Has anyone here bought and tested (much) lighter wheels yet on the Sixpack Charger yet?

[Reggie Avalon4]

Hello,

I've been going down the rabbit hole on getting some proper forged monoblock 20" wheels for my car (26 Scat Pack with the Blacktop wheels). There aren't a tremendous amount of options like the last gen cars but I've found a few places that I can get properly fitting wheels that are 8-10 lbs lighter than factory but look quite stock (I like the stock wheels). My thesis - which I don't think is controversial - is that losing ~40lbs of unsprung weight will make the car faster and more responsive. The question is whether the benefits are marginal or meaningful.

Has anyone here in the Sixpack community done this and what are your results? Given the cost of this upgrade I was hoping to hear some good stories lol.

 

[baabootoo165]

Are many places that even make these yet? My Trackhawk wheels, which fit fine, are 33# and are made by Voxx. I think traction will always be the limiting factor for acceleration.

 

[Reggie Avalon4]

Are many places that even make these yet? My Trackhawk wheels, which fit fine, are 33# and are made by Voxx. I think traction will always be the limiting factor for acceleration.

You can get monoblock forged wheels that are effectively machined to order that will fit our cars. Other companies will do specific fitment for a small fee from off the shelf blanks. These would be 22-24lbs. With AWD, I'm not concerned about traction - especially anywhere near stock power - but I am attracted to losing 8-10lbs per corner.

 

[baabootoo165]

Ok

 

[Ares4154]

My thesis - which I don't think is controversial - is that losing ~40lbs of unsprung weight will make the car faster and more responsive. The question is whether the benefits are marginal or meaningful.

I don't know of anyone who has done this on our cars and specifically tested it on its own, but YouTuber Rob Dahm went pretty crazy getting smaller brakes and fitting lighter 16" drag wheels so he could launch faster.
Shedding weight from the wheels is always going to be a good call from a physics standpoint moreso than losing weight from anywhere else on the car. That weight needs to spin, and the further out it is from the center (like our massive 20" wheels) it acts like a lever and causes more resistance for the engine to overcome. Lighter wheels generally means faster launch, faster braking, higher top speeds, and better cornering due to reduced "gyroscopic rigidity." Though the car may not straighten itself out after a turn as aggressively depending on how heavy the wheels were and how much weight was reduced.

That said, don't expect massive gains from lighter wheels without weighing the stock wheels first. I've been told the stock wheels are relatively lightweight for their size and to get anything lighter is going to be VERY expensive. Also, going smaller isn't a practical option since the brakes are so massive.