This weekend, I performed a range test to compare the stock 17"x7" Roulette Spoke wheels with 205/45R17 Hankook Ventus S1 evo 3 tires and aftermarket 17"x7.5" NM Engineering RSe05 wheels with 225/45R17 Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 tires. Pictures and discussion on the RSe05 wheels can be found in my
Aftermarket Wheels thread.
Method
I have established my own range testing route, which is 62 miles long per Google Maps and verified by a GPS app. Of those 62 miles:
- 6.4 miles are on city streets and on/off ramps.
- 3 miles are at 65mph.
- 52.6 miles are at 70mph. (The speed limit is actually 75mph for 32 miles, but I maintained 70mph as that's the speed limit on any road trip route I'm likely to take.)
For all highway driving, I used the cruise control set to the speed limit according to GPS speed, rather than the car's speedometer. Likewise, average speed was per GPS. This eliminates speedometer error (due to manufacturer offset and/or different overall tire diameter).
Battery State of Charge was sniffed off the OBDII port via bluetooth adapter and mobile app.
The wheel weights shown in the chart are per documentation on the internet. Wheel + tire weight was measured with my own digital scale.
Both sets of tires were set to factory-recommended pressures: 38psi front, 35psi rear.
Commentary
First, I was surprised that these two sets of wheels & tires had the same net weight. I do expect the smaller-size summer tire to weigh less, but nearly 7lbs less! I cannot find any documented weight for that size of Hankook Ventus S1 evo 3 tire, as it seems to be a rare Euro-only spec. I expected a minor net weight savings with the aftermarket setup (which would improve with summer tires), but alas was mistaken. Maybe the posted weight of the Roulette Spoke wheels is incorrect?
Second, I was surprised that the aftermarket wheels dropped a whopping 20 miles from the range. I remember noting a big improvement in my SE's range when the weather warmed up, but apparently most of that was due to swapping from the aftermarket wheels back to the stock wheels. Since my SE was delivered in late September last year, I only put 115 miles on the stock wheels before swapping to the RSe05s with all-season tires out of necessity.
The additional width of the wheel and tire plus larger offset really fills out the wheel well, pushing the outer face 20.4mm further out than stock. I love the aggressive look, but secretly had second thoughts about having that much poke. (And now maybe third thoughts, given the loss in efficiency.)
This setup provides an even more planted handling feel than the stock setup, with absurdly high corner-holding capability and reduced torque steer. Maximum grin factor. And the Michelins ride much quieter than the Hankooks, which tend to "thrum" on all road surfaces. Most of my driving is shorter trips on city streets, so highway range performance is only an occasional concern as I rarely take trips long enough to push the limit. But losing 20 miles of range in good weather gives me pause--doing a wheel swap would be wise before any planned long-distance driving.
Next Steps
I had planned to get all-seasons for the Roulette Spoke wheels once I wore down the Hankooks sufficiently, but I think I'm going to make that change this fall--likely with Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 in 205/45R17. (Then weigh and re-test the range.) Likewise, I had planned to replace the all-seasons on the RSe05 wheels with summer tires at the same time, but instead will resume my search for some light-weight wheels with better proportions/aerodynamics which I find visually pleasing.
I scored a used set of 16" Electric Revolite wheels (Spectre Grey) from eBay shod in lightly-used Hankook Ventus Prime3 tires. I plan to use them for my winter wheels (replacing the tires of course), but will perform a range test with them as-is first. I will update my chart and post an update here once that's done. I expect efficiency to be a bit better than the Roulettes.
