[Joe123]

I'm trying to decide how to specify my upcoming Ateca order and have a couple of questions. You've been very helpful with the question of engine size. Most of the reviews mention the Ateca ride gets more harsh with bigger wheels? Have you noticed this? Are the 18 inch wheels (Xcellence) noticeably harsher than the 17 in wheels (SE)?

Ta,

Joe

 

[Tell]

Dunno.... mine are 19". I went for beauty. Since I bought in pre order period I didn't have the luxury to test drive the 18" and I only wanted the Xcellence for 4WD. Problem then was the normal 18" were a bit plain, better options now.

19" aren't uncomfortable. Most of the debate is between the 18 and 19" rather than 17 and 18".... we'll I reckon. The Ateca has a sporty firm ride in any case.

 

[Fred99]

I have mentioned this before, but I did try both 18" and 19" demos. The tyre noise on 19" was very noticeable and it tended to tramline on some surfaces. The 18" were much quieter and the steering feel was fine. Both models used the Falken tyres.

I very much doubt that there will be any significant difference between 17" and 18".

 

[David_S]

I have mentioned this before, but I did try both 18" and 19" demos. The tyre noise on 19" was very noticeable and it tended to tramline on some surfaces. The 18" were much quieter and the steering feel was fine. Both models used the Falken tyres.

I very much doubt that there will be any significant difference between 17" and 18".

I was expecting my Ateca, that I pick up on Weds, to have Falken's however I was pleasantly surprised to see it has Bridgestone's fitted. I'm really surprised they fit Falken's to a new car to be honest as they are classed as mid range in anyone's book.

I'm not really bothered if the ride is a little harsher (I'm coming from an Audi A5 S Line Black Edition on 19's so it can't be as harsh as that!) as I think the look of the 19's compared to the Xcellence 18's is night and day.

I'd also say the same for the optional 18's over the 17's. I'd go for it, the ride won't be as harsh as some reviewers make out.

 

[Tell]

I don't mind the ride and I don't get tramlines although Freddie has mentioned it a number of times.

Definition in here

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-alloy-wheel-section/82148-why-do-cars-low-profile-tyres-tramline-more.html

You don't get wheel feed back through the power steering and it doesn't dance about on the road apart from what I mention. Very stable on the course you point it in.

Nobody ever mentioned the weird suspension trick that the Ateca does when it goes into a mini role on some uneven surfaces where to me the offroad damp suspension triggers in rather than the firm one that it exhibits 99 percent of the time.

 

[Excalibrates]

Anyone would need to do a back to back comparison to be able to say. That's quite hard for a consumer to do as it's rare to find a dealer with 2 different spec demo Atecas. The magazine journos have of course done this and there is a consistent theme amongst them that the bigger the wheel, the more you feel the road. This does of course make sense as the 19" have significantly less sidewall in the tyre to absorb vibrations. The Ateca has an already firm ride (which you do feel over broken road surfaces) and I do wonder how much more this would be felt on the 19"s.

I bought an ex-demo car (for various reasons) so I didn't have a choice in the matter, but I think I would have been nervous about going for the 19"s personally - even though I think they look brilliant and much better than the 18"s.

 

[bassman]

Joe,

I was fortunate to have a Seat dealer with different spec cars that enabled me to drive the 1.4 Excellence with 18" wheels and also the 1.0 SE with upgraded 17" machined wheels. The ride on the 18" was slightly harder than the 17" but not to such an extent that I wouldn't have bought it. That said, I would imagine the 19" to be too hard for me personally.

In the end I went for the 1.0 for other personal reasons (see separate chat topic). Personally I preferred the 17" wheels as think they look good and are very easy to clean/maintain. The 18" wheels on the Excellence also look good but will be a pain in the rear to clean between the alloys spokes.

Best advice is to find a dealer where you can drive both and compare/contrast.

 

[ArnP]

Anyone would need to do a back to back comparison to be able to say. That's quite hard for a consumer to do as it's rare to find a dealer with 2 different spec demo Atecas. The magazine journos have of course done this and there is a consistent theme amongst them that the bigger the wheel, the more you feel the road. This does of course make sense as the 19" have significantly less sidewall in the tyre to absorb vibrations. The Ateca has an already firm ride (which you do feel over broken road surfaces) and I do wonder how much more this would be felt on the 19"s.

I bought an ex-demo car (for various reasons) so I didn't have a choice in the matter, but I think I would have been nervous about going for the 19"s personally - even though I think they look brilliant and much better than the 18"s.

I tried the Xcellence and First Edition back to back, with the Xcellence having the black upgrade 19s. Honestly, I didn't find a huge difference, maybe slightly noisier, but the drive felt pretty good on both.

 

[Ghiggz]

My SE is on the 17s and its firm but doesn't feel too bad, but my dashcam has a G sensor on and auto saves G events to a different folder to prevent overwriting, and I have had to disable it as its constantly filling up with events as I drive, and the screen keeps saying 50/50 events recorded unable to save further events.. the ride is so firm even on 17s that just general bumps in the road, going over speed humps etc are triggering as G events and being auto saved by the camera...

 

[David_S]

My SE is on the 17s and its firm but doesn't feel too bad, but my dashcam has a G sensor on and auto saves G events to a different folder to prevent overwriting, and I have had to disable it as its constantly filling up with events as I drive, and the screen keeps saying 50/50 events recorded unable to save further events.. the ride is so firm even on 17s that just general bumps in the road, going over speed humps etc are triggering as G events and being auto saved by the camera...

I think you need to have a look at your dashcam mate! The Ateca's ride on 17" is no more firm than at least 50% of the cars on the road, so to say it is so firm that it triggers events on your camera suggests to me that your camera isn't setup right, otherwise it's not really fit for purpose.

 

[Tell]

Anyone would need to do a back to back comparison to be able to say. That's quite hard for a consumer to do as it's rare to find a dealer with 2 different spec demo Atecas. The magazine journos have of course done this and there is a consistent theme amongst them that the bigger the wheel, the more you feel the road. This does of course make sense as the 19" have significantly less sidewall in the tyre to absorb vibrations. The Ateca has an already firm ride (which you do feel over broken road surfaces) and I do wonder how much more this would be felt on the 19"s.

I bought an ex-demo car (for various reasons) so I didn't have a choice in the matter, but I think I would have been nervous about going for the 19"s personally - even though I think they look brilliant and much better than the 18"s.

I tried the Xcellence and First Edition back to back, with the Xcellence having the black upgrade 19s. Honestly, I didn't find a huge difference, maybe slightly noisier, but the drive felt pretty good on both.

That's what I like to here . Some people say you get better handling on low profile since there is less flex in the wall. The counter argument is grip. Bumps and noise is what some people talk about...

 

[Joe123]

Thanks again to everyone. The consensus seems to be that 19s might be too much, though they look better!

Joe

 

[Tell]

You really got to test drive the two and decide yourself. 19" look better but then rubbished by other on looks. Don't forget some people can't afford the premium of the tyre so will be negative for that reason never ever testing them or tested them and found an excuse. It's totally personal. The motoring press have it in for low profile tyres but then its easy to add ones two penny's worth on saying buy this or that to fill column inches.

 

[mcderms]

Thanks again to everyone. The consensus seems to be that 19s might be too much, though they look better!

Joe

They may look better - but that's a personal perspective which may differ from person to person. I just wouldn't order them because I've found that black painted diamond cut wheels are very difficult to stop from scratching, even with very careful cleaning. Have them as summer wheels on a Polo, with the OE wheels as winter wheels/tyres......but wouldn't have them again. Must be the black colour shows it much more easily; drives me nuts

 

[Furious11]

I have also been debating this- and have an SE Tech on order which has 18" wheels.
However I am now considering dropping down to 17s so to just help the ride become that much more smoother.
Never had a car with more than 17 inch so hence a little skeptical of 18's.

Ateca 1.6TDI SE TECH- dark tinted windows/convenience pack/double floor /rear camera

 

[Fred99]

It's not so much the size of the wheels that matter, it's the profile of the tyres. On the Leon, the 18" wheels carry very low profile tyres, on the Ateca 18" they are higher profile so there is more rubber between the road and the car.

I found them fine, but the 19"s were getting marginal, especially for road noise.

 

[Furious11]

I am consciecne of the UK roads- pretty crap compared to some found in Europe.
We have far too many humps/pot holes and cracks and as a everyday driver, I do think 17" would be best suited.
However if cannot change then happy to stay on 18"

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Ateca 1.6TDI SE TECH- dark tinted windows/convenience pack/double floor /rear camera

 

[Tell]

I drive round them. I do notice or seem to notice the wider wheels don't fall in road holes as the narrow ones did, least on my 17". Roadwork ramps is where you feel the bump on 19" and I always treat speed bumps with respect as if I've got some low sports car.

 

[Furious11]

It's not so much the size of the wheels that matter, it's the profile of the tyres. On the Leon, the 18" wheels carry very low profile tyres, on the Ateca 18" they are higher profile so there is more rubber between the road and the car.

I found them fine, but the 19"s were getting marginal, especially for road noise.

What is the profile on 18s.
If 60/R18 then fine or even 55.
Though I did read somewhere the 18" were 225/50/R18

 

[Fred99]

On all 2WD models, size is 215. On all 4WD it is 225.

On all 17" wheels the profile is 55. On all 18" wheels the profile is 50. 19" wheels are 45.