Quick poll on alloys- Parkers or Brescias

[Ima]

I really can’t decide between them and thought I’d see what the consensus is on preference

[POLO Clive]

It would be Parkers for me if I was having a GTI

[SRGTD]

Brescia’s, and only £350 extra to upgrade from 17” Parker’s to 18” Brescia’s is good value. IMO the Brescia’s are a nicer looking design too, but that’s just my opinion though. Parker’s are probably easier to clean than Brescia’s.

However............because both Parker’s and Brescia’s have a diamond cut finish, I’m not too keen on either. I’d much rather VW offered a nice anthracite painted / powder coated alloy wheel option, where the finish would be more durable for everyday use. But if someone put a gun to my head and I had to choose between Parker’s and Brescia’s, it’d be the Brescia’s.

[OomStu_ZA]

Brescia’s ftw!

[Vonbek2004]

I own a GTI+ and have the Brescia’s.
I find them nicer than the parkers but are a pain clean and I'm quite meticulous..

I will however say you get alot more road noise with the 18" tyres..

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[monty831]

I wish I had gone Parkers as the road noise and ride quality on 18s is bad when the road surface is poor.

I took looks over ride quality as I felt the car overall looks great with 18s

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[MattHGR]

I have the Parker's and am very happy with my choice.
I do think the brescias look nicer, but my area is littered with potholes, and my workplace is in an industrial estate.

The brescias are great value for what they are imo, but sometimes you have to match the wheel to your road quality.

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[SRGTD]

I think ride quality is one of those very subjective topics and different people will have differing views on whether the ride quality with 18” on the GTI / GTI+ is compliant enough for them. Anyone who’s come from a non performance car with a softer suspension may well find the ride quality in the GTI on 18” wheels too firm, but for anyone who’s used to driving warm / hot hatches they’ll probably find the ride quality is pretty good on the 18” wheels.

I previously had a mk6 Golf GTD with 18” alloys; the standard wheels on that car were 17”. I found the ride on 18” wheels to be fine; firm yes, but certainly not bone-jarringly so and IMO not at all uncomfortable. Having said that, a forum member on golfgtiforum.co.uk had the same car and thought the ride on the standard 17” wheels to be uncomfortable and too firm.

As said, it’s a subjective topic. And if the worst comes to the worst, anyone with 18” wheels can always downsize to 17” and buy a set of aftermarket alloys if they find the ride on 18’s to be too uncompromising.

@Ima; if you need to factor ride quality into your wheel choice decision, it might be worth trying to get a test drive in a GTI on 18” wheels as only you will know if the ride quality is OK for you.

[monkeyhanger]

Brescias all the way. Bought for both GTI+ in the household. I suspect comments about road noise and ride differences are mostly attributable to the very poor choice of tyres VW are currently afflicting the Brescias with - Bridgestone Turanza. Poor grip, poor traction, high road noise, rock hard. Get them off on day 1, getsome Michelins on and sell the Turanzas for 2/3 the Michelin cost on ebay.

[Ima]

Thanks all. I be found a dealer who has two cars with both wheels. I think I’ll try the 18’ s first and see what the ride is like. Reports of tyre noise was putting me off but if that’s fixed by better tyres that may swing it.

[SRGTD]

Thanks all. I be found a dealer who has two cars with both wheels. I think I’ll try the 18’ s first and see what the ride is like. Reports of tyre noise was putting me off but if that’s fixed by better tyres that may swing it.

There’s a very good chance the 18’s will have Bridgestones fitted, which seem to be VW’s tyre of choice for Brescias on UK GTI’s with the 18” alloy option. Bridgestones aren’t the quietest of tyre (or the grippiest either); there will be better tyres in terms of noise and grip levels. Some forum members have replaced the factory fit Bridgestones with Michelin PS4, which seem to offer much better all round performance.

[skipster]

I posted a similar topic on the Golf GTI forum recently, only there of course the wheel choice is 18” (Parker’s) or 19” (Brescia).

I really do love the look of the Brescia design whether on the Polo or Golf and was not sure about the look of the Parkers, in pictures at least.

When I test drove the Golf on the 19’s, I noticed immediately how firm the ride was, on semi decent surfaces as well, so in the end I chose the Parkers as with the higher profile tyre, would at least give a little more ride comfort on our let’s face it cr*ppy roads everywhere!

[stuartrendall]

I've specc'd mine with the Parkers. I agree the Brescia's look better however from what I have seen tyres are cheaper for the smaller alloy and being young I dont want to be forking out too much for tyres, also I plan on changing the alloys after a while as I dont like the look of diamond cut alloys.

[SRGTD]

I've specc'd mine with the Parkers. I agree the Brescia's look better however from what I have seen tyres are cheaper for the smaller alloy and being young I dont want to be forking out too much for tyres, also I plan on changing the alloys after a while as I dont like the look of diamond cut alloys.

I’m with you on diamond cut alloys - IMO, lots of showroom ‘bling’ appeal, but the diamond cut finish tends to be much less durable than a painted / powder coated finish on a daily driver - especially if the diamond cut wheels are kept on the car during the winter months.

In terms of ride comfort on 18” Brescias; for anyone who’s come from the previous generation Polo GTI with the optional Sports Performance Pack to the current GTI / GTI+ on Brescias (pretty certain forum member johnpolo2 did), then I’d anticipate the ride quality would be similar, as the standard wheel tyre set up on the previous generation car was 17” wheels with 215/40 R17 tyres. Factory tyres on 18” Brescias are also 215/40, so the tyre sidewall height will be the same (previous generation GTI v’s current GTI / GTI+ on 18’s), offering the same amount of ‘cushioning’ from the tyre. Tyre brand will also be a factor though.

Ride quality of the current car on 18’s is actually likely to be better than the previous generation car on 17’s as I’d anticipate VW will have improved the suspension set up on the current car compared to the 6c Polo GTi.

[PO10ASH]

I've specc'd mine with the Parkers. I agree the Brescia's look better however from what I have seen tyres are cheaper for the smaller alloy and being young I dont want to be forking out too much for tyres, also I plan on changing the alloys after a while as I dont like the look of diamond cut alloys.

Similar to yourself, ordered the Parkers and then spent 2-3 days regretting that choice but then hoping ride quality, tyre price etc will win overall.