orly? I spin my 215 width summer tires all the time. I can't imagine how often I'd be replacing 175's

 

I never spin street tires no matter which one I use.

I've used stock 175/65-15 tires for three years without much wear, I don't drive on them daily but they are in nearly new shape.

I also use 215/45-17 Bridgestone potenza S-03 tires and they are also wearing very well with one of four tires getting a bit lower on tread after 3 years of driving on and off.

 

I guessing there's not much danger in buying a wheel that's much heavier than a S-Lite. In fact, the S-Lite/Runflat combo must take the all-time boat anchor award.

 

Probably not, unless you pick a nice green set of John Deere's.....

 

Now your making fun of our tractor?

The wheels are yellow and I swear they're lighter than the MINI's.

 

Oh. that's right..The yellow one's are lighter than the green one's...

 

Yes, it is possible to buy wheels heavier but usually they will be
18", 19" or 20".

Another possible is 17" but wider wheels than stock and usually wider tires, also heavy.

Many times this is to get a certain look for car shows, clearance for big brake kits, and isn't really for performance driving.

These wheels will still work for street use.

Remember that heavy wheels need more stopping power so they are not well matched for stock brakes.

 

My Konig, all silver BLING Rewinds are 14.6 lbs a piece.

cheap, they havent dented/bent over potholes ever in NYCity and other crappy places.

they responds REALLY quickly. I put on some Falken all season 205/60/15's for a pleasant ride that is glue in the rain and quite decent in the snow.

My goal is to get a set of chromed Holies and snow tires, but global warming is hurting that endeavor.

 

Don't worry. I'm certainly not out there looking for heavier wheels.

 

Not sure where you get that number - you may be looking at rotating elements in the engine that move much faster.

If all the weight for the wheel was on the outside edge, the rotational enery equals the linear energy when you come up to speed. The wheel weight is not at the outside so a better estimate is rotational energy being around 0.6 x linear energy. i.e. Saving 1lb of wheel/tire weight is equivalent to saving 1.6lbs from the chassis. This is still significant - saving 10lbs per wheel is equivalent to saving 64lbs from the chassis.

 

weird turn of events for me... i got this new wheel set from Alex at TR
that are 22lbs each which are over 10lbs heavier than my Comps.

to my surprise, the car is easier to drive with the added weight.
yes, take off is slower...yes, braking capacity diminished...but
drivability is up. by 'up,' i mean steering feedback is much
smoother and easier to define... does that make sense?

wheel offset is actually lower (more aggressive) on my new wheels by
3mm but the tires are now a/s sumitomo's instead of the GS-D3's.

total width wise they are about the same. 205/50/16 on 16x7.5 vs
(new) 215/45/17 on 17x7.5. both kinda softer sidewalls.

imho, for motoring around town (no racing), i think the 22lbs wheels
do great. i have no complaints about the 22lbs.

 

yes, it makes sense. once you get the bigger wheel to start to turn (no small feat!), the flywheel effect helps redirect motion. think of a gyroscope toy you played with as a kid. same thing. a lightweight version would be quicker at the initial turn-in but wouldn't have the same force to redirect.

 

^^ exactly. it's a very smooth steering feel..which is kinda nice on
such a snappy nimble little car for street. kinda tones it down
a little.

 

Nope, you are not imagining the difference.

Key things here-
22 lbs wheels are fine (hey some MINI wheels are over 25 each) and work well enough with an MCS driven reasonably.

215/45-17 new tires will perform/handle well for basic street driving and likely are better than worn GS-D3 tires.

Drivability- good? Certainly possible. The lightweight flywheel example is a good one. My stock flywheel is very smooth and drivable but a lighter one could give better performance with some tradeoffs for noise or drivability.

The SSR Comps are really light weight. Put some new tires on them in 45 series and see how they feel to you.