Thread: Prius 75-91mpg
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Old 04-22-2019, 11:54 AM   #26 (permalink)
Ecky
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nathan jones View Post
Thanks, they will be reduced from 65 to 45mm. Only for weight, car height and acceleration. Width will be slightly increased from stock as they are now
Unfortunately I think this may undermine what you're trying to achieve.

By going smaller, you *effectively* make the wheels heavier, because they have to spin at higher RPM for a given road speed. This is normally close to a wash, but by going wider at the same time you're definitely going to cause the wheels to hold more angular momentum, even if they weigh less on a scale.

Most cars would "feel" like they accelerate more quickly with smaller tires, but it would be because they're now geared lower. I don't know if this applies in a Prius.

You would achieve your goal of lowering the car, but you'd also likely hurt both aerodynamics and rolling resistance (all else being equal) with a smaller, wider tire.
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