Does the weight of the rim or size affect the performance?

RicoSuave · Oct 15, 2004

I'm thinking about putting Mac ones on my car. Depending on the company who makes these as well as knock offs, the weight of the rims vary. Does this affect the performance of my vehicle? Also, does it really matter if I get my rims used or new- taking into consideration that the used rims are not bent or damaged.

Ernad · Oct 15, 2004

Rim size and weight matter. In simple terms the more mass you have, the more mass needs to be pushed, the lower your power to weight ratio.
Never heard of MAC wheels.
Used are fine as long as they are in good condition.

LCGimp · Oct 15, 2004

For as far as weight goes, wheels probably have the most affect per pound, since they are both unsprung and rotating. I dont know how much of a difference it actually makes in feel though, as I've never driven the same car with a variety of wheels on it.

Ghostalker · Oct 15, 2004

hmm, still doesnt make me question my choice of wheels, the huge bulky Bullit wheels in charcoal, muahahah... i think he meant Mach 1... maybe?
those seem to be pretty small... and... stuff... now i am going to go put some spoon rims on!? w00t

marvinmycat · Oct 16, 2004

Also keep in mind that the size of the rim will affect the weight as well. That's why I won't go any bigger than 16".

You also want to ensure that the rim you are getting isn't billed as a light weight rim made of crappy material as a 17" or 18" rim more likely can be much more easily damaged from nice sized pot holes and curb jumping.

If you want some decent rims that are light weight, look into the Steeda Ultra-Lite series.

Ernad · Oct 16, 2004

MarvinMyCat said:
Also keep in mind that the size of the rim will affect the weight as well. That's why I won't go any bigger than 16".

You also want to ensure that the rim you are getting isn't billed as a light weight rim made of crappy material as a 17" or 18" rim more likely can be much more easily damaged from nice sized pot holes and curb jumping.

If you want some decent rims that are light weight, look into the Steeda Ultra-Lite series.

16 inchers rock

Ghostalker · Oct 16, 2004

16s rock!

in my attic! lol Along with my brothers old exhaust (full) from his 01' GT conv...

funny story about his car, he has these giant cobra rotors (i think there cobra, there huge and have red calipers, with a running pony on them) on the front, they nearly fill inside of the wheel... we came to the conclusion that if he ever had a flat, he wouldnt be able to fit his spare over these giant rotors... so he would have to switch his rear wheel up to the front, and put the spare on the back. what makes it even funnier is he still has my offset rims, so now he would have 1 regular wheel on the front, one offset in the front, one offset in the back, and one spare in the back... this is why we make him carry a bottle of 'fix a flat' in his trunk... X_X

Jamez · Oct 17, 2004

I'm just gonna reply to this thread to see my neat red Founding Member thing under my red name. Go red!

Ghostalker · Oct 17, 2004

w00t! red! i like being a senior member... makes me feel all happy inside...

CManT1914 · Oct 26, 2004

Ghostalker said:
w00t! red! i like being a senior member... makes me feel all happy inside...

amateur... j/k

I've heard that every 10 lbs of rotating weight is worth a 1/10th in the 1/4 mile, somebody back me up on this. I'm pretty sure it's acurate. That's why aluminum driveshafts are so popular.

232_slowness · Oct 27, 2004

the bigger the rim the more torque the vehicle needs to apply in order to get these wheels moving, however depending on the tire type and the type of driving you do, bigger wheels can give you better faster turns on the track, however if you plan to do some drag racing, it can hamper your 1/8 to 1/4 mile time. I'd give more explanation on this but i don't wanna go into physics right now cause it's 1:43 am

marvinmycat · Oct 27, 2004

Both of you are correctin this area. I'm not sure of the exact numbers, but when I hear that something screws up performance, I don't need to know the exact numbers, just that I don't want it!

I'll never go bigger than my 16" rims just because of the performance issue on rotational mass. I need every little bit of performance edge I can get!

RowdyRed94 · Oct 28, 2004

If you're all about e/t's, stick with smaller rims. I've driven identical cars with both stock 16's and my 17's on the street, and I can tell you the difference in handling is remarkable. I could feel the flex and bounce in the 16's, whereas the 17's grip and turn the car much more aggressively. I don't do 1/4 miles, though.

marvinmycat · Oct 28, 2004

I'm going to chime in here and say that a lot of the handling does depend on the tire manufacturer as well as the proper size tire for the application. I'm sure a top of the line 16" tire would out perform the 17" Sears special of the week tire.

But using identical tires on different sized rims would make a difference (properly sized).

That's just my two cents.

98V6 · Nov 1, 2004

I read a study I forget who did it, I think it was Steeda or Rousch. Pretty much they had car and put about 5 different wheel tire combos on it and dyno-ed it every time. They kept the over all height of the tire the same and increased the wheel size while decreasing the tire size. They found that the first and second sizes of aftermarket wheels worked the best even though they were taller then the stock wheels the stock wheels were steel and heavier. I think the stock wheels were 15 inch steel wheels, and 16 and 17 inch aluminum wheels worked best and when they got up to the taller sizes they saw a loss in horsepower on the dyno.

I might be off on the numbers because its been a while now and I can't remember but the point is if you put a rediculus 24 inch wheel on your car you will see less horsepower at the rear wheels. Me personally I want the lightest wheels I can get.

marvinmycat · Nov 1, 2004

You have to use some amount of common sense when comparing 15, 16" steel rims to light weight 17", 18" rims. When comparing same manufactured materials in regard to circumference, the smaller rim wins in the rotational mass department.

98V6 · Nov 2, 2004

MarvinMyCat said:
You have to use some amount of common sense when comparing 15, 16" steel rims to light weight 17", 18" rims. When comparing same manufactured materials in regard to circumference, the smaller rim wins in the rotational mass department.

I agree ! Like I said I might be off with the numbers but but you missed my point all together. My point was diamater means nothing it is rotating mass that matters. Read the entire post before you imply I have a lack of common sense please.

The study I read showed that even though the stock wheel was shorter that because it was heavier it hurt performance more so then the light weight wheel that was a hair taller. It also showed that as the wheels of the same material got larger (thus adding more weight) that the larger and heavier they got the more they hurt performance. The lightest wheel is the best wheel for performance.

Like I said before I want the lightest wheels I can get.

marvinmycat · Nov 2, 2004

OK, but I guess you missed the point of my post wherein maybe I should have said, "One would have to use some amount of common sense..." Not specifically aimed at you. It all comes down to grammar.

Ghostalker · Nov 2, 2004

yay english language!

marvinmycat · Nov 2, 2004

Yu sade it. Engrish iz da bom!

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