Wider Is Better

07 Dec Wider Is Better

Queen once sang, “Fat-wheeled cars, you make the auto world go round.” Or something like that.

Freddie Mercury’s words couldn’t have been any more true. When it comes to wider wheels, increasing the contact patch with the ground will improve traction in both hard cornering and everyday driving. Currently, we’ve got a Porsche 997 Carrera Cabriolet in for some suspension enhancements, including coilovers, spacers and a widening of the stock wheels. With all these things combined, the car’s stance will become much more aggressive, and performance will increase by just as much. In terms of how these wheel are going to be widened, a band of the required material in the width requested is used, so no second donor wheel is required. Aluminum wheels are V-grooved and tig welded by hand, with each seam providing maximum penetration.

As for sizing numbers, they’re being widened 1.5″, from 11″ to 12.5″. Yep, twelve-and-a-half inches. Hellaflush doesn’t even begin to describe how great these wheels are going to be, once the car’s dropped a tasteful amount on the coilovers. For now, though, here’s some before shots of the Porsche wheels (both back and front, to show the difference already between the two), with the tires both on and off: