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I vaguely recall other folks on this board complaining that the wheels from the prior generation GLS/GL (i.e., X166) do not fit the current GLS. I think it was related to the lug bolts (e.g., different arrangement).
It was my understanding that he only brought up the 166 to say that he has another car. Therefore he can take off the front 23's and move them to the rear to see if they fit right, without sacrificing a working car while he does it. Maybe I read it wrong?
Not according to the attached ordering guide for MY24 GLS. Smallest wheel offered is 21" and every option is staggered. The MY23 and older GLSs had 20" (or smaller) that were allowed to be a square setup.
Specs on the 23" wheels are as follows:
285/40 R 23 on 9.5 J x 23 ET 45 (Front)
325/35 R 23 on 11.5 J x 23 ET 47 (Rear)
The tires in the back are more than 1.5" wider than the front. Since there are 2 wheels in the back, you will lose more than 3" of grip.
I say again, if you are even entertaining the idea of towing stuff, you will want max grip in the rear or you could have issues w/stability!
This seems a bit sensational. The wheels on the GLS are wide, 10" in front and 11" in the back, but vehicles of all sizes and weights have managed just fine for many years with much narrower wheels and tire combinations. I find it hard to believe that making it a square setup with the 10" wide wheels would impact anything other than the extreme edge of performance where the driver is going to have more impact on the behavior of the vehicle than the tires would.
This seems a bit sensational. The wheels on the GLS are wide, 10" in front and 11" in the back, but vehicles of all sizes and weights have managed just fine for many years with much narrower wheels and tire combinations. I find it hard to believe that making it a square setup with the 10" wide wheels would impact anything other than the extreme edge of performance where the driver is going to have more impact on the behavior of the vehicle than the tires would.
I hope you're correct, because I'm leaning towards the 23" setup squared with front sizes only. Costly mistake if it doesn't work for some reason.
I hope you're correct, because I'm leaning towards the 23" setup squared with front sizes only. Costly mistake if it doesn't work for some reason.
I didn't really want to get into any argument, but in my option, jkaeetz is correct. If the wheels mount properly in about the right place it isn't going to be an issue. I (along with many others) are running square 22 setups for our winter tires without issues, and as you noted, the vehicle was offered with square 20's that were even smaller than your 23 fronts, so you still have more width than those cars did stock (and they don't change the tow rating on wheel sizes). I'm pleasantly surprised at how well it actually handles on my winter setup.
One of my other vehicles is a vehicle I and many others take to the track. It is very common for the track guys to go down a size and a little width because certain size tires are much cheaper (which matters a lot if you are replacing tires 3-4 times a year). Is the car a fraction of a second slower a lap on the narrower tires? Sure, but we aren't crashing into things just because we tired down a little.
That isn't to say that you can put any wheel on any car without consequence (particularly on the front where there is load from steering), but decreasing the width of the rear for a winter setup is not a freak-out thing.
I didn't really want to get into any argument, but in my option, jkaeetz is correct. If the wheels mount properly in about the right place it isn't going to be an issue. I (along with many others) are running square 22 setups for our winter tires without issues, and as you noted, the vehicle was offered with square 20's that were even smaller than your 23 fronts, so you still have more width than those cars did stock (and they don't change the tow rating on wheel sizes). I'm pleasantly surprised at how well it actually handles on my winter setup.
One of my other vehicles is a vehicle I and many others take to the track. It is very common for the track guys to go down a size and a little width because certain size tires are much cheaper (which matters a lot if you are replacing tires 3-4 times a year). Is the car a fraction of a second slower a lap on the narrower tires? Sure, but we aren't crashing into things just because we tired down a little.
That isn't to say that you can put any wheel on any car without consequence (particularly on the front where there is load from steering), but decreasing the width of the rear for a winter setup is not a freak-out thing.
Great to hear you've been running with 22" squares for winter with no issues. I want to run all seasons rather than winters, but I don't think that will affect anything other than the winters will handle better than all seasons, but all seasons should be sufficient for someone like me who wants to keep the 23's and only change tires when they are worn out. Thanks for contributing.
I vaguely recall other folks on this board complaining that the wheels from the prior generation GLS/GL (i.e., X166) do not fit the current GLS. I think it was related to the lug bolts (e.g., different arrangement).
I had read this elsewhere, but it took half an hour to verify...
The X166 lug nuts are slightly slimmer. Old on the left, new on the right. The X167 lug nuts don't fit through the X166 wheels. Not a great picture, but you can see there is a difference in the shadow.
Fortunately, I wasn't planning on leaving my X166 on blocks all winter, so this isn't a huge issue. What I was more interested in was whether the 20" would clear the calipers and rotors and - well, they do, with somewhere between half an inch and an inch or so to spare.
I also looked at the wheels side by side. The X166 has 275/50 20s. The wheels are a little bit smaller in total diameter. The wheel calculator I used the other day suggested that I should go with 275/55 20s to have the same circumference as I have with the 23s at the moment (0.3% deviation?), so the small size difference makes sense.
How do I make sure that the wheels I'm ordering fit the correct lug nuts?
Thanks all. About to pull the trigger on wheels, the car was somewhere cold yesterday and I did not enjoy the summer tires...
I had read this elsewhere, but it took half an hour to verify...
The X166 lug nuts are slightly slimmer. Old on the left, new on the right. The X167 lug nuts don't fit through the X166 wheels. Not a great picture, but you can see there is a difference in the shadow.
Fortunately, I wasn't planning on leaving my X166 on blocks all winter, so this isn't a huge issue. What I was more interested in was whether the 20" would clear the calipers and rotors and - well, they do, with somewhere between half an inch and an inch or so to spare.
I also looked at the wheels side by side. The X166 has 275/50 20s. The wheels are a little bit smaller in total diameter. The wheel calculator I used the other day suggested that I should go with 275/55 20s to have the same circumference as I have with the 23s at the moment (0.3% deviation?), so the small size difference makes sense.
How do I make sure that the wheels I'm ordering fit the correct lug nuts?
Thanks all. About to pull the trigger on wheels, the car was somewhere cold yesterday and I did not enjoy the summer tires...
It took me a while to get over this, but the threat of snow made me finally pull the trigger. My 2024 came with 23" Summer tires. I replaced them with square 20" wheels and winter tires (Continental VikingContact7). The tires are 275/55, which is a little taller than the tires that could be ordered for the 2023 car (275/50), but the diameter is VERY close to the 23" diameter.
First observation is that the car appears to be much quieter. Had to make my wife check the speed on her phone as we pootled along a 45mph country road, because the car felt slow. Nope, speedometer was correct. It also crashes less over speed bumps (as expected).
Secondly, someone expressed concerns about looks and handling - I do tend to drive spiritedly, especially around roundabouts and the handling is just fine. Certainly better than my summer tires were at 28 degrees.Looks - the top of the rears is tucked in a little, no question. That said, I don't think it's outrageously bad.
All in all, I'm happy with the swap. Now I just need to find a decent rack to store the summer wheels for three months. Not as easy as it sounds...
Looks good. I'm amazed at how well the VikingContacts handle for winter tires. And yes, you do get a softer, more comfortable ride with them as well (even for me on the 22 inch version of those).
Next winter season you can throw some spacers on the rear to bring those out a bit.
12-06-2023, 06:08 PM
