I was looking to paint some S-lites to match my Indi Blue MCS, but am having second thoughts. It would cost $100 a wheel to paint them, and for that, I could buy wheels I know would look good. So, I went online to the big guys tirerack and discount tire and found a set I really like, and I haven't seen them on any MINI, which is what I want. The problem is, that they are 23 pounds a piece, and that's heavier than my S-lites I think. So, what do I do? Does weight really make that much of a difference if I don't autocross, just daily kinda driving with some twisties mixed in for good measure. What ya guys think?

 

From the info I've read, the S-lites are 25 to 27 pounds apiece. The R90 type Mini wheels are 23 or 24. Some one correct me if I am wrong. Yes weight does matter, especially when it comes to unsprung weight and rotating mass in the driveline. Lighter wheels will increase at the wheel HP just like a lighter flywheel, clutch, rotors, etc.. I don't know the exact math but every pound of unsprung weight is worth more than a pound of sprung weight. Maybe someone can chime in and give a more tech. explanation.

 

I went from 12lb wheels to 24 lb wheels two weeks ago. Different? Sure. Noticably less performance? Nope. The car just drives differently now....heavier wheels impede low speed acceleration but maintain speed up top due to the flywheel effect. My car feels faster from 60+ while only slightly slower from a stop.

 

I would always go for lighter wheels given the option, especially on a Cooper.

 

yeah....should have said....low power cars need light wheels.

 

Weight matters – but for day-to-day driving, I wouldn't worry too much. As a previous poster said, 23lbs is lighter than the s-lites (believe it or not). Dumping the runflats for regular tires will also save a few pounds per corner!

 

Yeah, I am running Kumho Ecsta ASTs, and I love the tires. So, if running the new wheels shaves off a few pounds from each wheel, I could live with that. I just didn't want to miss out on some kinda super-performance enhancing trick that gives me 10 extra horsepower and 5 mpg better gas mileage.

 

the biggest difference was braking capacity for me.
~27lbs (R90) to 11.5lbs (Comps). overall response became
snappier too.

 

For street driving + twisties, you'll be great. You might notice a difference because it does change the dynamics of things. But if you're not looking to shave a few seconds off your lap times or anything, i would never let it get in the way of buying the wheels you wanted for your street car

 

I just went from 18" SSR GT7 (17lbs?) to S-lites and there is a noticeable difference... but I can live with it. Feels like donky kong in mario kart.. It's slow at start but once you're up to speed, not much difference..

 

I like the feeling of being a little quicker at start....wouldnt give that up for the world....

 

I respectfully disagree with those saying that the heavier wheels feel faster from 60+... The lighter wheels will also benefit your acceleration/deceleration while at speed. Basically speaking, the heavier wheels are more resistant to changes in speed, either from a rest or from 60 mph. Remember Newton's Law: An object in motion tends to stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. Hence an object with a larger mass with the same force (your motor) will have less acceleration (F=M*A)... It'll still be easier to accelerate a lighter wheel from 60 mph to 70 mph than a heavier wheel, just as it is easier to accelerate it from 0-10 mph.

The heavier wheels will make your car *maintain* it's current speed for a longer period when coasting, but this same "benefit" also makes your car more difficult to slow down when you want to brake.


I dropped 12.5 lbs for each corner with my tire/wheel combo, and am very pleased with the resulting feel.

 

Anytime you can get lighter rims you will get a benefit but you need to match that with the right sized tires with the right composition for your needs.

Sometimes I find that heavy wheels might be nice-
When I am coasting downhill and I want gravity to help me
or
I go to a car show and the wheel I like most happens to weigh a lot.

If you drive the speed limit all of the time and accelerate really smoothly and moderately you probably will do fine with almost any wheel.

If you like to dart around braking and accelerating in and out of traffic then light wheels really make a difference.

Tires can be light or heavy- the tread design, rubber compound and construction counts a lot and may offset the absolute weight.

 

All good information.

 

also keep in mind....static weight on a scale doesn't mean much compared to how the weight is distributed. Weight at the center of the wheel has much less effect than weight further out (BBS knows this ). The tire is almost always heavier than the wheel and it's at the outermost part of the mounted set. A light wheel in the middle is almost always dealing with a heavier tire at the place that matters most.

 

When purchasing new wheels I'm using 17-18pounds as the max weight in the decision process, that would take about 8-10 pounds off each corner. When I purchase new tires I compared weights on Tire Rack's site and there was not as much difference in the run-flats and the non as you would think, maybe a pound or two depending on brand, size. I went from a run-flat 205/45/17 at 22lbs to a non 215/45/17 at 22lbs

 

Like Dan00Hawk, I dropped over 12 pounds from each corner by going to a lighter wheel/tire combo (16" OZ Ultraleggeras and General Exclaims). Braking and acceleration are enhanced, but I feel the greatest benefit is improved suspension performance. With less unsprung mass to control, the stock non-sport suspension is, in effect, upgraded to a firmer, tauter feeling ride which is at the same time more compliant (less wheel hop and chatter over rough pavement) and more tightly damped, almost like the SS suspension. For reasons which are not entirely clear, the new setup seems to have noticeably less torque-steer as well. A lighter wheel/tire ensemble is one of the most cost-effective performance mods you can make, in my opinion.

 

Typically for each pound of rotating mass you save you can equate to 5lbs of chassis weight saved.

 

Anyone know how much S-lights + runflats weigh? I just shipped out my SSRs and the shipping weight came out as 39lbs..

 

49lbs IIRC

 

Pirelli Eufori@ 22.0 lbs
R85 S-spoke (S-lite) 25.1 lbs
Total- a whopping 47.1 lbs

Street wheel:
Centerline RPMs 17x7 with Bridgestone Potenza S-03 tire 37 lbs
Holey 15x5.5" with stock Continental 175/65-15 tire 28 lbs.

Autocross wheel:
15x7 Kosei K1 TS with Kumho V710 205/50-15 tire 30.4 lbs

 

Then i must really have it bad.

17in S-lite: 25:1 Lbs
Goodyear RS: 30.37 Lbs

Total: 55:47 per wheel

It probably wouldnt be to hard for me to drop 10-15 pounds. Dang...

 

Yeah, just put on the stock holeys and continentals-
drop 27.47 lbs each. That's nearly the weight of each Holey and tire combined. You'd loose 109.9 lbs worth of wheel weight.

I run the stock Holeys and tires on the street and they work fine with my modded MCS, get good gas mileage too. Up to 29 mpg.

 

No...wheel weight doesn't matter for street driving...yeah if you want to race your car then we'll talk, but for the street it doesn't matter.....I work on a race team so you can trust me:~)

 

Lower wheel weight sure improves the ride on the street - takes the thumps out of the bumps...