Gentlemen,

I am looking at taking the 19" ZONE 1 wheels off of my 2003 C4S and putting them on my 2004 Clk 500. I am currently shopping for a set of 20" X 9" and 20" X 13" Forgianto Estremos with the carbon fiber trim but after several requests still do not know if they will fit. The fronts have a 2.5" offset and the backs have a 7" offest. Any input would be appreciated.

 

I upgraded to 19" champion rg5 in my 2004 c4s and noticed a big downgrade in handling performance. I then lowered the car which improved handling. I track my car with the stock 18" rims and it handles amazing. I could only imaging what poor handling a 20" rim and tire would do. Let me know what you thought about the handling with the 19" wheels.

 

Joe,

The is a very astute observation and I did not consider that in my decision to go to the 20" wheels.

The car does have a huge amount of understear but I figured that was fairly typical in a Porsche and I do not know what it would handle like with the 18" wheels. I have owned a 964 speedster, a '94 Carrera and both having stock wheels but with much less understeer.

Does the taller wheels add to this and can the understeer be reduced?

It has saved my butt a couple of times not being the best Porsche driver coming out of a mid-engine ferrari so I would only desire to tighten it up enough to move around on the highway better.

Ponyboy

 

If you get a chance install stock 18" wheels with decent tires and go for a ride i think you will appreciate the difference in handling. I have spoked to many de track drivers and the said going up in size on a 996 nequatively affects your handing. If you just drive the car on the street your car would look nice but under handle other stock 996's. I don't know anything about the understeering.

 

20"? eeeeeeeeek

besides the performance difference, 18s look much better on a porsche

 

First, Porsche wheels will not fit on a Mercedes. The bolt pattern and offsets are wrong.
Second, I'm not sure a 13" wheel will go on the rear of your C4S. I think the widest I've heard about are 12'".
Third, what you refer to as an offset is not proper terminology. You either reference backspacing or true offset from the centerline commonly measured in mm (ie, ET+65). If what you refer to as a 7" offset is actually the backspacing, then there is no way that fits on a 996.

I'd suggest you go direct to a Forgiato dealer and ask for help. I think some of the sponsors here carry Forgiato. ---->>>>>

 

Just saw a set of wheels for sale with these specs. Based on the pics, the rears stick out a little. Either it is too wide and/or the offset is wrong.
-DIAMETER/WIDTH: 18x9.5-FRONT, 18x12.5-REAR
-OFFSET: ET57-FRONT, ET38-REAR

 

Great input and I have reconsidered my choice based on what I have learned here.

Thanks,

Ponyboy