All,
I am becoming a little concerned that people may be becoming a little carried away with this wheel weight issue.
Firstly, I have real doubts that in a car with 160 bhp you can feel the extra resistance to spinning up under acceleration of the weight in the wheels in light(sorry) of the effort required to speed up 1400 kg (incl passengers and fuel). I also doubt that this would be very noticeable under breaking.
Secondly, I believe that when turning in the extra problems associated with fighting the gyroscopic forces involved would be marginal in a car with power steering (big issue on a bikes at high speed). I also think that the extra 4cm of rubber on the road, as well as the smaller sidewall height may well cancel this out. Also, these forces would be highly speed dependent, and in a country like Aus where anyone going over 110k makes you public enemy number 1 I don't think it's that big an issue.
Thirdly, the effect on the ride and grip on bumpy surfaces again would only be significant at higher speed. Is this enough to offset the grip of the extra rubber? On smooth roads you would certainly be ahead with the bigger boots.
Lastly, I am a little concerned about very light wheels on rough roads. I have bent alloys before, and it's not pleasant. I'd rather have a strong wheel, than a really light wheel with 15mm more sidewall.
All of this is IMHO. While I understand that the lighter the wheel the better, I still think that for road use tyre pressures and precise wheel alignment will have a far greater influence on the handling of the car than the differences in the wheels.
I am becoming a little concerned that people may be becoming a little carried away with this wheel weight issue.
Firstly, I have real doubts that in a car with 160 bhp you can feel the extra resistance to spinning up under acceleration of the weight in the wheels in light(sorry) of the effort required to speed up 1400 kg (incl passengers and fuel). I also doubt that this would be very noticeable under breaking.
Secondly, I believe that when turning in the extra problems associated with fighting the gyroscopic forces involved would be marginal in a car with power steering (big issue on a bikes at high speed). I also think that the extra 4cm of rubber on the road, as well as the smaller sidewall height may well cancel this out. Also, these forces would be highly speed dependent, and in a country like Aus where anyone going over 110k makes you public enemy number 1 I don't think it's that big an issue.
Thirdly, the effect on the ride and grip on bumpy surfaces again would only be significant at higher speed. Is this enough to offset the grip of the extra rubber? On smooth roads you would certainly be ahead with the bigger boots.
Lastly, I am a little concerned about very light wheels on rough roads. I have bent alloys before, and it's not pleasant. I'd rather have a strong wheel, than a really light wheel with 15mm more sidewall.
All of this is IMHO. While I understand that the lighter the wheel the better, I still think that for road use tyre pressures and precise wheel alignment will have a far greater influence on the handling of the car than the differences in the wheels.