Gen 6 Camry... why does the steel wheel almost twice as much as the alloy wheel?

[bluemoose]

I just changed the steel wheels to alloy wheels on my Gen 6 Camry.

I held both wheels(without tires), one each hand.... why does the steel one feel like it's almost twice as heavy as the alloy one? (both 16")

Is the reduced weight helpful for anything?


THanks!

From this: -(Stock Camry)--->>>To this: (Toyota Accessory 16" wheel)

[DanEz_yoda]

Aluminum is much lighter than steel. I wouldn't look for much difference from the weight.

[touringcamry]

Steel weighs about twice that of aluminum alloys. Steel however, is less expensive, and bends better than aluminum. Cost is a major factor for car manufacturers to use steel wheels because they can just stamp the steel wheel instead of casting it in a mold. Flex can be an advantage if you bend a rim because steel is likely to crack when bent back. Aluminum alloy is more rigid and might crack if you try to fix a bent rim. With OEM size though, you are unlikely to bend a rim from a Camry unless you hit a monster pothole, at which point you probably have to look at fixing alignment and suspension also.

The reduced weight reduces rotational inertia. Inertia is the tendency for an object in motion to want to stay that way. Acceleration and braking might improve slightly due to the reduce rotational inertia.

Do you still have the wheels by themselves? I'm wondering if you could get the weight of the wheels on a bathroom scale or something like that. YOu might have to weigh yourself with the wheel because bathroom scales might not be calibrated to weigh lighter objects like wheels.

[kevintomb]

Yes it makes a big difference....rotational mass is lower for slightly better braking and acceleration, plus overall weight is down SEVERAL pounds for less mass overall to haul, and the BIGGEST BENEFIT.....UNSPRUNG weight is down a huge amount, so suspension can react much quicker and ride will be somewhat better......Imagine your car with huge 300 lb tractor tires........the ratio of cars weight compared to what is moving suspension wise would be horrible. With lightweight tires and wheels the ratio is MUCH better....thats part of the reason trucks dont ride great and the wheel skip and bounce when they encounter roads with potholes and ripply surfaces....