Wheel weight, tire size vs. make, etc...
11-01-2009, 12:16 PM
#1
Wheel weight, tire size vs. make, etc... So I had a interesting thing happen to me. I'm completely broke and after getting a nail in a tire, when re-inflated the side wall was cracked. Off came my OE wheels C5 Z06's I bought years ago and on went the salad shooters. I lost roughly 10 lbs. at all four corners. Also in the process though, well I went from a 275/40 to a 235/55. So here comes the questions.
Is it better to have a great tire in a smaller size, or having a wider tire?
Does a shorter tire have a handling advantage over a taller tire?
Where does a wheel gain more of its weight? When going to a larger diameter, or when going wider?
Does anyone know what the non riveted OE Wheels 17x9.5 C5 Z06 wheels weigh? I supposedly have the weights of Speedlines, so I've been wondering what the OE Wheels versions weigh. Here is what I have for the weights of the Speedlines:
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 01 Forged 17x9.5 19.6
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 01 Forged 18x10.5 21.4
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 02 Cast/Spun 17x9.5 19.2
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 02 Cast/Spun 18x10.5 21.0
The car seems to take off easier with my six puck full metallic clutch, but when cornering almost seems like it rolls more now. I have Strano sway bars, Bilstein HD's on stock springs, all Spohn stuff for the rear suspension.
I guess I am really trying to sort out what I will want for my final wheel/tire combo down the road. I want something light weight, and I'm thinking the larger the wheel I'm not going to be staying light. Then again the 16x8 and the 17x9.5 was 8-10 lbs. difference. Isn't loosing rotating weight important? I think I've heard that mentioned before.
I know lots of questions.
Is it better to have a great tire in a smaller size, or having a wider tire?
Does a shorter tire have a handling advantage over a taller tire?
Where does a wheel gain more of its weight? When going to a larger diameter, or when going wider?
Does anyone know what the non riveted OE Wheels 17x9.5 C5 Z06 wheels weigh? I supposedly have the weights of Speedlines, so I've been wondering what the OE Wheels versions weigh. Here is what I have for the weights of the Speedlines:
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 01 Forged 17x9.5 19.6
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 01 Forged 18x10.5 21.4
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 02 Cast/Spun 17x9.5 19.2
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 02 Cast/Spun 18x10.5 21.0
The car seems to take off easier with my six puck full metallic clutch, but when cornering almost seems like it rolls more now. I have Strano sway bars, Bilstein HD's on stock springs, all Spohn stuff for the rear suspension.
I guess I am really trying to sort out what I will want for my final wheel/tire combo down the road. I want something light weight, and I'm thinking the larger the wheel I'm not going to be staying light. Then again the 16x8 and the 17x9.5 was 8-10 lbs. difference. Isn't loosing rotating weight important? I think I've heard that mentioned before.
I know lots of questions.
11-01-2009, 09:38 PM
#2
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Take a look here:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/wheels-ti...rd-wheels.html
It might answer your question.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/wheels-ti...rd-wheels.html
It might answer your question.
11-02-2009, 12:20 AM
#3
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Is it better to have a great tire in a smaller size??diameter?width?, or having a wider tire?
The taller and wider your rim is the more horsepower you lose. You also lose some braking power. Then you must add the weight of the additional rubber. Weight is a killer. Thats why pro road racing teams pay fortunes for light and strong rims. Sounds like your application is for dd. Then you are proably going for look???
Does a shorter tire have a handling advantage over a taller tire?
Mostly rubber compound and build of tire improves handling. But yes, once again it is usually lighter, therefore it brakes shorter distance and does not have as much inertia to move side to side.
Where does a wheel gain more of its weight? When going to a larger diameter, or when going wider?
racecar spelled backwards is racecar every wheel design is different, so each wheel has the possiblity of being different
Put on oem sold 5 spokes. Lightest that I have found in my research of owning 9 sets of 4th gen rims.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Model=Ecsta+XS
These tires ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ rock
the above combo is hp and handling. Paint the rims what you want. I prefer yellow.
The taller and wider your rim is the more horsepower you lose. You also lose some braking power. Then you must add the weight of the additional rubber. Weight is a killer. Thats why pro road racing teams pay fortunes for light and strong rims. Sounds like your application is for dd. Then you are proably going for look???
Does a shorter tire have a handling advantage over a taller tire?
Mostly rubber compound and build of tire improves handling. But yes, once again it is usually lighter, therefore it brakes shorter distance and does not have as much inertia to move side to side.
Where does a wheel gain more of its weight? When going to a larger diameter, or when going wider?
racecar spelled backwards is racecar every wheel design is different, so each wheel has the possiblity of being different
Put on oem sold 5 spokes. Lightest that I have found in my research of owning 9 sets of 4th gen rims.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Model=Ecsta+XS
These tires ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ rock
the above combo is hp and handling. Paint the rims what you want. I prefer yellow.
11-02-2009, 10:16 PM
#4
Interesting, so the OEwheels are only more or less a pound heavier than the Speedlines.
gopanoz, are you talking about the factory 17" wheels that were on the 97-02 cars or were those 16's? How much lighter are they over the salad shooters? Could you tell me what rims you have had and what they have weighed? It is a DD, but I love cornering with the thing. Performance does matter to me though, as I'm looking for something lighter than the C5 Z06's I was using now, even though I love the way they look. I guess I'm shocked there wasn't a greater weight difference between the OEwheels and the Speedlines. Here I've been searching for 4 Speedlines in 17", but yet it would have saved me maybe only 4-6 lbs. total over the OEwheels I own now.
gopanoz, are you talking about the factory 17" wheels that were on the 97-02 cars or were those 16's? How much lighter are they over the salad shooters? Could you tell me what rims you have had and what they have weighed? It is a DD, but I love cornering with the thing. Performance does matter to me though, as I'm looking for something lighter than the C5 Z06's I was using now, even though I love the way they look. I guess I'm shocked there wasn't a greater weight difference between the OEwheels and the Speedlines. Here I've been searching for 4 Speedlines in 17", but yet it would have saved me maybe only 4-6 lbs. total over the OEwheels I own now.
Last edited by camar0corey; 11-03-2009 at 09:07 AM.
11-04-2009, 11:24 PM
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The 16 inch wheels are what I had to research for F Stock in SCCA. I have camaro salad shooters, snowflakes, and 5 spoke. I dont recall the weights for each. The 5 spokes were I believe a half pound lighter than the rest. If you are wanting better grip in the corners, use better tires. That usually means spending more money on tires. If you want to save money, handle better, and be faster in a straight line, then 16 inches is the way to go. Smaller size tire is cheaper, therefore you can buy much better handling tires, and shorter gear ratio combined with stickier tires makes for better accelerarion.
