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Wheel weight vs power question. Currently running 15x10 steel. Acquired 15x8 alloys.....


Nefarious
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Hey everyone. I am currently running 33x12.5 goodyear duratracs on 15x10 powdercoated steel wheels. Today I acquired a set of 4 older chevy rims that are 15x8 and alloy. I was just looking for a spare rim that would fit my 33x12.5 spare tire but i ran across all 4 alloys for 100 bucks. They are in great shape. Although I love the crazy low offset of my 15x10's (the wheels mounts closer to the inside edge of the rim, it's very low offset), they are very heavy.... Must be at least 45 lbs a piece just rim weight. The alloys are quite light on the other hand, and they actually fit the pathfinder nicer as far as rubbing is concerned, but dont look nearly as beefy if you ask me. :P.

 

My question is how much do you think this would help my power and gas mileage by switching to the lighter alloy rims??

 

15x10 steel low offset vs 15x8 alloy zero offset.

 

current wheels

398595_10151070351745504_764055503_22021523_848866050_n.jpg

 

new alloys

393954_10151204979750504_764055503_22571080_663976243_n.jpg

 

how they fit now.

422398_10151203399645504_764055503_22567759_1698131014_n.jpg

Edited by Nefarious
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I'm trying to think whether it would be worth it to pay to have all the tires moved over to the alloys and put my spare on one of my old steel wheels. Would the power, mileage and wear be affected by a decent margin? I would say the alloys are at least 20 lbs per rim lighter.

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As far as acceleration and MPGs, every 20 lbs of rotating mass after the drive shaft is the equivalent of carrying 200 lbs inside the vehicle.

every 4~7 lbs for drive line

every 3~5 lbs for engine internals / flywheel

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Not only are the wheels lighter, being a narrower width with less offset will be easier on your front end components. Of course just running the 33's add stress but think the 8" wide wheels would be less. The tires still look good on the 8's.

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As far as acceleration and MPGs, every 20 lbs of rotating mass after the drive shaft is the equivalent of carrying 200 lbs inside the vehicle.

every 4~7 lbs for drive line

every 3~5 lbs for engine internals / flywheel

using this, that's like carrying an extra 800lbs. (800lbs more than the alloys you picked up) Would it be 800lbs? Only the rear tires are after the drive shaft. The front tires just roll along... hm, but I bet even the fronts make a huge difference.

 

45lbs a rim? What are they made out of, Tungsten? haha. little joke. Tunsten, the element, is almost 2x as dense as lead if that gives you an idea.

That's a lot. Pretty much, this is the kind of stuff that people don't even think about. "ahhhh!!! why does my truck get 10mpg?!?!?!? I can't figure it out!!!" When they have like 50lb rims. I'm not talking about you because you're pretty sharp, but this is the kind of stuff that REALLY makes a difference. Sure, you can switch to thinner oils and fluids, you can remove your side mirrors for less drag... You can do tons of those tiny mods that barely give you any improvement, but this is a huge one.

 

It would definitely be worth it to switch. I would guess a 2-3mpg improvement? Better MPGs, better acceleration and speed sensetivity, and less component wear.

The cost would be like..$40? I know you live in Canada, and Canadians get raped on the prices of everything, but this is just labor. I think my local independant tire shop wants $10 to mount and balance each wheel.

Edited by 1994SEV6
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ahh perfect. This is why I love this forum! Exactly the information and opinions I was looking for. I have decided to hold off on putting them on just until I can get these alloys powdercoated in gun metal like my current rims as I just love how they look. The guy at the tire place said I might as well leave on the steels for now as it's still winter and the harsh new salt spray they lay on the road is supposed to be really bad for bare aluminum rims. Once february is over and I can get these rims powder coated, they are going on. :)

 

20 lbs per rim was my CONSERVATIVE estimate. It's probably closer to 25 lbs honestly. I remember when I was powder coating the rims they were monstrously heavy. I just got the spare mounted on one of the alloys and my god is it MUCH lighter than the ones with steel... I'm sure switching from oem steel 15x8 to alloy 15x8 wouldnt be as severe. but these aftermarket 15x10 are THICK steel. I wouldnt be surprised if it was closer to 30 lbs per wheel. I would guess these alloys at 25 lbs each. I would guess the steels at over 50 lbs each. I'll try and get some concrete numbers when I get one off, as now im purely curious!

 

So really I could be driving around with close to 1000 lbs of extra cargo worth of drag!?!?!? Wow.... lol My vg33e pathy will feel like a rocket ship after putting these rims on. :)

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As far as acceleration and MPGs, every 20 lbs of rotating mass after the drive shaft is the equivalent of carrying 200 lbs inside the vehicle.

every 4~7 lbs for drive line

every 3~5 lbs for engine internals / flywheel

thanks for this dude, that is really useful info for approximate guidelines. very useful info.

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