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how wheel/tire weight affects performance


relhok

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So I was playing around on tirerack.com and here's what I found:

 

Lightest rim--17" SSR competitions weigh 12.8 lbs compared to around 20 lbs stock

Lightest tire--General Tire's Exclaim UHP weighs 18 lbs compared to 23 lbs stock

 

This combo should reduce unsprung rotational mass by appoximately 13 lbs at each corner lightening the car by 52 lbs overall.

 

Can anyone calculate or guess the effect on 0-60 and 1/4 mile times?

 

What about handling?

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Choosing a tire also depends on what you plan on using the car for... autocross? street? drag racing?

 

Are you willing to sacrifice life for grip? etc etc.

 

Im assuming you want a good all around tire that lasts long? Id recommend the following:

 

Toyo T1S/T1R: Good all around tire, especially in the wet. Not the grippiest tire, but lasts a decent amount and gives good performance. Weighs about 20 lbs and costs roughly $125-ish

 

Hankook Z212: Good dry grip tire... 22lbs roughly $115-ish

 

Now if you jump into the 2354017 size... you can get RA1s... but those wouldnt work very well on the street all the time.

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This was not intended to be a discussion on what rims/tires are good or bad. SSRs wouldn't be my first rim choice and generals wouldn't be my first tire choice. They are just the lightest combo I could come up with at tirerack.com.

 

I was wondering if the performance gain might be worth the sacrifice in rim style and tire quality.

 

Could this combo help a 5EAT hang with a 5MT sporting heavier 18" wheels?

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This was not intended to be a discussion on what rims/tires are good or bad. SSRs wouldn't be my first rim choice and generals wouldn't be my first tire choice. They are just the lightest combo I could come up with at tirerack.com.

 

I was wondering if the performance gain might be worth the sacrifice in rim style and tire quality.

 

Could this combo help a 5EAT hang with a 5MT sporting heavier 18" wheels?

 

Depends where youre trying to "hang". Street, prolly wouldnt see much difference. Drag racing... maybe a little (too many factors here.. driver, traction, conditions, etc)... autocross/track: yes.

 

relhok, email me... Ive got a couple SSR packages below TR pricing that might work out for you :)

Free Sonax Cleaner Deal

http://www.brakeswap.com

Carbotech, Hawk, PFC, DBA Rotors, Motul, Wilwood, Castrol...

Great service. No bumping required :icon_tong!

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  • 3 months later...
So I was playing around on tirerack.com and here's what I found:

 

Lightest rim--17" SSR competitions weigh 12.8 lbs compared to around 20 lbs stock

Lightest tire--General Tire's Exclaim UHP weighs 18 lbs compared to 23 lbs stock

 

This combo should reduce unsprung rotational mass by appoximately 13 lbs at each corner lightening the car by 52 lbs overall.

 

Can anyone calculate or guess the effect on 0-60 and 1/4 mile times?

 

What about handling?

 

Many people say that each pound of weight you lose at the wheels is comparable to 12 - 14 lbs fron the car.

 

I would say it feel like you lost 600 lbs from the car. That would be a huge difference!

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^^^It is not that simple. Actually lbs off the tires have the biggest effect. It ends up between a 1.5 and 2 factor depending on where you are losing the weight from. (tire, outside of the rim, inside of the rim, etc.) If you have the exact same weight, but all the weight moves from the center to the edge, then you harm performance, and the reverse is also true.

 

Ted

:spin:
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+1. Losing 1 lb of rotational weight is NOT equal to losing 12-14 lbs of static weight. Even at the most optomistic its roughly 1 lb rotational = 4 lbs static and that if you lose all the weight at the outer edge of the tire, which is not a real world scenario.
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So I was playing around on tirerack.com and here's what I found:

 

Lightest rim--17" SSR competitions weigh 12.8 lbs compared to around 20 lbs stock

Lightest tire--General Tire's Exclaim UHP weighs 18 lbs compared to 23 lbs stock

 

This combo should reduce unsprung rotational mass by appoximately 13 lbs at each corner lightening the car by 52 lbs overall.

 

Can anyone calculate or guess the effect on 0-60 and 1/4 mile times?

 

What about handling?

 

find a better tire for better handling. You can sacrifice a little bit of the weight off the tire for grip.

 

Read this:

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24305

 

 

I dont think you'll end up shaving .3 seconds off your 1/4 times, driver error and bad launch can be a bigger difference than .3 seconds.

Keefe
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Understand it depends on a variety of factors. And of course it depends on where on the wheel the weight is taken off. I just say a program that a brake specialist said that each pound of weight saved on the brakes was comparable to 14 lbs of weight in the car. I figured he was a little overly optimistic, but he was talking about brakes were the weight is taken off even closer to the center then on a wheel or tire.

 

I think it also depends at what speed, the lower the speed the more the affect, the higher the speed the less the effect.

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find a better tire for better handling. You can sacrifice a little bit of the weight off the tire for grip.

 

Read this:

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24305

 

 

I dont think you'll end up shaving .3 seconds off your 1/4 times, driver error and bad launch can be a bigger difference than .3 seconds.

 

 

Best advice yet. Weight and other factors aside, NEVER compromise on the quality and build of your tires, given the purposes you have for them.

 

People on the STi board used to look for any way to get lighter tires than the stock RE070s. While the 70s ARE heavy for a 17" tire, they have incredible sidewall rigidity and cornering stability . . . well worth the weight necessary in the design if you plan to utilize those facts in your driving.

 

Wheels, on the other hand. . . so long as they're forged and of good design, will always benefit your car in handling and braking.

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  • 2 weeks later...

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