[Barum333]

Has anyone put black wheels on a Frost Blue XF. I am buying an XF 3.0 na Petrol in this colour and it has multi spoke silver 17" alloys on it at the moment which are not to my taste really so I shall be looking to change them at some point. I like black wheels but cannot decide if black would suit this colour XF. Anyone have photos of their Frost Blue XFs which I could perhaps get some inspiration from.

 

[cutlea01]

I don't think black would suit frost blue. Maybe anthracite wheels would work better if you don't like silver?

 

[Statler]

Welcome. Nice choice of XF

Personally I’d stick with silver, or I’d you want to go darker, maybe a decent anthracite grey.

That would suit your blue much better than black.

What size are you thinking of?

 

[Barum333]

Thanks guys for your thoughts, I will probably end up with Silver wheels though I cannot decide yet on a style. I thought about going up a size to 18" but not sure if the difference would really be that noticeable from an appearance perspective and not sure if the ride would be harder. If 18" wheels don't look much bigger than 17" then I will probably have 17". I shall have to try and Google some images but trying to find Frost Blue XF's is not easy.

 

[G6hbq]

There you go Frost blue XFS

 

[Barum333]

Nice photo, those are quite nice wheels too.

 

[cutlea01]

If you have 17's and are looking for an upgrade, go straight to 20's. 17's look very "balloon-ie" when compared to 20's and going from 17's to 18's in my opinion isn't worth the effort or cost. The ride is absolutely fine on 20's. The car above has 20 inch rims on it. If you're anywhere near the East Midlands you're welcome to go for a ride in mine which has 20's on (Covid restrictions etc adhered to ).

 

[Barum333]

Hi Cutlea01,

That sounds encouraging, I like the idea of 20s but would this not increase the gap In the wheel arch. I don't really want to consider lowering it in order to close the wheel arch gap because I lowered my S Type due to this and it scraped on everything. Perhaps the XF doesn't catch on speed bumps etc like the S SType did? My wife hated it and even though I drove slowly over them it still scraped so I cannot go there again. If I could put 20s on then I'd probably go for Draco's in Anthracite. Thanks for the invite but unfortunately I'm not nearby.

 

[Barum333]

What is your experience of 20s in the snow?

 

[wilf]

Totally depends on what tyres are fitted.

Summer tyres - car is useless on snow

Winter tyres - car is drivable on snow with usual caution.

Wheel size does not come in to it.

 

[Philayl]

Hi, I bought mine with 17" wheels but changed them to 18's,the difference is very noticeable, both ride and handling are much improved, to me 20's just look like a rim with a black rubber band round them, absolutely awful. Phik

 

[Barum333]

Yes it was the tyres that I was referring to with reference to the snow, but then there's nothing to stop me from putting the 17s back on just for winter if they are better for the winter months.

 

[OBC John]

Yes it was the tyres that I was referring to with reference to the snow, but then there's nothing to stop me from putting the 17s back on just for winter if they are better for the winter months.

Yes. Keep the 17s for a set of winter tyres.
Putting 20" rims on won't change anything regarding spacing under the wheel arch. The tyre will be lower profile and so the overall diameter won't be any different.
What you WILL notice is the "firmer" ride.

 

[BigKev]

Black wheels on that lovely blue, imho, would be utterly bowfin’.......by all means increase wheel diameter, but get silver wheels and have them “shadow chromed”.This is just the judicious adding of black almost overspray before lacquer. Done properly, looks great.

 

[wilf]

A pic of my second XF:

 

[cutlea01]

Putting 20" rims on.....
What you WILL notice is the "firmer" ride.

I don't doubt this in the slightest, but in my mind I'd prefer the slightly firmer ride, the car will feel tighter and more responsive, but it's not uncomfortable. If it was, those of us with 20's on would be complaining. My XKR has 20's (of course, and staggered wider rears with 295/30s) and the suspension setup on that car is much harder than the XF, you really feel the bumps etc but it's still not uncomfortable. I've never driven an XF on anything other than 20's though.

As John was saying, the bigger the rims the less the tyre profile so the overall rolling diameter of the (correct) tyre stays the same. Stick with genuine Jaguar wheels, you won't have a fitment problem (be cautious you don't get XK wheels as the offset can be different I think) nor any issues with insurance (came fitted, honest gov).

Phil's comment is just as valid, it's person preference.

If you do get another set of wheels, this is a perfect opportunity to keep the 17's and shod them with winter tyres and swap them over with the seasons. You'll extend the life of the summer tyres, and will have a more usable car in the winter. In snow, pretty much any rear-wheel drive car on summer tyres will be almost useless.

Talking of tyres, and this is very personal, just check the threads! But to generalise, Dunlops are known as Dunslips, just avoid. Pirelli seem OK when new but lose grip as they age. Avoid cheap and mid-price tyres, this is a big, heavy and relatively powerful car, no matter which engine. By popular consensus, the tyre of choice is a Michelin MP4S.

 

[sockpet]

As long as you black out all the chrome on the car, the black wheels will look fantastic. The black and blue looks so much better than black and chrome.
It does depend on what type of look you want, if you want a car that you might drive the queen about in, stick with the chrome, if you want a modern looking car go for the black.

 

[Philayl]

Black wheels just look dirty, they completely ruin the look of any car, if you want black wheels just don't wash them. Phil

 

[cutlea01]

Black wheels are quite subjective, some cars look better with them, other not quite right, but it is personal preference. If you like black wheels then fit black wheels, it's your choice, some will like it, others not so. My XKR would look wrong with silver wheels so Phil's comment above I feel can't apply to every car. Mind you, maybe Phil would prefer the white XKR with silver wheels, that's his personal choice, there is nothing wrong with a personal preference. The world would be a very boring place if there were no individuality!

 

[FCS]

When I bought mine I thought oh no it's got 20 inch wheels I will feel all the bumps. Totally wrong they look great and because of the active suspension it rides and handles perfectly. Thank god I wasn't put of the car.