised my earlier point. You could have the most amazing wheels, if they are paired with all-season tires I am pretty certain they will feel worse and be slower than an oem wheel with premium uph summer tires. Both in rain and especially in the dry.

However, I do understand that we are different and there is always going to be a compromise somewhere. The race for performance has no end.