VW POLO 6N1 1997 16V

On 185/55/R14

"Losing 1kg of rotational weight (ie wheel weight) is the straightline performance equivilent to removing 10kg from your car"

The above got me thinking chaps. I've heard the bluemotion alloys were designed lightweight. This makes sense as the car was the benchmark for highmilage , aerodynamics etc.

Can bluemotion Polo alloys fit on older mark polo's.

Has anyone herer managed to weigh standard 14inch alloys.

Imagine saving 2kg on each wheel. 2 x 4 = 8kg

Then use the above formula from quotation = 8KG X 10 = 80KG

That is alot of weight to take off for a tonne car. nearly 10%!

blue motion wheels will be 5x100 pcd, so would require a hub conversion or adaptors to fit. I've got some wheels in 4x100 pcd which are 5.1kg a piece, so extremely light.

You could get Lupo 3L wheels. They are magnesium and 4x100.

When i reduced the weight of the wheels on my MK2 by 3kgs per wheel, by swapping the heavy Passat/coupe-s steelies for Hockenheim alloys of the same sizing (bearing in mind i'd weighed the car at around 720kgs before the swap), it should've felt like i'd bolted on a turbo if that jargon is to be believed.

I did expect to feel a difference, though i wasn't expecting much. I felt no difference whatsoever.

But a passenger, even a light one, i sure feel that. So i'm sceptical to say the least.

It wouldn't really be taking weight off the car would it though it's just reducing the weight of what the engine has to spin isn't it making the engine abit more efficient I know reducing the weight of the car also helps this but reducing wheel weight decreases the engine power lost through drivetrain where as reducing te weight of the car e.g. Taking rear seats out increases the power to weight ratio in essence

Am I right in thinking this

It will be a turbo afh il have you know

After reading MikeyMK's response I don't know what to think.

He saved 3kg per wheel which is 12kg in total. Times that by ten = 120kg and he would be right to be thinking that "it should've felt like i'd bolted on a turbo if that jargon is to be believed."

So it begs the question:

"Losing 1kg of rotational weight (ie wheel weight) is the straightline performance equivilent to removing 10kg from your car"

Is the above jargon which lightweight alloy companies use, a load of BS?

I mean on his approx 720kg. He would have expected I'd be guessing at around 0.6 seconds off his 0-60 time atleast. That you should notice even without a time watch.

Edited 20 April, 201214 yr by damunk

You will notice a difference but it won't be like binning a shit load of weight.

I went from some bandied steelies to some light weight wheels and you could definitely feel a difference in the car. It wasn't any faster it just picked up speed quicker.

You will notice a difference but it won't be like binning a shit load of weight.

I went from some bandied steelies to some light weight wheels and you could definitely feel a difference in the car. It wasn't any faster it just picked up speed quicker.

Anyone know where you can get 14 inch light weight alloys? I've rang a few major stores in UK and they say they don't do them.

I think the difference they make is like having a 1 x passenger weight removed from the car. That is enough for me. I think that could be the difference of 0.5 off the 0-60 time.

Seems a waste of money to me no offence all for the weight of a passenger? Unless you were drag racing I'm not sure 0.5 seconds is a lot of difference

As word goes around, some things get confused, and it's possible that's happened here.

Flywheel weight. Now that really makes a difference, shaving just one kilogram helps the engine spin up. So surely the wheels work the same, right?

Well, the flywheel spins up 700% in a few seconds. But the wheels are heavily geared. They don't spin up anything like the same rate. So your one kilogram makes relatively little difference.

VW POLO 6N1 1997 16V

On 185/55/R14

"Losing 1kg of rotational weight (ie wheel weight) is the straightline performance equivilent to removing 10kg from your car"

The above got me thinking chaps. I've heard the bluemotion alloys were designed lightweight. This makes sense as the car was the benchmark for highmilage , aerodynamics etc.

Can bluemotion Polo alloys fit on older mark polo's.

Has anyone herer managed to weigh standard 14inch alloys.

Imagine saving 2kg on each wheel. 2 x 4 = 8kg

Then use the above formula from quotation = 8KG X 10 = 80KG

That is alot of weight to take off for a tonne car. nearly 10%!

Where are you quoting this from? Who's rule of thumb is this and what equations have they made to show this?

You will notice a difference but it won't be like binning a shit load of weight.

I went from some bandied steelies to some light weight wheels and you could definitely feel a difference in the car. It wasn't any faster it just picked up speed quicker.

Anyone know where you can get 14 inch light weight alloys? I've rang a few major stores in UK and they say they don't do them.

I think the difference they make is like having a 1 x passenger weight removed from the car. That is enough for me. I think that could be the difference of 0.5 off the 0-60 time.

Image rims billets work out at about £1400 for 4 14's.. I'm still saving and probably will be for the next five years!

What you have to bear in mind with rotational weight is the less you have the less inertia to get up to speed. However once at speed, especially on a falling gradient, rotating weight will help rolling momentum and will do the opposite to slow down.. take more energy.

So it's horses for courses. In the cycle world for instance, on a hill climb the lightest hub, spokes, rim and tyre are used as this is always using energy to rotate, the more you can reduce the rotating weight the easier it is to turn (takes less energy). However on a time-trial on flat ground aerodynamic advantage outweighs rotational weight. So a deep section carbon fibre rim weighs more than a lightweight low profile alloy rim, but has the advantage of aero. Also once up to speed on the flat the rotating weight helps maintain momentum and essentially speed.

Try free-wheeling a cycle into a head-wind down a hill, then fill the tubes in the tyres with something heavy and compare. Then try the same experiment in reverse. Start at the bottom of a steep gradient stationary and pedal up a hill. Now add weight to the outside of the wheel and notice how much more energy it takes to get rolling "up to speed" in the same situation.

In my opinion if I was cutting about on duel carridgeways etc and "cruising" above 60mph mostly, then the weight saving would not really be worth while. However if i was on twisty changing conditions where the average speed is bought right down by corners and junctions and traffic then the lighter wheels would be worth while.

Anyone know where you can get 14 inch light weight alloys? I've rang a few major stores in UK and they say they don't do them.

as it happens I have some for sale, 14", nice dish to them, 5.1kg each. you might or might not be interested

http://www.clubpolo.co.uk/forum/index.php?...p;#entry2316441

Like I said, magnesium Lupo 3L wheels. The whole point in them is to be light weight...

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Lupo-3L-1-2-TDI-Mag...=item3f166358f3

bit more info on the lupo 3l wheels

Size is 14"x4j and they weigh 10.14 pounds (4.6kg)

5kgs seems a good weight for a wheel. we split my mates compomotive cx 13" wheels and they weighed in around that.

Haha that equation is bullshit I think, if mikey took (in theory) 120kg out of a 720kg car it would make a huge difference! I notice a difference having more fuel in the tank.

Change your gearbox for acceleration if you want a bit more? Reduce rolling radius of tyres? They'd be lighter too haha

Anyone ever weight the standard 5 spoke alloy you get from VW on the 1998 Polo 1.4 16v.

The lightweight alloys are around 5-6kg. Wonder if they are lighter than standard ones on the car.

I weighed a 22" wheel & tyres assembly at work the other day. 37kg haha

Anyone ever weight the standard 5 spoke alloy you get from VW on the 1998 Polo 1.4 16v.

The lightweight alloys are around 5-6kg. Wonder if they are lighter than standard ones on the car.

I would say around 7-7.5kg. I've never weighed the 5 spokes, but I've scrapped a set of wheels before, which were the same size 14"x6j and when put of the scales at the scrappy they came in at just under 30kg for the 4 wheels.

and vw castellet 14x6j alloy weighs roughly 7kg

http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/wheels/...heels-4x100.htm