I just bought an 2017 Accord EX-L Sedan about a month ago. My last car was a Pontiac G6 GT Sedan which i didnt like from day one but tolerated for 5 years. Two things that bothered me about that car were the steering which felt so stiff that i felt like i was driving a truck and the 17 inch low profile tires. tThe road in PA suck and everytime i drive i spent most of the time dodging potholes. Ive been looking at Honda Accord for the last 15 years and always got cold feet and bought a used car instead. I decided this time around i would take the plunge. I initally like the Sport but coming from the low profile tires on my g6 i thought the 19 inch tires would be too big and the ride would suffer. Everytime i would hit any type of road imperfection in the G6 it was harsh to say the least. I also didnt like how the Sport didnt get alot of the upscale features that the higher trims got. I finally decided on the EX-L.
After about a month i have two thing that bother me. The first is since im coming from a V6 im finding it hard to get used to the 4 cyclinder CVT. The car seems sluggish of the line 0-30. Im learning to live with that though. The issue that bother me more is how floaty and how much body roll there is with the stock 17 wheels and tires. Its almost bouncy like on a cushion. Its nowhere near as precise as far as handling as my old car was. I guess i should of realized this because of the higher sidewall of the 17s. I know its possible to get a oem Honda accessorie optional tires for my car. This would be the 18 inch diamond Cut Alloy 18 inch wheel and P235/45 R18 94V tire.
It is the same exact tire that come stock on the 2017 Honda Accord Coupe. A friend of mine has a 2016 EXL Couple with these tires and she let me drive it today. Completely different driving experience. All that i dont like about my car dissapeared. The acceleration felt quicker which is strange because its the same engine and the car handled like it was on rails. It was a blast to drive. Very unlike the bounce feel of my car.
So my questions are.
Does anyone have these optional 18 wheels on their EX or EXL?
And would these 18 inch wheels give the same feel and driving experience on the sedan as they would on the coupe?
Im wondering if the car felt quicker because it a coupe. I believe they are essentially the same car.
Any toughts would be appreciated
Thanks
Mike

 

From the perspective of physics, there should be very little difference between the 17" wheel setup and the 18" wheel setup, in fact, all else being equal (suspension, section width of the tires, and tire make/model), the 17" wheels should handle slightly better, accelerate and brake slightly better, and have a slightly softer ride. Now, if you add in the wider section width (235 vs. 215) of the 18s you should have a very minor net increase in handling at the expense of some acceleration and braking performance.

All of the above said, I believe the difference between your 2017 EX-L and your friend's EC-L Coupe can be chalked up to suspension differences.

 

Slightly softer ride is an understatement. My car felt way more bouncy and less planted. Alot more body roll! Her car handles incredibly in comparison. It was one of the best driving experiences i had. Precise handling. I was so impressed i thought about getting rid of my car and getting the coupe. Thats why my big question is wether i was feeling the difference from her 18 inch wheels or just the fact that it was a Coupe. In your opinion it wasnt so much the tires but the suspension in her coupe. So im assuming its a whole different suspension setup than my 17 EXL?

 

Yes, my assertion is the suspension calibrations are different; there is no way a one-inch difference in wheel diameter will make that much difference in the ride and handling.

 

Thanks again. Then there is no use wasting 2 grand on 18 inch wheels to try and capture the ride i experienced in the coupe

 

Yup; you'd be better off with a stiffer roll bar and stiffer shocks and struts.