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22" Wheels and performance sacrifice on 3.5L SXT's

22K views 36 replies 13 participants last post by  TCS(813/727) 
#1 ·
Hey guys, I am starting this thread hoping to hear from V6 SXT owners that have 22" rims on their cars. I am the proud owner of a 2010 Dodge Charger SXT 3.5L High Output V6. It is Stone White and I was hoping to get all black 22" Viper Replica's or all black 22" KMC Slide wheels for my car. My biggest concern is the loss in Fuel economy, performance, and braking. I know that big wheels weigh more and will decrease the performance if any car, but I wanted to know what exactly I am getting into before I decide to buy wheels for my Charger. What has been your experience with rims larger than stock? Keep in mind that my Charger is bone stock. With that being said, what kind of performance upgrades, I.e. Exhaust and etc., would I need to offset the wheels bringing down my performance? Also what has been everyone's experience with 20" or 21" wheels? Thanks in advance!
 
#3 ·
Currently, i own an SRT8, but owned a 3.5L before it. although i have never took the plunge on after market wheels on either car, i thought i would give my .02

1) IMHO 22" wheels look a little funky on our cars, (almost make them look lifted) and if anything makes the wheel gap look virtually bigger, the only way i think a charger can run 22" by looking good is running a lowering kit or coilovers.

2) bigger wheels will decrease everything you just listed, but not signifcantly,i have read thread after thread after thread on here on this subject for the past 3 years, and there really never is a solid answer, because the signifcant loss, well isnt to significant. i dont know 24" or bigger will be a huge difference in a negative way.

3) the 3.5 L is not the fastest car in the world, but for the motor and the weight of the car, not to mention its auto stick, they def have some power in there to play around with, i wont imagine your going to lose this when getting 22". and if your really worried about it, a simple predator plugin tune and some nice catback exhaust should def over some the performance loss.

hope this helps man !!
 
#4 ·
I appreciate it guys. As far as lowering my car is concerned, I wouldn't do it. Although it would help with aerodynamics I'm not a fan of lowered cars, especially those that almost touch the ground (too ricey for me lol) also, I am ashamed to admit this, I have scrapped the bottom of my front bumper 2 times when parking it so lowering it even a 1/2" is a no go :( Hopefully I can get more input into this because I have spent time looking for the performance of 22" Fitted Chargers and can't get a definitive answer.
 
#6 ·
Hi. I notice you are in Ga. You should have seen plenty of Chargers & 300's on 22's. The 22 inch rims will have only slight change in acceleration and braking. I have 20 inch rims with 245/45/20 tires on all 4 corners. The only difference is that My car looks 100% cooler than it did with stock 17's. :driving::driving:
 
#7 ·
@Vito-Yea bro, unfortunately I have. Both times the front bumper was scraped because I pulled into the parking lot of the local taco bell and pizza hut and the front end pulled up on the raised sidewalks. Also at my workplace the damn entrance is up on a incline and I have pulled in and out a bit too fast and heard that dreadful scraping noise smh.
@Ga Charger-Yea I've seen plenty of them, but for the most part all the Chargers with big rims here in Middle ga are all weak 2.7l SE's. I still want a little power to work with, especially now when it seems like all V6 cars put out 270-310hp. Hell the camry puts out 280-something, accord v6 puts out 270-something and the rest put out 290+ I want my Car to look better than it does, while still having at least the stock 250hp so that I can feel less ashamed that a camry has more hp. But no matter what its still Mopar or No Car for me lol!
 
#9 ·
I have 07 sxt with 22s. Your gonna lose some acceleration and go though gas quicker. With 22s im at 18mpg. When ever you put your wheels on you are going to see that big gap and over time its going to eat at you. lol
 
#10 ·
@Kar1zma-How is the ride quality? Did that change at all? Also, I commute to college every week and work a lot of weekends so I'm adding at least 44miles everyday on the mileage, how does the car handle after the 22"s were put on? I ask because a lot of drivers in middle ga can't drive to save their lives and I am constantly gunning it, switching lanes trying to get to class and work. On top of that the interstate 75 South has a lot of potholes and I have to drive through a construction site on the highway in Macon, ga so I was also wondering if u have accidentally hit any potholes and if so, how did the wheels take it?
 
#11 ·
@Mark817-Thats another con about getting 22's. Do you know how much of a drop in mpg u experienced. My gps claims that I get on average 22mpg, and I have gone so far as 415miles on a single tank of gas (I might have gone further but the gas light had been on for a while lol). The bulk of my driving is on the interstate so my gas mileage is exceptional, but again as a commuter I need all the mpg's I can get. How many miles does your Charger with 22's go before the gas light comes on?
 
#15 ·
I didnt check the mpg before the 22s. 315 miles on a single tank without the lead foot.
 
#13 ·
Lol I kno bro, I've been posting on my iPod because my laptop crashed and it takes too long for the page to load up on the iPod browser if I hit the quote button
 
#16 ·
U get 315 miles per tank now with the 22's?
 
#19 ·
Yes sir. Between 300-315 a tank.
 
#22 ·
oh and one more thing,, toss out the 21" idea...i was thinking the same thing going with some jordans (23") but those rims and tires are sooooo rare they were more expensive then the 24s I paid for...just giving u heads up.. If the $$ ain't the issue go for it,,, but I would consider a extra 21"tire when u initially buy your wheels/tires. Cuz it will be a pain finding it later if something happens..
 
#24 ·
TCS, having come from almost 15 years of modifying cars I can share a few things with you that you should know.

- 22's on the Chargers look good but be aware anything with a lip will look smaller than anything without a lip
-Yes, you will lose some MPG
-Yes, you will feel slightly more bumps in the road but if you are not lowing it then it will be minimal
-Dodge makes a factory lowering spring that you might be interested in
-You will need to break a little sooner than you did before
-You will most likely want to use 265/35/22 size tires
-Be careful what offset you get. Most guys I see run between +15 to +18. I have even seen +13 but don't go too crazy outside these margins
-Make sure you didnt buy some aftermarket warranty that will get voided by swapping out your wheels to aftermarket ones. If so, check into OEM SRT8 wheels. They still look sweet and meet OEM specs.
-NEVER use fix-a-flat.
-Keep em clean, if you are in a salty area you may see the effects on your rims over time (rust, oxidation, etc)
-Have locking lug nuts. Nothing is better than rims except for free rims... you catch my drift?
-DO NOT attempt to take your car through drive-thru fast food places with curbed drive throughs that twist and turn. You are sure to scratch those rims right up. Taco Bell is a NO NO!

Hope some of this helps you keep em clean! Post pics when you get em!
 
#25 ·
Thanks for the info bro! Im not a big fan of lowered Muscle cars but I might look into a 1/2"-1" drop, everything else is ok...except the drive thru's lol! I gotta haul ass trying to grab a bite between classes and during my lunch break at work so the drive thru's are a necessity lol! But I am looking into concaving rims so I wont have to worry about scratching the rims
 
#26 ·
I have 22'' srt8 challenger wheels, accelleration is hardly noticeable from stock. My friend has a 2010sxt (fully stock) and ran it at a light with my 06charger and the race was fairly even. Yet, I will say you will notice the mpg drop. I say go for it bro! It's not like you have a 5.7 or 6.1 Make your ride clean and add performance when you can to get that little "push" you want. If you want power get a hemi! :D
 
#27 ·
Those 22's look sick, I might look into them just by seeing ur pic. Did you get them from factory reproductions?
 
#28 ·
Oh yea does anybody know how much the stock rims on a 2010 SXT weigh? I've heard many different numbers but nothing definitive. Does anybody kno?
 
#29 ·
I have a 2007 2.7l v6 charger with big 22", besides engine and brake upgrades, what else should I get/do to my car so it can "hold" the wheels better ? .. I'm assuming I'll need to up grade all the parts that have to do with that area of the car and I'm curious to know if the wheels will have a negative impact on my transmission and and other parts that help spin the wheels and will the wheels have an impact on the speedometer ?

Sorry for so many questions, don't know where else to go :D
 
#30 ·
My last car show there was a 300 3.5HO and he made in to a low rider on 22s. And he said it killed his performance and road real ruff


Sent from my Autoguide iPhone app
 
#31 · (Edited)
Rośe;2324777 said:
I have a 2007 2.7l v6 charger with big 22", besides engine and brake upgrades, what else should I get/do to my car so it can "hold" the wheels better ? .. I'm assuming I'll need to up grade all the parts that have to do with that area of the car and I'm curious to know if the wheels will have a negative impact on my transmission and and other parts that help spin the wheels and will the wheels have an impact on the speedometer ?

Sorry for so many questions, don't know where else to go :D
The engine has everything to do with your wheels performance. The more your wheels weigh, the harder the engine has to work to get your tires to spin when driving-this causes the fuel economy to go down because essentially your engine is working harder just to get you to start moving and accelerate. Brakes may also need to be upgraded because they might wear out faster and not have enough breaking power to stop heavy wheels like 22's. I have heard HEMI owners say that non-HEMI Chargers should stick to 20's because we are pushing under 300hp. The big boys with the HEMI's have enough power to push 22's+ rims. As far as performance is concerned almost all aftermarket wheels will decrease it, even for HEMI Chargers (although their performance decreases slightly). To offset the performance lost you can get a Cat Back exhaust, Predator, Cold Air Intake (I've heard these both increase and decrease mpg's) and various other parts. Hope this helps man!:rocker:
 
#32 ·
UPDATE: I finally got around to getting some wheels! I bought the Satin Black 20x9 inch Viper Replica wheels wrapped in Nitto Invo 245/45/20 tires. The guys at Discount Tire Direct set me up with a good deal. I'm waiting on the Viper's to come in either Monday or Tuesday. Ill post pics as soon as I get the wheels installed
 
#33 ·
Sorry about the delay guys but here they are! I got the wheels put on yesterday at Discount Tire. I love them!
 

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#34 ·
Some more pics
 

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