My project making good looking aero wheels

[AGCF]

Hi
I'm currently developing a few different styles of aftermarket wheels for Tesla with the aim of being as efficient as the original aero wheel at reducing drag. With the the big upside of also being good looking. You can follow the design progress at our instagram accout Xtraero. If you request to follow, I will let you in. Because the designs are not ready, I don't want the pictures to be picked up by search engines yet. Thus no pictures here. At this point we are doing wind tunnel simulations. Then we will make some forged prototypes for the winter season (we are Swedes, changing tires twice a year). Later on we will take reservations for a cast wheel, possibly in serveral sizes and also for model X. If all goes well.

 

[AGCF]

It would be helpfull if you write your prefered wheel option. Like 19" or 21", cast wheels for low price, forged for less weight etc. Is "made in USA" important? Would you even choose a wheel with better aerodynamics or is style the only preference. I am a big fan of Tesla and they really worked on getting the Cd value down but their wheels are not built with the same mindset at all. The turbine wheel is not even left/right to suck air from underneath the car. They are all from the same cast so they draw air sideways under the car.

 

[Plug Life]

21" forged

 

[JPUConn]

19 or 20 to pair with low rolling resistance tire

 

[dj905]

19", since this option already delivers better efficiency. To have broad appeal, the cost needs to be consistent with other 19" wheel options on the market.

 

[AGCF]

19", since this option already delivers better efficiency. To have broad appeal, the cost needs to be consistent with other 19" wheel options on the market.

Yes, price is key. Aiming for a competitive price. But distributed directly to customers, not via tire shops.

 

[AGCF]

19 or 20 to pair with low rolling resistance tire

Yes. I hope the tire manufacturers wil make those tires in 21" also in the future. Tires makes a big difference for consumption

 

[jelloslug]

19" for sure.

 

[Laserbrain]

I would go for a beautiful forged wheel for daily driving and an attachable carbon wheel cover for long trips.

Here is such a wheel cover for a Porsche (fast forward to 1:12 min):

 

[green1]

It would be ridiculous to go to all the bother of getting more efficient rims, and then ruin that efficiency by getting them in a 21" size.
Gotta keep to 19" as it makes a measurable range difference.

As for the wheels themselves, aero is a tricky business, the best ones are basically a solid plate, and therefore look ugly, as did the original aero wheels, which is likely why they were discontinued. Though I've often wondered if something along the lines of the turbines could be very close to the old aero wheels assuming you made them direction specific (ie different for the right and left sides of the vehicle)

I wish you the best of luck, and look forward to seeing what you come up with!

 

[nico180]

transparent film or a thin plastic (just like a screen protector).

to either overlay on top -or- inside the 19inch rim

make it fit the base and slipstream 19inch.

there is your mass market, cheap and possible removable solution

if the heat of the brakes and snow dont get in the way - i see options.

 

[headcase]

My 2 cents: 19" and 20" forged wheels would be great, for running on Goodyear's new low rolling resistance tires...

 

[AGCF]

You can now view the renderings at http://www.instagram.com/xtraero

 

[BerTX]

I personally don't care for them, but that is a matter of personal taste. I look at them and think that they look like wheel covers. If they are going to look like wheel covers, why not just make wheel covers?

 

[No2DinosaurFuel]

I agree with BerTX. Wheel covers might be cheaper and easier to implement than building whole wheels. But who knows it might be easier and more reliable to build whole wheels at the expense of the cost on the final product. 2 of your designed are already implemented by Tesla on the Model 3 reveal. I think those are best looking rims. I'll take those rims if they do offer tangible range increase without sacrificing ride comfort.

 

[rypalmer]

This is a random wheel cover suggestion.

I bought some commercial Rubbermaid food storage bins, and the lids struct me is a design and material that would be appropriate to make wheel covers from. They're translucent, durable, light, and fit quite tight on the bins. Obviously they're the wrong shape, but I can't imagine it being that complicated to mold a suitable round shape for various wheels.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B000R8E164/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

"Made of white LLDPE for flexibility and resistance to cracks, punctures, and certain chemicals"

 

[AGCF]

I personally don't care for them, but that is a matter of personal taste. I look at them and think that they look like wheel covers. If they are going to look like wheel covers, why not just make wheel covers?

I agree with BerTX. Wheel covers might be cheaper and easier to implement than building whole wheels. But who knows it might be easier and more reliable to build whole wheels at the expense of the cost on the final product. 2 of your designed are already implemented by Tesla on the Model 3 reveal. I think those are best looking rims. I'll take those rims if they do offer tangible range increase without sacrificing ride comfort.

I appreciate your feedback. Will try to make it more concave at the center among other things.

Not sure I've seen model 3 wheels like this. They have a new turbine look but it looks really bad for drag. The matte gray car had inserts in the wheel for drag reducing purpuse I think. That might work better. The silver one had really good looking wheels with a black center. All of them have centerbolts and I guess production cars will not have.

The five inlet style that I use is influenced by Mercedes IAA concept and VWs new EV has also gone with that type.

But there is more science in to it. My inlets only go halfway from the center to the rim, this proves to be better than even a flat moondisc! Not sure why but it evens out pressure inside/outside the wheel preventing air from going around the tire. That is a theory

 

[brantse]

This is a random wheel cover suggestion.

I bought some commercial Rubbermaid food storage bins, and the lids struct me is a design and material that would be appropriate to make wheel covers from. They're translucent, durable, light, and fit quite tight on the bins. Obviously they're the wrong shape, but I can't imagine it being that complicated to mold a suitable round shape for various wheels.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B000R8E164/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

"Made of white LLDPE for flexibility and resistance to cracks, punctures, and certain chemicals"

I like that idea a lot. Once you did the development/tooling, you'd be able to make them for like 5 cents each. They may not last all that long, but wouldn't be a big loss if you have to replace. You could probably sell plenty of them for like $50 a set.

 

[dhh12]

What are the range implications of the rims? A 5% increase? 15%? I think that would be important to know.

 

[AGCF]

What are the range implications of the rims? A 5% increase? 15%? I think that would be important to know.

We have made simulations with our 21" model and compared to Teslas 21" inch turbine model. Ours show 47% less drag from the wheel arch. That would be, if the wheel arch accounts for 25% of the total drag, a 13% improvement in overall drag. At a speed of about 60 mph the drag accounts for 50% of consumption so 13% would get you 6,5% extra range. At 90 mph more like 9%