ronin_of_life

Before I jump into another purchase, I want to know how effective lightweight rims are for one's car's performance, ride quality, and overall reliability.
I honestly don't care about looks- I'll run with the ugliest rims if it satisfies the 3 criteria above- I'll just add hubcaps .

I'm running steelies + hubcaps, and honestly, I like them. However, I wish for more low to mid range power (I don't like flooring the teg to 3K rpms from every stop light).
And thanks to someone knifing my dad's DC's rear tires, and having to get cheap used ones for $25 (rumbles on the highway a lot), I think its due time to get a replacement set- from the DA.

Now I have my eyes on a nice lightweight set of Kosei K1 TS- and I've only read good thing about them- better steering response, less unsprung weight, lower rotational mass (which should theoretically increase acceleration and decrease braking distance), and longer brake pad life, due to better heat dissipation.
I've been even hearing rumors about prolonged transmission life with lighter rims, but I can't wrap my head around that.

Question is, how pronounced are these benefits? We can talk numbers, and state that I'll be shaving off 45 pounds of rotational mass, but would I really feel that? Or will it be like another "High performance Cold Air intake"- +5-10hp looks good on the sheets, but it felt the same to me with the stock box (then again, I never took the DA up to 160km/h- ever).
I guess one must upgrade the exhaust system to see any pronounced benefits with a cold air intake, and I may consider that, when the catalytic converter gets faulty.

Compare that to acetone, now that's power that you can feel- butt dyno certified!

Back to rims- I like steel- it has excellent fatigue strength and defect tolerance, and its cheap- can't say the same for aluminum though.
But Aluminum rims are light- and it makes a huge difference, if you're on a bike (swapped the steel rims from my dumpster bike for a nice set of aluminums- and wow... lets just say I can't call cycling "exercise" anymore).
Dunno about a car though.

Well, thanks for reading.

Neon_Dave

iTrader: (1)

The bottom line? Lighter wheels do make a big difference. How much, it depends. But it is certainly noticeable in accel/braking response, steering and fuel economy.

Fuel economy i think is a good sign of the benefits of lighter wheels. Shaving 3 pounds off each wheel when i installed my aluminim 15's, my mileage went up 75 km a tank. Thats a noticeable difference, further adding backing to the butt dyno feeling it too.

Vida

iTrader: (2)

Kosei K1s are an overall great rim. Light,n durable, track proven and so on. They look great too. As for weight, rim size and weight do make a difference. Ride comfort? Not too sure to be exact. But I'm sure that could be sorted out with a good tire as well. I'm actually considering of getting K1s. Nice post.

Neon_Dave

iTrader: (1)

The amount of tire and its hardness probably will make the difference in ride quality. Basically, the lower profile, the less comfort. Less rubber to absorb the bumps and whatnot

AcuratePaul

iTrader: (8)

Rotational mass is very big and you should and will feel a difference. Light rims are btter in the sense for those reasons you stated above. As for the strength of them I'm not sure I can imagine that the allimnum rims are strong but They def make it a quicker ride

ronin_of_life

I'm sold.

I'll be shopping for the Koseis in the spring, unless I find a nice "winter storage" deal.

Thanks.

D.T.P

iTrader: (3)

You could get rims and increase the acceleration by a bit, or you could get a swap with torque, and rims won't matter
J32 is key. Haha

ronin_of_life

An Acura TL engine? With that much torque, I may not need new rims, but I'll definitely be needing new tires.

Honestly, I'm no fan of odd swaps. The engine may not be compatible with the other parts of the car in the long term, thus compromising reliability.

MPR

Smaller, lighter stronger rims > Larger, heavier bling-bling rims. Period.

AcuratePaul

iTrader: (8)

What category do spinners fall under cuz i want 14' spinners lmao

MPR

^wow, car looks great man!