legacycentral bbs

as the title says which one weighs less.

the main reason im asking is because i have a 14 inch tire with a 185/70r14 tire

and would it be lighter to get a second set of rims say 11-13 inch (if i can find that size) with a bigger tire so i dont loose any ground clearance while reducing the overall weight.

i live in lake tahoe so 2 sets of rims/tires one for winter and one for summer, that way i can get slightly better mileage during the summer and get normal-ish mileage in the winter

or is this a unfeasible idea and should i just stick with the same size rims and smaller tires?

It always depends.

These wheels are the same dimensions, 17x7.5". One is a cast aluminum Rota Formel, one is a forged aluminum BBS:



The Rota is 20.6lbs, and the BBS is 15.6lbs.

The wheel is closer to the center of the hub, so has a smaller effect on the amount of force needed to turn the wheel and tire.

The Falken FK-252, which I was running on my even heavier Prodrive P-WRC1 wheels (22lbs per), were within .5lbs when going from 225/40-18 to 225/25-17. Other tires are heavier, while others are lighter.

My suggestion is to find the best compromise in a 14-16" wheel and find a light, quality tire. The old WRX wheels are lighter than any steel wheel, and are also wider than any wheel available on the older Subarus. The RS 5-6 spoke wheels are also light, and even wider.

I'd be surprised if a 13" wheel fit over the stock front brakes on the LS, so that's probably not an option.

Assuming you could find a 13" that would fit, the increase in tire sidewall flex would make you want to go back to a 14" (if the tires have the same circumference).

I doubt you could fins a 13" or that it would clear the brakes and, the tires (unless they were real garbage) would probably be no cheaper than a 15", not much cheaper than a 16" since new cars haven't used such small wheels for a long time. 16" flat-blade 5-spoke Forester wheels are supposed to be among the lightest OEM wheels beside the harder-to-find RS wheels. They may possibly be a lighter set than a 14" steel combo.

lol i just threw 13 out there as a number. and thanks for your input folks