alloy wheels make a difference?

you would be hard pressed to measure any improvement. People tend to put wider alloys on a car, so that may even add weight to the car
 
They weigh less than steel wheels but the only noticeable improvement are the visuals of your car. Larger wheels decrease bhp I'm sure I've heard somewhere?
 
i though it was explained on here that steelies are ligher, as the don't need a thick rim as steel doesent crack as easily?
 
When I changed from steel's to alloy's I noticed a big difference with grip, the car seems to hit a lower max speed, but my steel's felt lighter than the alloys so that may be why it wont hit the speed it would before.
 
You have to be careful in what's causing the difference - is it the new flash tyres, or is it really just that extra bit of metal you've bolted on?

Don't forget, alloys tend to be wider as well as having a larger diamater, giving the potential for a bit more traction or grip :)
 
Lashout_UK said:
You have to be careful in what's causing the difference - is it the new flash tyres, or is it really just that extra bit of metal you've bolted on?

Don't forget, alloys tend to be wider as well as having a larger diamater, giving the potential for a bit more traction or grip :)
Click to expand...

I think in my case it was abit of everything :) but I was very impressed with the difference it made :)
 
TinkerBell said:
When I changed from steel's to alloy's I noticed a big difference with grip, the car seems to hit a lower max speed, but my steel's felt lighter than the alloys so that may be why it wont hit the speed it would before.
Click to expand...


Grip would be down to the change in tyres however and not just because you have alloys.

Generally speaking basic alloys from say Halfords on a little saxo / 106 / corsa etc will probably decrease performance a little as they will probably weigh more than the steels they replace.
 
TinkerBell said:
When I changed from steel's to alloy's I noticed a big difference with grip, the car seems to hit a lower max speed, but my steel's felt lighter than the alloys so that may be why it wont hit the speed it would before.
Click to expand...

Are the alloys a different size to the steelies that were on before? If the steelies were 14" and the alloys 15", the speedo would technically under-read, causing you to think that the car was going slower.

Ste99 said:
They weigh less than steel wheels but the only noticeable improvement are the visuals of your car. Larger wheels decrease bhp I'm sure I've heard somewhere?
Click to expand...

They don't decrease bhp, but if they are heavier and the car has a small engine with very little power/torque, the heavier wheels can reduce the performance of the car as it has more weight to pull along.
 
oweneades said:
Grip would be down to the change in tyres however and not just because you have alloys.
Click to expand...

Notice post 7;)

agw_01 said:
Are the alloys a different size to the steelies that were on before? If the steelies were 14" and the alloys 15", the speedo would technically under-read, causing you to think that the car was going slower.
Click to expand...

My steel's were 13" and my alloy's are 15", which would make sense since the diameter will be larger changing everything:)
 
lightweight alloy 15" wheels :D

the lighter the better... if u hunt about on the net u can find a calc that u put in your current wheels in and then the size u want to get and it will tell u the diff it will make

but if u buy some pricey lightweight ones like 5kg jobs.. will be a little quicker
 
Last edited:
They wouldnt make any noticable difference to performance, you might get a little more grip from wider wheels but at the same time you might be adding weight.

You would be very hard pushed to notice any difference either way between steel and allloys, if you did make the switch and felt a difference, it would be down to the new tyres more than anything.
 
Ste99 said:
Larger wheels decrease bhp I'm sure I've heard somewhere?
Click to expand...

wheels physically cannot change bhp, your engine has the power still

but due to bigger diameter and/or heavier wheels there is more rollout and rotating mass therefore they are harder to start turning so acceleration may be reduced and the effective gearing of the car has changed

larger diameter will slightly increase top speed
 
The alloys I swapped on my fiesta were much much lighter than the steels but on the Puma they are about the same. Wider tyres will help grip in the dry but can be more tricky in wet conditions.
 
Alloy wheels are lighter than steel and apparantly 1kg or unsprung weight is equal to 10kg of sprung weight.

ie. if you get lighter wheels, calipers, discs, hubs etc and end up saving say 5kg per corner (guesstimate) then that's equal to saving 200kg from the rest of the car (don't quote me on that!)
 
gambitt said:
Alloy wheels are lighter than steel and apparantly 1kg or unsprung weight is equal to 10kg of sprung weight.
Click to expand...

They aren't unless you spend serious money on them. As already said, most cheaper aftermarket alloys are likely to be heavier than their steel counterparts.
 
gambitt said:
Alloy wheels are lighter than steel and apparantly 1kg or unsprung weight is equal to 10kg of sprung weight.

ie. if you get lighter wheels, calipers, discs, hubs etc and end up saving say 5kg per corner (guesstimate) then that's equal to saving 200kg from the rest of the car (don't quote me on that!)
Click to expand...
I thought it was 1Kg of unsprung mass is equivalent to 7Kg of sprung mass.
 
agw_01 said:
Are the alloys a different size to the steelies that were on before? If the steelies were 14" and the alloys 15", the speedo would technically under-read, causing you to think that the car was going slower.
Click to expand...
It would be under-reading, as the larger rolling radius would mean that in each gear you'd be going faster, but the actual speed displayed will always be the same regardless of wheel size :p
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom