So How Much does Extra Weight Effect Things

[Paluss]

Back in the day it was generally accepted that unsprung rotational weight had a 4 to 1 disadvantage over sprung weight.
IE: 100 lbs of additional unsprung weight was equivalent to 400 lbs of sprung weight

I agree 100%, if you add 4 passengers at 100 lbs each and go for a drive, then, take away those 4 passengers and add 100 lbs to each wheel, you will notice a big difference in how the vehicle drives...

Sponsored

 

[azwjowner]

Rotational mass is the big thing with tires. I found a formula to use.

1 lb of rotating weight = 8.4 lbs of static weight.

adding 75 lbs with the tires would be like adding 630 lbs of static weight

https://www.signaturewheel.com/sing... wheels,car's performance, every ounce counts.

Yeah. If you add 20 pounds per tire, imagine supergluing a 20 pound dumbbell to the outer sidewall of each of your tires. That mass has to be spun up and down as you accelerate, brake, it is spinning momentum resisting steering left and right (so more wear on ball joints and steering components), and with every bump it's increasing the forces through the suspension.

 

[Vatdevil]

Rotational mass is the big thing with tires. I found a formula to use.

1 lb of rotating weight = 8.4 lbs of static weight.

adding 75 lbs with the tires would be like adding 630 lbs of static weight

https://www.signaturewheel.com/single-post/the-secret-of-rotating-weight-vs-static-weight#:~:text=Well, that goes for wheels,car's performance, every ounce counts.

I’ll agree to that calculation. Unscientific testing my Jeep before and after heavier wheels and tires yielded over 50 ft increase in stopping distance. Factory brakes aren’t suited for 37 and up setups.

 

[Muskoka Minute]

I’ll agree to that calculation. Unscientific testing my Jeep before and after heavier wheels and tires yielded over 50 ft increase in stopping distance. Factory brakes aren’t suited for 37 and up setups.

How are they going from a 33" to a 35"

 

[Mudduck]

Based on the title of the OPs post... I'm going with "Depends on what she looks like"

Or unsprang weight

 

[AcesandEights]

It's a metric maybe, but it's not the only thing. I have seen numerous posts, some saying you want the lowest weight tire. Do you? You could run a thin hwy tire, but if you're going into the rocks remember to bring at least two spares. Buy what you need to do the job. The right tool for the job isn't always the shiniest, it isn't always the lowest weight, or the most fuel-efficient, or whatever. If you're concerned about weight, but not concerned about other things that matter as much or more, you're missing the forest for the trees.

What do you need? What do you want?
-the answer, always, is the most aggressive tire you can find regardless of weight or amount of noise, or how poorly they handle, ammirite?

So, don't buy the lowest weight tire. Buy the tire that provides the performance you need or want.

 

[Mudduck]

It's a metric maybe, but it's not the only thing. I have seen numerous posts, some saying you want the lowest weight tire. Do you? You could run a thin hwy tire, but if you're going into the rocks remember to bring at least two spares. Buy what you need to do the job. The right tool for the job isn't always the shiniest, it isn't always the lowest weight, or the most fuel-efficient, or whatever. If you're concerned about weight, but not concerned about other things that matter as much or more, you're missing the forest for the trees.

What do you need? What do you want?
-the answer, always, is the most aggressive tire you can find regardless of weight or amount of noise, or how poorly they handle, ammirite?

So, don't buy the lowest weight tire. Buy the tire that provides the performance you need or want.

It would help if guys would take the time and figure out the actual purpose use of their Jeep, and purchase from there.

I dont rock crawl or wheel really hard, so my tire choice reflects that. Just saying it would be helpful to know what people want to do with the Jeep.

 

[Oncorhynchus]

You're missing a pretty important detail about where the weight is. Specifically this is unsprung weight, which matters a whole lot more than sprung weight.
Literature on unsprung weight: https://eeuroparts.com/blog/unsprung-weight/

The rotational mass of the wheels and tires matters a ton more than what's in the car. Even my girlfriend who is not a gear head noticed the difference when we swapped her Sport S stock wheels/tires for the 33's that were on my Gladiator.

Specifically you will feel the weight in acceleration more than anything.
You may also feel the difference in turn-in due to the tires being taller and essentially more squishy bits between you and the road, especially if you are going from a highway tire to an all-terrain tire.
Braking I have not noticed any difference, but also didn't test any extremes luckily.

Now, if you are off-roading you will take this trade off for the larger tire. That said if you can get a lighter wheel and/or tire in the same size then it will be better on the road. How much better comes down to your sensitivity. I am fairly sensitive, but I'm also a sports car enthusiast (in addition to Jeeper).

When I hunted down 35's for my Gladiator I specifically picked one of the lighter weight options (which were the BFG All Terrain KO's). They weighed roughly the same as the Falken Wildpeak 33's, which helped that poor V6 lug around the heft of the Gladiator with larger tires.

this is why when my current 12.5” MT’s need replacement I am seriously considering getting a narrower AT rated tires with narrower wheels.

 

[AnnDee4444]

It's worth noting that there will be handling differences also.

In my opinion you want to target the least unsprung weight using items that have a minimum strength suited for your purpose. This includes things like:

• wheels/tires
• differential skids & covers
• axle tube thickness
• axle trusses
• aluminum vs. steel knuckles
• steering and arm linkage weight
• steering dampers

 

[Muskoka Minute]

It's a metric maybe, but it's not the only thing. I have seen numerous posts, some saying you want the lowest weight tire. Do you? You could run a thin hwy tire, but if you're going into the rocks remember to bring at least two spares. Buy what you need to do the job. The right tool for the job isn't always the shiniest, it isn't always the lowest weight, or the most fuel-efficient, or whatever. If you're concerned about weight, but not concerned about other things that matter as much or more, you're missing the forest for the trees.

What do you need? What do you want?
-the answer, always, is the most aggressive tire you can find regardless of weight or amount of noise, or how poorly they handle, ammirite?

So, don't buy the lowest weight tire. Buy the tire that provides the performance you need or want.

Agreed!
Either tire that I listed will do what I needed it to do for sure.
I have always run the BFGs but this time I would like to try the Micky's as I have never had them.
I guess I just want to know what issues may pop up by running a heavier tire.
Don't want to go with the heaviest one and find out that it cause all sorts of mechanical issues when the lighter one would do the job just fine.

I guess at the end of the day I'm just trying to find all the pros & cons of the extra weight.

 

[ecidiego]

Pay the money for lightweight wheels and try not to exceed the OEM wheel weights on our crappy axles.

 

[Muskoka Minute]

I guess in a perfect world I would like the Performance qualities of the Micky Thompson and the weight and "C" rating of the BFG.

As to my usage...
- mall crawler
- fire roads (gravel, wash board etc)
- woods/bush type trails
- not a ton of rock but some.
- cottage country construction sites.

Sponsored