Why did VW put 17's on the GTI as standard?

[andrewparker]

Handling is the wrong word, but the feel you get through 17s is far better. It feels far sharper and agile, but also more forgiving. Of course tyre choice is of paramount importance also.

Visually speaking, it depends what floats your boat. The 17s are far more subtle, and let's face it, the GTI is a subtle car. Saying that I have a set of 17s and a set of 18s and I know which I prefer

[alackofspeed]

Handling is the wrong word, but the feel you get through 17s is far better. It feels far sharper and agile, but also more forgiving. Of course tyre choice is of paramount importance also.

I've always understood handling means the ability to sub-conciously understand / feel what's happening underneath you and be comfortable to exploit what's on offer. Roadholding is the ultimate adhesion (constant radius peak cornering G for instance) of the car.

[swgti]

Funny though that these "experts" only ever mention this when its an option, as far as I'm aware the Focus St and the RS only have one wheel option 18's and 19's respectively and you never see a write up saying "oh this would be better on smaller wheels", same for the megane. And lets be honest if this was the case why didnt Renault put smaller wheels on the R26R, a car purely designed for driving not neceserily looks.

Just a bit of clever marketing by the VW bods me thinks though, but then again I cant ever remember seeing any of the cars given to the press having 18's other than Ed30's so there must be some truth in the better drive or that too would have been a good selling point.

[GrayMK5GTI]

17's are cheaper to refurb 

[jamma]

17's for go ,  18's for show 

[rex]

Not sure the Focus RS or Megane RS can fit 17 inch rims because of the brakes.
Please bear in mind that the GTI can have 16 inch rims.

The main reason for having larger wheels is to accommodate larger brake kits. The Cupra, R20, etc have 18 inch rims as standard and 17 inch as minimum.
If brakes are not an issue the best rims sizes for a Golf GTI are 18 or 17.  Some use the 17 inch rims for BTCC, WTCC (ATS makes 9x17 rims for this) or other touring championships. Others use 18 inch rims in different championships.

My personal choice would be (if brake clearance is not an issue):
17 for light weight, better on B roads due to the larger sidewall
18 for looks
Both are good for motosport depending on the exact use (also tarmac/gravel/snow, etc).

[Gene Hunt]

No dout about it 18'' alloys do look better,but 17'' alloys would not put me off the deal if that was the only thing letting the car down

[dmac1969]

Mine has 17" wheels on it , I really LOVE the look of 18" Monza Shadows though so I will probably upgrade in due course. (I prefer the Black inserts on the Shadow as opposed to the Grey of the 2 , So I will be looking for a set of 4 matched Monza 2s for refurb)

[ub7rm]

Mine has the 17's and although I do much prefer the look of the 18's I've never felt particularly motivated to change.  From a practical point of view tyres are cheaper and the wheels are hardier / easier and cheaper to repair if they are marked!

[mk125]

I have 17 on mine and like most others prefer the look of the 18 but it seems a fact that the 17 are a better driving experience for handling and let's be honest a gti is for driving and roads in this country suck so greatful of the extra rubber on the bumps . Might have a go at getting the inserts sprayed black to look like the 18 might be a good compromise

[dodds-gttdi]

As said before, 17's for handling, comfort, protection against pot-holes, less weight and economy (tyres).

18's for best looks. Some 18's can weight less than 17's (pro 1.2's) but come at a cost. Also 18's show up small brakes (and drums!) badly. Granted this isn't a problem the GTI has with 312mm front discs and no drums.

[jimk04]

I also feel determined to stick with 17s just to be a bit different, as a lot of folk soon stick on a set of 18 or 19 inch....not that there is anything wrong with that !

I fancy some porker cup 1s but the offsets barely accommodate an adaptor. Magnesium ones off a 964 rs for full on lightweight win!....oh yeah they fetch about 2.5k.!

[Frenzy]

When i was buying my car i test drove 2 GTIs on 17s and 2 on 18s. I can't say that there was that much in it, certainly not as much as i was lead to believe, yes the 17s ride was a bit more 'comfortable' but i prefer a firmer ride, if i want to sit on a sofa i'll stay at home (not that the 18s break your back or anything). I had to fess to the Mrs when we were testing that 17s were a 'better' ride than 18s even though i was really wanting 18s, she said that she felt hardly any difference so wasn't fussed.

In the end we got one with 18s - look so much better than 17s. Plus if you are mega bothered about the ride, get a tyre that will compensate. No point having 17s and then putting a wooden tyre on it.

[rex]

Some 18's can weight less than 17's (pro 1.2's) but come at a cost.

I think it is not fair to compare TD Pro 1.2 18 inch with Monza 17 inch. If you want a comparison, make it against TD Pro 1.2 17 inch. And the TD 17 inch ones are lighter if having the same specs.
 

[am1w]

17" wheels and tyres are cheaper so VW can maximise their profits by offering 18" wheels and tyres as options. The former also provide  slightly better ride and handling though they fail short in the looks department. Anything over 17" needs adaptive springs and dampers especially on our broken tarmac. 17" wheels with adaptive chassis control produces a near magic carpet ride.
I have 18" Monza Shadows and drive with  ACC in 'comfort' all the time.