What is lighter: a larger wheel with a thinner tire, or a smaller wheel with a thicker wheel? Same overall diameter

What is lighter: a larger wheel with a thinner tire, or a smaller wheel with a thicker wheel? Same overall diameter.

Rubber is heavier than carbon fiber / allpy

>thicker wheel

Thicker tire fug

Also wondering if there is a significant difference in weight between tires

Depends on wheel and tyre.

Dumbass question.

steelie a best

Same wheel design
Same tire compound

Only diameter changes

>literally retarded

The lightest option is no wheel

Think about what you just wrote.

It's hard to find two wheels and two tires that are so similar. Here are the closest two I could think of off the top of my head. The wheels are the same width but the offset is different. The tires are more different than I would have hoped but are still pretty similar.

If you just add the weights it seems like the smaller wheel will give you the lighter weight, but since these are rotating parts you have to account for rotational inertia (I think thats what it is called). The farther the weight is to the outside of the wheel the more power it will take to turn. If more of the weight is central around the hub it will be easier to spin. So you would have to determine the differences in weight placement between the two setups.

OP, buy two sets of wheels and tire and hire a mechanical engineer to figure it out for you.

wrong file upload

So it's basically negligible.

I don't think 2.5 lbs per corner is negligible, but again it depends on weight distribution. I prefer smaller wheels anyway though.

Course you're also getting another 10mms worth of tread which might very well be worth the 2.5lbs.

High performance cars use low profile tires not to save weight but to get less tire sidewall flex.
You actually notice drag cars generally have small wheels and larger tires because it generally saves weight.
Low profile tires are also much more prone to pothole damage so if you're looking for a street tire, go with a smaller wheel and a bigger tire. You'll probably weigh a tiny bit less but more importantly won't have to flinch whenever you hit even a small pothole.
The only downside is maybe it won't look as great. But I have 15s with thick tires on my AW11 and I think they look way better than 17s and thin tires I had on it before.

Rubber is heavier than alloy, so going bigger wheel/thinner sidewall would keep the mass closer to the axle, so it'd be easier to turn the wheel.

Makes sense that supercars/hypercars aim to have as little sidewall as possible

But you'd also be pushing the outside of the rim farther away from the center with a larger wheel which is where half the mass of the actual wheel is, so that's counterproductive as well. Also remember that a tire sidewall is very thin and that the air works as part of the structure so for ever inch of tire you have you have very little extra rubber but save much more in Alloy.

You need to look at the weight of the materials:
Rubber is 1.5g/cm3
Magnesium Alloy is 1.8g/cm3
Steel is 7.9g/cm3

Therefore it would depend on the wheel construction material and the thickness + surface area of the tyre. I would say switching to an alloy wheel makes more of a difference rather than the rim/tyre ratio.

None of this really makes much difference when OP weighs 370 pounds

It's 15mm of tread, actually. 7.1" vs 6.5".

It's not just density. A tire needs two solid strips of rubber all the way around. A wheel just needs a handful of narrow spokes. Using larger wheels with the same OD tire means you're using less total material.

Doesn't the gas inside the tire play a factor?

OP here, I am 197 pounds

I'm guessing your experience with wheels is limited to hot wheels and your pushbike.

Using a larger wheel increases the diameter thereby increasing the surface area of the rim. Not only are you using more material for the spokes but more material for the flat area as you can see in the pic. You cannot make a surface area larger and use less material. The universe does not work that way

tldr; you are a retarded faggot. Don't ever talk to me or my wifes son again.

>None of this really makes much difference when OP weighs 370 pounds

sorry for ruining your joke, but it still does matter
OP adds to the sprung weight, meanwhile lightweight wheels affect the unsprung weight
and that's a huge difference

Guys supercars use bigger wheels because their brakes are enormous. How else are they going to fit those carbon ceramics on there?

How dare you bring facts and logic in here

BTFO

>you cannot make a surface area larger and use less material
What? Yes you can.

Not if you want the wheel to retain any strength you retarded piece of shit. Hurr durr twice as big half as thick. Strong as bro

You never specified a required strength. You simply stated, incorrectly, that surface area cannot be increased while reducing material used.

Maybe be more specific before getting on your high horse, sweetheart.

So why do race cars use really meaty wheels? Wouldn't a lower-profile tire grant less sidewall flex?

Larger wheels are usually wider

I think the idea that sidewall flex is bad is a meme. Sidewalls should act as additional suspension.

Someone prove me wrong on this.

THICC tires look better

>AW11

Slapping nig-tier rimz on 80s cars is blasphemous.

> Taking a sentence out of context of the discussion to make your point

You must be a Christian

>bought AW11 from nig
>rims were 15 inch and matched the car perfectly