Love me some aero testing - thanks! Skimming the 2nd article quickly, it's easy to see why folks seem to have difficulty detecting any differences in the real world.
I can't tell if it's painted aluminum or just polished aluminum, but it has a clear-coat over whichever it is. The more I think about it, wheel manufacturers usually paint everything to achieve the exact color they want, so it's probably silver paint. I'm so afraid of scratching my Power Spoke rims that they live in the basement, not on my SE. For more reference, here's the seldom-seen side of the Power Spoke rims. You can see the back of the 4 plastic pieces. Note the large number of wheelweights required to balance one of these asymmetrical wonders:
Relative to the other OEM wheel options, they are considerably lighter but they won't fit 16-inch Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 winter tires.
For that the 16" Spectre Grey Revolites are the lightweight, aerodynamic choice. I got them for my snow tires, and they weigh 33.2 pounds each with tires/tpms mounted. They were not cheap, though.
Roger that, but I was making fun of the net weight with a pound of lead inside the barrel in the pic @insightman posted.
The Mini badge and yellow trim are a separate centre cap to the larger wheel cover and the same as any other 5x112 MINI wheel centre cap. I have indeed replaced mine with the floating MINI centre caps, but you need to trim the centre section out with a pair of side cutters to clear the rotating 'float' assembly. This does not stop you from refitting the standard centre cap in the future.
My OHaus scale "from the 70s" says it weighs 75.5 grams. There's a metal cylinder in the center that brings it up to that weight.
Lol I LOVE it! I admire the effort, though I admit I was defo more inclined to just spend four minutes ordering mine from ECS.
This seems sketchy to me, but maybe it'll be close enough? The weight isn't concentric, so it seems like there would be some variation depending on which way it's turned.
That, and those fingers might be prone to breaking. Not to worry, it's not like improperly balanced tires are a safety concern or anything... saving a couple bucks (maybe?) is more important.
Balancing is done using my 3d printed tool. Workshop did not got adapter to balance wheel with cover - so I had no choice. No numbers to verify balancing quality, but no steering wheel vibrations either. Will see... 3d image published here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5627948 Thanks!
Thanks for all the info, previous posters Anyone consider/try removing those plastic wedges? I would like to… Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
Something to make @insightman cringe on a Sunday morning… my nephew, an Audi sales advisor and avid VAG geek (on all the forums and FB groups) sent me these just now:
Are those tires Michelin Primacy 3? I mean I didn't think chip shortages would be that bad for wheels and tires...
Crrrrrinnnngggge! Of course, if that VW owner was really serious, he'd install a MINI hood scoop, too. It's interesting the MINI SE's center caps were retained. Perhaps those wheels went on just for the photos. They look so wrong on that car!