Who makes the absolute lightest and/or most efficient wheels for the Tesla Model 3 Performance, under $500 each?

[micromano]

Hey all,

I have been scouring this forum as well as a few others online-- including some Model 3 performance groups on Facebook-- and I still can't seem to find a definitive answer to the following question:

Who makes the absolute lightest and/or most efficient wheels for the Tesla Model 3 Performance, under $500 each?

I truly don't care how they look. Function over fashion. I'm looking for objective hard numbers showing they are light or otherwise efficient.

 

[gearchruncher]

Light and efficient are not for sure the same thing.
What is your goal? Lowest wh/mi on the highway, or in the city? What tires are you putting on them? Do you care about grip at all?

 

[gearchruncher]

Good luck on your search for "the best thing under $500" when you aren't even willing to explain what "it" is!

FYI, if light was efficient, Tesla would have focused on reducing wheel weight instead of what they did.

 

[ZenRockGarden]

You would help yourself get better information if you frame your question better.

If you want efficiency, it turns out it's mostly about aerodynamics and diameter, and the best answer will be the smallest-diameter wheels Tesla makes for the model 3 with their aero-covers in place. These, or clones of them will give you the highest miles/kWh

If you want efficiency in the form of acceleration, yeah lightest weight might be the way to go, but honestly it'll be as much about grip as weight in these cars which are so heavy that optimizing wheel weights doesn't really matter much.

If you want handling, well now you're looking at unsprung weight, tire width, sidewalls and all that fun.

 

[micromano]

You would help yourself get better information if you frame your question better.

If you want efficiency, it turns out it's mostly about aerodynamics and diameter, and the best answer will be the smallest-diameter wheels Tesla makes for the model 3 with their aero-covers in place. These, or clones of them will give you the highest miles/kWh

If you want efficiency in the form of acceleration, yeah lightest weight might be the way to go, but honestly it'll be as much about grip as weight in these cars which are so heavy that optimizing wheel weights doesn't really matter much.

If you want handling, well now you're looking at unsprung weight, tire width, sidewalls and all that fun.

Thank you for the reply.

Small world. I used to live in Santa Barbara and last night I was actually planning a train trip down there with my young son.

The reason I phrased the question the way I did was that I'm open to all suggestions. I've seen a couple of posts on this forum with guys who've logged data, and I was hoping someone had a recommendation for a unicorn wheel that was light and efficient.

A lighter vehicle is generally more efficient. However, given the substantial weight of most EVs, I'd concede that shaving off 20-30 lbs in total wheel weight probably doesn't do much for overall efficiently. It'd be cheaper and healthier for me to workout more and lose 30 lbs of fat from my body. Ha!

That being said, I've heard a number of times from the performance guys (who don't really care much about efficiency, but are rather wanted quicker laps and quarter miles) that they have faster acceleration and better handling from smaller, lighter wheels.

Aerodynamic wheels seem to be most efficient at highway speeds, but they are notably heavier. I'm leaning towards these wheels from FastEV, because they supposedly match or exceed the efficiency of Tesla's OEM Aerowheels. I just wish they were lighters.

I don't worry or care much about grip while wheel shopping. I'm confident that the fine engineers at Michelin and Nokian have got me covered there.

Thanks again for your reply, I agree that aerodynamics are likely the primary consideration for efficiency.

 

[gearchruncher]

I don't worry or care much about grip while wheel shopping. I'm confident that the fine engineers at Michelin and Nokian have got me covered there.

Wheel width and offset have a massive impact on aerodynamic efficiency, and cannot be chosen until you know what tires you are running.

 

[T3SLAROD]

Enkei RPF1

 

[micromano]

Enkei RPF1

Thanks, I'll check them out.

 

[gearchruncher]

Koenig hypergrams weigh less than RPF1's and cost less too.
They're equally as aerodynamically hideous as the RPF1's too!

Mass is totally irrelevant to efficiency on the highway, aero is everything. Somehow in the midst of me being a completely worthless poster, just 3 days ago I calculated the impact of 10 lb heavier wheels, which is in the neighborhood of adding 6 feet to the range of the car at 55 MPH in another thread discussing this identical topic:

Impact of Wheel Style on Range

I've seen a lot of posts on here about the range impacts of shifting to a different size wheel/tire combo, or shifting from summer to all season tires. I'm curious about the design of the wheels themselves. Does anyone have thoughts or information about the impacts of different wheel styles...

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[dsgerbc]

The answer exists, but mods here closed those topics and later (quietly) made them private, so that the information there couldn't be shared.

 

[T3SLAROD]

Koenig hypergrams weigh less than RPF1's and cost less too.
They're equally as aerodynamically hideous as the RPF1's too!

Mass is totally irrelevant to efficiency on the highway, aero is everything. Somehow in the midst of me being a completely worthless poster, just 3 days ago I calculated the impact of 10 lb heavier wheels, which is in the neighborhood of adding 6 feet to the range of the car at 55 MPH in another thread discussing this identical topic:

Impact of Wheel Style on Range

I've seen a lot of posts on here about the range impacts of shifting to a different size wheel/tire combo, or shifting from summer to all season tires. I'm curious about the design of the wheels themselves. Does anyone have thoughts or information about the impacts of different wheel styles...

teslamotorsclub.com

If you want cheap low quality Chinese wheels then sure get the Koenigs

 

[Lindenwood]

If you want cheap low quality Chinese wheels then sure get the Koenigs

That’s pretty bold .

 

[gearchruncher]

If you want cheap low quality Chinese wheels then sure get the Koenigs

You're aware Eneki's are made in China, right?
Teslas too...

 

[T3SLAROD]

You're aware Eneki's are made in China, right?
Teslas too...

RPF1s are Made in Japan

Yes, I am aware other Enkeis are Made in China, the wheels in question are not…did you have a point to make?

As far as Teslas…. Again, not the subject of this thread.

 

[EVolv3d]

Thank you for the reply.

Small world. I used to live in Santa Barbara and last night I was actually planning a train trip down there with my young son.

The reason I phrased the question the way I did was that I'm open to all suggestions. I've seen a couple of posts on this forum with guys who've logged data, and I was hoping someone had a recommendation for a unicorn wheel that was light and efficient.

A lighter vehicle is generally more efficient. However, given the substantial weight of most EVs, I'd concede that shaving off 20-30 lbs in total wheel weight probably doesn't do much for overall efficiently. It'd be cheaper and healthier for me to workout more and lose 30 lbs of fat from my body. Ha!

That being said, I've heard a number of times from the performance guys (who don't really care much about efficiency, but are rather wanted quicker laps and quarter miles) that they have faster acceleration and better handling from smaller, lighter wheels.

Aerodynamic wheels seem to be most efficient at highway speeds, but they are notably heavier. I'm leaning towards these wheels from FastEV, because they supposedly match or exceed the efficiency of Tesla's OEM Aerowheels. I just wish they were lighters.

I don't worry or care much about grip while wheel shopping. I'm confident that the fine engineers at Michelin and Nokian have got me covered there.

Thanks again for your reply, I agree that aerodynamics are likely the primary consideration for efficiency.

I have the 18” EV01+ aero wheels paired with 235/45R18 PS4S tires on my M3P. I personally believe they’re the best combination of efficiency (aero) and weight reduction. They’re ~9-10lbs lighter per wheel compared to the stock 20” setup. They have similar efficiency to the OEM aero wheels while being ~2lbs lighter per corner. I believe the PS4S tires also have a lower rolling resistance than the OEM P Zero tires.

My 0-60mph time has consistently improved with the PB dropping from 3.20 to 3.09 (Dragy verified). This ~3.4% improvement is pretty consistent with most lightweight aftermarket wheels as the aero doesn’t come into play at these speeds. For reference, I haven’t seen a M3P break the 3.00s barrier yet even with lighter wheels and stripped interior.

My efficiency has improved from an average of 279 Wh/mi (20k miles on the stock wheels) to 268 Wh/mi (13k miles on the EV01s so far). It’s impossible to say what percentage of that is from the improved wheel aero vs reduction in rotational inertia vs tire’s rolling resistance. Regardless, it’s only a ~3.9% improvement based on my driving habits. While it’s not a controlled scientific test, it’s an average over a large range of mixed driving conditions. I’m sure I’d observe better results in a controlled test at highway speeds, but that doesn’t accurately reflect my daily commute. Realistically, this setup may yield an extra ~10 miles of range for me.. maybe closer to 20 miles in perfectly ideal conditions. Another way of looking at it is that it saves me ~$1.65 per 1,000 miles based on my electricity rate.

Generally, the tire’s rolling resistance will have a much larger impact on efficiency than either the wheel weight or aerodynamics. It’s all about finding the balance of wheel design (size, weight, aero, aesthetics) and tire “performance” (size, rolling resistance, traction/grip, tread wear, weather/season, etc) that you prefer.

It would be interesting if someone offered lighter aero wheels made from forged magnesium or carbon fiber, but they would be very expensive for what’s likely to be marginal gains.

I can definitively say that you won’t feel a difference in acceleration if you go with a wheel that’s 2-3lbs lighter than the EV01. It may improve your acceleration by a couple hundredths of a second at best. Your battery condition (SOC, temp, max discharge, etc.), reaction time and road condition/traction will have a much larger impact (tenths of a second).

 

[jeff8407]

RPF1s are Made in Japan

Yes, I am aware other Enkeis are Made in China, the wheels in question are not…did you have a point to make?

As far as Teslas…. Again, not the subject of this thread.

Enkei's parent company has factories all over the world: Japan, China, South Africa. Their largest factory is in the Philippines. They have about 5% of the new OEM market worldwide. That's is about 2.6 million cars--more than 10 million OEM rims per year!

 

[tlr1000]

Try these for aerodynamics Moon Disc for Tesla Model 3 hub cap

 

[rayrevolver]

You can get "aerodisc" or Turbofan covers for the both the 18" and 19" Tesla wheels. Below are 18" wheels + covers.

I added the red stripe and also drilled holes so I can adjust tire pressure (they come with the spot marked on the inside).

No idea on whether these are more or less aerodynamic than the Tesla covers. I am not sure how you can get these to work with a M3P, I *think* you can shave your brake caliper? These should be a cheap-ish option if you can make it work.

 

[Sendit1]

I bought APex VS-5SR 18 x 9.5 which are 18.3lbs each as verified with my scale and those are 9.5" wide. They appear to be well designed too.
I went with 255 40zr18 PS4S tires @ 25 lbs each. Not the lightest, but they seem to have pretty good grip on the street.
I saw a post claiming Jova 18 x 8.5 were 17.8lbs but I don't know how strong they are
Here is that post see #8 lightweight wheels model 3 performance 0-60 testing

I don't think the 18 x 8 RPF1s fit properly over the M3P brakes so you really need to watch out for that.

 

[gearchruncher]

Unless you are running some Lighspeed racing magnesium wheels at about 14lbs each for 18x9's, you're just playing around.

RS5RR | Litespeed Racing | Forged Lightweight Race Wheels

The RS5RR is our lightest and most popular wheel style. Countless hours of FEA computer simulations where put in to fine tune every aspect of the RS5’s geometry for maximum weight reduction, and overall strength. The RS5 is the lightest wheel avaible for most applications.

www.litespeedracing.com