Obviously, I am a suspension n00b. I know the NSX runs 18s in the rear and 17s in the front. What is the advantage of this? Why don't many people on here do it?

I understand staggered vs. non-staggered but not this.

Thanks in advance

 

mainly because it looks cool one advangate would be stiffer sidewalls on lower profile tires which leads to less tire flex on cornering

 

For me, the only reason to consider it, is because, you need 17" for big brake kits and the availability of tires is better for 17" over my stock 16's.

The downside is, it they weight more and as the profile of the tire shrinks, the ride gets stiffer.

 

The advantage is to run a wider tire. Some people get a larger wheel (18s, or 19s) but get the same width as stock. IMHO thats stupid, but whatever floats your boat. However, with a wider tire, you are improving, grip, ride quality, and traction.

 

wheel diameter has nothing to do with wheel width, and therefore tire width, unless dependent on manufactured tire sizes. the NSX doesn't run 18s in the rear to accomodate a wider tire.

 

nsx runs larger rear for less tire flex because of added weight.. thats what i heard

 

It depends on the setup the engineers wanted to achieve. There is no one reason why staggared setups are better or worse than non-staggared. However, on most sportscars, even fwd ones, a slightly smaller front wheel diameter can benefit most cornering properties. That being said, if you are already rolling on 15's or 16's, this isn't aimed at you.

The bottom line is the larger rear wheels was developed/used to accomodate larger width tires in the back for traction. The same principles were not needed up front, so the staggared setup was born.

 

And on that topic, most of these cars with 18's and 19's stock would benefit from moving down to 16's or 17's in almost every performance catagory, all else equal.