21" wheels and living in a big city with bad roads

[Wakesurfer]

It's a given that 21" wheels are lovely and really makes the car, whether Mission E, RS Spyders, or blades.

For this reason alone, I know many of you have thrown caution to wind and went with 21" wheels despite living and driving daily in an urban setting with very bad roads, lots of potholes, and cruel winters.

Are there any 21" wheel Taycan owners who drive the 21" all year in such hostile roads? Please share what city, how long you've been doing it, how lucky or unlucky you've been so far, and would you do it again or considering going down to 20".

I had 21" wheels in my former RS7 and though that only had 295 versus the Taycan's 305s, I still had very bad luck picking up nails, screws, and damaged tires from hard hits on potholes and road hazards, resulting in having to purchase 5 new tires in only the 2 years I ran the 21". I currently have have the 21" Spyders spec'd in my GTS order but not entirely convinced I want to go down that road again, and considering changing it to the less attractive 20" Turbo S Aero wheels. I live in Chicago. Roads are awful where I frequently drive through. But those black RS Spyders are so beautiful though... so maybe worth it?

I have had my 2021 for 1 year, 6,500 miles with Mission Es. I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and I can't say our roads are as bad as Chicago or Boston but we do have potholes and other road imperfections. Like of lot of the people that responded to your thread I keep my eyes on the road in an effort miss them. I will say that I do use the shoulder for widening turns, particularly on entry and exist ramps........................so I am not 100% on the road all of the time...................and no problems yet.

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[ChalkTaycan]

21s and then take the Porsche wheel and tire insurance?

I’m in Ohio, not great roads but only got 1500 miles so far - so to early to report much. I didn’t take the insurance, hoping I won’t regret that based on comments here…

^ This. The 21" wheels make the car. You can buy a Porsche wheel and tire insurance for about $2500 and It will give you a peace of mind.

 

[r553]

I stayed with the stock 19 rims to avoid this problem. My car is my daily driver and exposed to pot holes more often than my other cars.

 

[Archimedes]

The Mission E's were a must for me and I've been pleasantly surprised with the exceptional ride quality of the car, as you'd never know you were on 21's. That said, the other day I hit one of the (very rare) potholes around here, and it was the worst kind of hit - the quick short hard hit - and I swear I thought it went all the way to the rim. If I lived in serious pot hole land, I might think twice about these wheels.

 

[KPZ]

Just picked up my gts sedan. It came (dealer spec) with the 20” which actually look much better in person than I thought. I was able to locate the 21” OEM aero in matte black which look awesome. First drive , I bit more noise and a bit firmer. When I drove away from the shop I really second guessed this decision. Driving the 20 is best, parked and for my aesthetic choice the 21.

 

[Cowtownhusker]

21s and then take the Porsche wheel and tire insurance?

I’m in Ohio, not great roads but only got 1500 miles so far - so to early to report much. I didn’t take the insurance, hoping I won’t regret that based on comments here…

Any update, thoughts?

 

[raharris]

Any update, thoughts?

Update is going strong and no issues at 4500 miles. I have however taken out the silver package insurance on my Cayenne TGT tires and wheels. It covers whatever set I have on the car (winter or summer).

 

[mocsman]

+1

Freeze date 16 days out. Going back and forth with this concern. Heart says 21s, brain says 20s. The roads here in NY are atrocious.

Easier to source a used set of 20”s than 21”s so i’d go with 21”s…

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