I would worry more about how 21 inch tires Handel pot holes vs 20 inch unless you are going to get and keep the tire and wheel insurance. People just don’t realize how easy low profile tires can damage wheels when hitting pot holes.

 

Good point! Without the air I would also think ride would suffer....

 

21” ride quality is absolutely fine without air suspension. I was worried as our car came with 21” but it is great. Gobs better than my 2013 with 20”s. Having said that, for cost and practicality, I would have preferred the 20”s.

 

I have had both the 20" Momentum wheels as well as the 21" Recharge RDES wheels currently, both with no air suspension. I live just outside the NYC Metro area (Long Island) and have pretty rough roads all year long.

I have found little to no difference between the 2. I continue to drive with extra precaution to avoid damages.

 

We had a 2021 XC60 with 20” and air. Now we have a 2023 XC60 with 21” and air. I don’t know what you can make of our experience from a pure ride smoothness standpoint, because we have air and no Recharge. But there are two things we’ve noticed that I think are in-common. First, the handling and straight line tracking with the 21” are noticeably better. Second, the noise with the 21” is improved. 2021 had 20” Continentals, which were an excellent tire, and quiet. 2023 has Pirellis with foam. Quieter, even though they should by rights be louder due to the larger footprint. I thought that foam was a gimmick. Not true. Especially noticeable around town.

All I could find when I was looking for a 2023 XC60 Ultimate was 21” - extra money, questions about ride quality, not happy with lack of choice. I was told that the 20” rims had a supply problem, so Volvo was shipping lots of 21”. Who knows if this is/was true, but in any event both my wife and I were apprehensive, and since this is mostly her car I told her that if the 21” rims were too harsh I would find something in the aftermarket. Turns out that she LOVES the 21”. She says that they “ride better” but I think that what she is actually experiencing is the combination of good ride and handling. Handling and straight line tracking, in combination with a nice ride, are impressive. I am big on quiet, and these tires are quieter, no question, and it’s beyond any difference in tire brands.

Anybody who is looking for a car that has a pillow soft ride lie Grandpa’s 1958 Buick will be disappointed with either the 20” or 21” and should look for something smaller. For us, the combination of ride and handling with 21” is perfect. We spend about a month every year in snow country. The 21” are going to be worse than the 20” on snow and ice, but at this point I don’t know how much.

 

thank you - very helpful and pulled the trigger on a '23 Recharge with the 21" size (I also found no 20" cars available).
As for winter, I swap wheels with dedicated snows and will likely do 19" or even 18" if I can find a set!

 

May want to research the wheel downsizing on the forum. I believe I saw someone post that the recharge brakes did not allow for such a small wheel because of their diameter.

 

I can tell you the number of people that care is pretty small, hence they make and sell so many with 21"... but if you think you might care then you likely will.

 

Wow had never thought of that. I also go -1 on snows and have never had a calibration issue on a ICE car because the rolling circumference is the same.