17inch wheels without losing mpg?

[Blue09]

Finally paying off my 09 hatchback this summer and looking to upgrade to some possibly 16 but preferably 17 inch wheels. The only thing Im worried about is losing gas milage with the bigger rims. It is my understanding that as long as you stay within the same over all diameter with tires as factory and under the same over all weight as factory you wont lose any mileage. Is that correct? Any thoughts on the situation? Thanks!

[WeeYari]

With a 17" rim, you'll be increasing the contact patch between the tire and the pavement significantly. This equates to increased rolling resistance and an inherent hit to mpg.

[thebarber]

Not to mention the weight and subsequently rotational mass

[G-Ammo]

Indeed... I had 16x6 rims before with 205/55/16 tyres... (Original Toyota rims with Yokohama tyres)

Now I'm running 15x7 rims with 185/45/15 tyres... (Rota Grid-V with Nangkang tyres)


Going for 15'' with smaller tyres gives you a noticable increase in acceleration and alot of increase on mpg :)

[Blue09]

Well damn, I was afraid of that. What kinda mpg hit are we talkin between 15 and 17 inchers? 2 mpg? 5 mpg? Thanks again guys

[G-Ammo]

I dont know in miles... but I noticed my range went from 610km to almost 700km on 1 tank :) so thats quite alot if you ask me :D

[thebarber]

On our available I went from super heavy sixteens to light weight fourteens and the difference was about 5 miles per gallon

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by thebarber

On our available

On our aveo

[cali yaris]

With a 17" rim, you'll be increasing the contact patch between the tire and the pavement significantly.

How does the diameter of the rim determine contact patch? I thought the width of the tire (and related, the width of the rim) determined that.

I run 17's on my Prius C with no loss in mpg. So does our customer Mike on his.

Not to mention the weight and subsequently rotational mass

There are 15's that are way heavier than some 17's. A blanket statement like this is completely misleading.

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by cali yaris

How does the diameter of the rim determine contact patch? I thought the width of the tire (and related, the width of the rim) determined that.

I run 17's on my Prius C with no loss in mpg. So does our customer Mike on his.



There are 15's that are way heavier than some 17's. A blanket statement like this is completely misleading.

At 17" diameter, you cannot get a tire as skinny as the 185s the OP probably has.

Also, most people do not end up investing the kind of money it takes to get a wheel/tire combo that does not result in increased weight over stock.

[cali yaris]

So you're confirming that it is the width of the tire that determines contact patch; thank you.

Yokohama S Drives are 195/45/17, perfect for a 17" application on a Yaris.

Mike runs those; I run Sumitomos. He runs Advanti wheels, which are NOT expensive.
Neither of us has experienced a loss in fuel economy.

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by cali yaris

Neither of us has experienced a loss in fuel economy.

The Prius is using battery to get itself rolling is it not? You've got inertia working in your favour when actually burning gas.

Who is Mike?

[cali yaris]

Mike is a customer. I've used 17's on the Yaris as well with no loss in mpg. Heavy wheels and/or oversized (more than ONE width larger) tires WILL cause a loss in fuel economy. Tire brand and treadwear rating will also make a difference.

The OP has plenty of answers to work with now, that's for sure.

[thebarber]

Always add lightness

[cali yaris]

^ ha, I like that

[Kaotic Lazagna]

I've gone through, and am still using 17's. Compared to the OEM 15" steelies that came with my car.....

17x7, ET40; 205/40/17. Did not see any mpg loss:


17x7, ET42; 205/40/17. Got a little better mpg:


17x7.5, ET38; 205/40/17. Slightly less mpg:


17x7.5, ET unknown; 205/40/17 and 215/40/17. About the same, maybe very slightly better:


This is what I currently have on, and the heaviest set up I've had at 43.5 lbs per tire/wheel combo. I get about the same as the 15" steelies on the freeway, really tanks in city driving tho. 17x7, ET47, 17x8, ET47; 205/40/17

[venezbras2013]

Kaotic: cool versions of your Yaris! Question on those 17x7.5 with ET38mm... any issues at all running those wheels? I'm asking because i bought some Enkei GTC01 with ET38mm and was thinking on running the same tire size you run 205/40R17... any rubbing with that setup? what type of suspension do you have? by the way, I have a 5dr hatchback (SE model). Thanks.

[thebarber]

should have added that all of my driving mileage was in the city, so with all the accelerating and decelerating you really notice the wait wheels. if you drive mostly highway the way to really doesn't matter as much