[Carl Miller]

Hi All,
I've been lurking for a while and finally joined. After visiting 7 different Subaru dealers in NE Ohio I finally convinced one to sell me a Limited w/ the moonroof package and give me 18" wheels. The way they made it work is they charged me for the wheels, tires, valves, etc. and credited me for the 20" wheels and tires.

I ended up paying MSRP for everything, but I thought it was a good deal because the other dealers who were selling wheels were all asking $2700-$2900 for them on top of MSRP

Hopefully this helps someone else out who is looking to do the same thing.

 

[imalittle1]

Hi All,
I've been lurking for a while and finally joined. After visiting 7 different Subaru dealers in NE Ohio I finally convinced one to sell me a Limited w/ the moonroof package and give me 18" wheels. The way they made it work is they charged me for the wheels, tires, valves, etc. and credited me for the 20" wheels and tires.

I ended up paying MSRP for everything, but I thought it was a good deal because the other dealers who were selling wheels were all asking $2700-$2900 for them on top of MSRP

Hopefully this helps someone else out who is looking to do the same thing.

Out of curiosity, why did you want the smaller wheels?

 

[Carl Miller]

Mostly because 18"s have a bigger selection of tires, that are typically cheaper. Additionally My wife is going to be driving it more than I am, and she likes to hit pot holes and what not head on. The larger tire sidewall should help keep damage to a minimum.

Plus on the off chance I do take it off road, the larger tire sidewalls just seem like a good idea.

 

[BoxerRules]

One of the reasons I went with the Premium model is the tires for 18" wheels have a larger sidewall and will likely have a smoother ride for long road trips. The 20" have smaller sidewall with better handling and a sportier look.

 

[Soca]

I plan on swapping out my 20’s as well for Outback Touring 18s ?

 

[hallfleming]

I'd like to ride in one with 18's to see if it was smoother. You can tell your'e on 20's for sure.

 

[Jimmy D]

Just curious. If you change from 20 to 18, that's a 10% drop. Does that mean that your odometer will register 10% more miles?

 

[hallfleming]

Maybe it's the same outside diameter including the tires? Otherwise, they'd have to calibrate the Eyesight for differently for the difference in wheels right?

Just curious. If you change from 20 to 18, that's a 10% drop. Does that mean that your odometer will register 10% more miles?

 

[R P]

Just curious. If you change from 20 to 18, that's a 10% drop. Does that mean that your odometer will register 10% more miles?

No, smaller rim allows higher sidewall for same diameter, and softer ride. Cornering might not be quite as solid. But that has as much to do with the quality of tires you choose.

 

[Jimmy D]

Maybe it's the same outside diameter including the tires? Otherwise, they'd have to calibrate the Eyesight for differently for the difference in wheels right?

Then why is the MPG different?

 

[R P]

Here's a handy dandy tire/wheel calculator. You can play around with different sizes, and even find which tires are available in various sizes.
https://tiresize.com/wheel-offset-calculator/

 

[Blyss]

Then why is the MPG different?

18's have less mass thus requiring less rotation and translation energy.

 

[higherground]

I plan on swapping out my 20’s as well for Outback Touring 18s ?

Anyone know if all the outback 18” wheels will fit ascents or just the touring 18” wheels?

 

[Robert.Mauro]

Anyone know if all the outback 18” wheels will fit ascents or just the touring 18” wheels?

Premium, Touring and Limited seem to be 114.3x5 lugs. But, the offset on aftermarket Outback rims is different (less), and starts pretty low. I don't know the actual OEM offset, but the Ascent's is +55mm. The highest aftermarket I've found is +48mm for the Outback in 18" sizes.

There's also a matter of the rim design clearing the calipers, regardless. For instance, I've tried other 17" rims on the Ascent, and they didn't even remotely come close to clearing the calipers, yet, the 2005 STI rims in 17" supposedly will easily clear it (I'll know tonight).

 

[cd15945]

Hello,

Last year I found an individual on this site selling their stock 18 inch wheels from their 2019 Subaru Ascent Premium. I purchased them with the intent to use them for snow tires on my 2019 Ascent Limited. However, since my 2019 Ascent was delivered on 12/1/2019, I did not need to make the jump to a dedicated set of snow tires for last winter.

I am going to move forward with my plan this year and called today about installing the 18 inch wheels on my Ascent with snow tires. The representative from my Subaru dealership stated that she recommends against putting the 18 inch wheels on the Limited and recommended staying with the 20 inch wheels since that's what it came with from the factory. From reading these message threads it seems like this isn't necessarily the case. Can anyone share their thoughts on why it wouldn't make sense to swap the 18's on for snow tires and put the 20's back on for the summer?

For what it's worth the 18's are in my garage and look pristine. Any comments would be helpful.

thanks!

 

[Robert.Mauro]

Hello,

Last year I found an individual on this site selling their stock 18 inch wheels from their 2019 Subaru Ascent Premium. I purchased them with the intent to use them for snow tires on my 2019 Ascent Limited. However, since my 2019 Ascent was delivered on 12/1/2019, I did not need to make the jump to a dedicated set of snow tires for last winter.

I am going to move forward with my plan this year and called today about installing the 18 inch wheels on my Ascent with snow tires. The representative from my Subaru dealership stated that she recommends against putting the 18 inch wheels on the Limited and recommended staying with the 20 inch wheels since that's what it came with from the factory. From reading these message threads it seems like this isn't necessarily the case. Can anyone share their thoughts on why it wouldn't make sense to swap the 18's on for snow tires and put the 20's back on for the summer?

For what it's worth the 18's are in my garage and look pristine. Any comments would be helpful.

thanks!

I will explain the "issues".

The 20" Ascent wheels should be at 32 psi or 33 psi. The 18" wheels should be at 35 psi. The TPMS is set for factory wheels. Use 245/60R18 105H @ 35psi and you will be fine. Width and circumference are the same for both wheels. Limited and Touring curb weights are near identical (heaviest limited is 4,608 pounds, while the Touring is 4,603 pounds). GVWR is the same on every trim (6,000 pounds).

18" Wheels:

• Tire size: 245/60R18 105H @ 35psi
  Rated at 2039 pounds
• Wheel size: 18 x 7½ J
• Inset: 55 (2.17)
• P.C.D.: 114.3 (4.5)
• 682 revolutions per mile

20" Wheels:

• Tire size: 245/50R20 102H @ 33psi
  Rated at 1874 pounds
• Wheel size: 20 x 7½ J
• Inset: 55 (2.17)
• P.C.D.: 114.3 (4.5)
• 681 revolutions per mile

 

[cd15945]

Robert, thank you for providing clarification. I appreciate it.