Quote:
Originally Posted by Phase
I’d be getting ecopias. Idk what they come with but def would do low rolling resistance tires
Lighter wheels in city means less unsprung weight
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If you weren't driving a hybrid, I'd say, 'go for it,' however, if you do it, you could inadvertently shoot yourself in the foot:
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1) As has already been discussed, the tire circumference remains the same regardless of wheel diameter. There's no difference in the tread's surface velocity-related hysteresis effects.
2) Since the dual-motor, 13.6-kWh plug-in is already 356-pounds heavier than the 'base' Prius, you're sweating some difference in polar-moment-of-inertia between the two different wheel/tire sizes, in comparison to an 11% increase in all-up mass.
3) Volvo proved that a 'heavier' hybrid can be 'better' than a lighter one, because of the regen phenomena, as, in the case of the PRIME, your getting 81.1% of the energy of 'braking' from an 11% 'heavier car.
4) You'd have to do a complete energy balance on the car to prove to yourself that you wouldn't just be p---ing away good money on an investment that might reward you with a 'zero' return on investment ( 'experience is a cruel teacher....gives the exam first, then the lesson' ).
5) The wheelhouses and wheels 'DO' add around 50% aero drag to a car.
6) And the 'exposed' portion below the belly constitutes about 80% of 'wheel drag.'
7) 'Windage/ Ventilation' drag has been reported at 'nothing' at 'low-speed', to 3% at 141-mph ( 227-km/h ) [ Tesla Model 3 in Germany, by Rob Palin ( aerodynamicist for Tesla Motors )].
8) If your car comes with the 'larger' wheels, something just beyond 'janky zipped-tied cardboard wheel covers' might be all you need to 'erase' the ventilation drag.