Does anyone know how much a stock FEH rim weighs?

I am wondering if buying lighter (same size) rims wouldn't make ev a little easier and the reduced unsprung weight make things nicer in general.

MM

 

Ford actually uses lightweight rims and low rolling resistance tires for the Escape Hybrid. That does not mean you can not find lighter and most likely more expensive rims. I actually found a set of four Ford OEM Escape Hybrid rims last year for around $230.00 Michelin is supplying the new Escape Hybrid low rolling resistance tires and you may want to check this out if you are in the market for tires.

 

Yeah, I have near 40k on the contis, and am looking at replacement.
Do you know the specifics on the michelins?

As for the rim weight, I have seen 18.1 lb and 20 lb replacement rims.
What I need to known is what the actual weight of a 16 FEH rim is , sans tire, so I can see what it would cost to lower that weight and make some choices as to wether it is worth the cost.

MM

 

Sorry don't know the weight either, I was looking to buy 1 to add a full size spare, but have given up on that, the $ is better placed into my new house and I don't drive far; at most 20 miles from home, rarely that far.

But there's 3 on ebay now, you might shoot 3 emails and see if you get any replies?
http://search.ebay.com/search/search...s2=73169&lsot2=


PS you might post on here if you do get a weight.

 

I suppose it might make a little difference from rotational inertia... but I doubt you'd see it in MPG.. and as for just overall weight, The vehicle is over 4,000 lbs. A few pounds on wheels isn't going to save much on overall weight. I'd save the money myself.

 

Maybe a bit off topic, but which Michelin tires are the low rolling resistance tires? I popped over to the Michelin website and couldn't figure it out.

 

I switched from the Michelins to the Fortrera's on the Highlander when it needed tires. The Michelins weighed 28 lbs each, the Fortrera's weighed 32lb. I could feel the difference in ability to accellerate in EV without jumping out. So, my thought balloon is:

If I can substantially reduce the unsprung weight and the rotational weight, perhaps I can stay in EV more easily without jumping out.
In my dreams, leaving a stop in EV in drive would also be easier.

Conti Eco's weigh 31 lbs. Michelins range from 26 to 35 for various 235 70 16's

I don't know yet what the Ford rims weight, but there are aftermarket rims to be had down into the 13 -14 lb range. Potentially, you could save 10 to 12 lbs on each corner. This is a pretty substantial number.

Will it make any difference? Who knows?

MM

 

I believe it will be the Michelin Energy LX4 tire. Size would be 235/65/16

 

It seems to me that the lighter rims would be an advantage (beyone overall car weight reduction) but I'm not sure how much. Directly accelerating the wheels by spinning them faster does take a lot more energy than just accelerating the car (on a per unit basis). I'm not sure if it would be significant to the gas mileage, but the ride should improve also.

 

235/70/16... is the orignial equipment on the '05-07