well, pretty much what the title says. on a rotating object, the farther out the mass is, the more effect it has, no? does the weight of the tires not matter as much, if not more, than the weight of the wheels? i was looking at some tire specs and the s03's in my tires' size weigh 26lbs each. my kumhos are 23lbs each. whenever we can save 3 lbs on wheels it's a big thing, but how come it never comes up for tires?

 

I think that a tire would actually be better when heavier because it would pretty much mean stiffer side walls that gives better stability and feedback.

 

I think its based on the assumption that all tires are created equal, not so much in peformance but it weight, when in fact it should be a concern. I think it would be fairly easy to document which tires are the lightest, but you would have to weigh that against the performance they produce. For example would a tire that is 4 lbs lighter, but produces skid pad numbers lower than the heavier tire worth while? I feel that there would be a lot of different numbers to compare when thinking about this.

Another random point about tires is the width, much like being shoes where a size 7 is not the same from one shoe to another, a 245 changes widths in a dramatic way from company to company. My fried had 255's that were as wide as his previous 235's. Documenting weight, actual width, skid pad, braking distances, etc etc would be very help full in determing which tire to get....

 

That pretty much covers it Ian. Good argument.

 

I offered to get tire weights for any bridgestone or firestone tire if someone would specify size and tire line. i.e. 245/45/17 s-03. Let me know if anyone wants the info.
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Matt, I would be interested to find out the weights for S-03s in 205/55/16 and 225/50/16 if you have them.

Regards

 

Will post tomorrow a.m. about 8:30 CST. I am leaving the office for now.
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ART 100-617 (205/55/16 Potenza S-03) weighs 23 lbs
ART 100-641 (225/50/16 Potenza S-03) weighs 24 lbs
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Since we're on the subject of tires, I heard you should put duct tape over stick-on wheel weights to prevent them from falling off. Is this true? I did cuz I figured it can't hurt.

Thanks

 

I use aluminum tape. Never seen duct tape used but it doesnt hold numbers on very well so I doubt it would work well on a dirty wheel.
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Hoosiers are the lightest tires I've ever felt by a large margin and also the stickiest I've ever seen at the track. I get them confused, which is it, unsprung weight? My Mini has EXTREMELY heavy 17" run-flats (super stiff sidewall) that many folks complain about it's overly harsh ride.

 

In my experience with Kumho, Bridgestone, and Toyo:

Light tires are sloppy and soft (Kumho and ESPECIALLY Toyo).

Heavy tires have stiff sidewalls and are nice and responsive (Bridgestone).

I prefer stiff sidewalls.

Note: These are my experiences with tires.

 

Matt, thanks for the info

 

Dan, it's unsprung. Anything not supported by the suspension (brakes, wheels, tires, hubs, etc.) is considered unsprung, while the transmission, engine, interior, body, etc. is considered sprung.

 

No problem, I live for the obscure questions! Since I work here it is pretty easy to get that kind of information, just have to look. As far as the Hoosiers go, they are track tires and as such are not required to hold up to the rigors of driving on the street. Have you ever felt the tires on a rail drag? The weight does come from the following: sidewall stiffners, full body cap plys, etc, etc. Hoosiers have none of that (actually they do have a nylon cap ply but it is not the same as the full body plys we use.) Hoosier does make a darn good comp tire, no arguments there.
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