So on my W212 E63, the stock 19" Forged wheels weigh 9kg for the fronts and 11kg for the rear - this is without tyres mounted. This equates to around 20 and 24lbs respectively.

Right, now I weighed a set of wheels that I had in my possession from eBay (yeah, don't start...) which are essentially the same as what you guys in the USA would have as Euro 63 RS wheels from Monarch Wheels. Those weighed in at around 5kg for the front and...6kg for the rear (I might be ever so slightly wrong on that).

Now yes, those wheels are cheap wheels prone to getting buckled by potholes etc, but they were also supremely light and when I mounted them to the car, it instantly felt beautifully to drive (light steering, acceleration etc)

Now...looking online...I find that expensive 'lightweight' wheels (y'know the ones that are monoblock and several thousand dollars to buy like from HRE etc) tend to weigh in the same kind of region as the stock forged wheels.

So my question is...am I being unrealistic, hoping to find quality wheels much lighter than the stock 19" wheels? I couldn't justify spending thousands on a set of 'performance' wheels that are going to weigh around the same as the stock wheels. At the same time, is it unrealistic to expect to find quality wheels that will weigh the same as the eBay Taiwan wheels? FWIW the reason I did not keep those wheels was because while they looked ok on my previous W211 E55...they don't really work so well on the W212 E63 IMO.

 

Well anyone can make a cheap cast wheel that could weigh significantly less than the OEM. as far as the OEM wheels you have and the weights for those 19s, that's not bad for a OEM 19".


What the cheap wheel manufacturers do not have is the R&D behind them. Yoy said it yourself, those wheels are prone to buckling, so you don't really trust them anyway. How long will that cheap wheel last you before it cracks, bends, etc. Companies such as HRE, Volk, BBS, Forgeline have racing heritage behind them. Tons of R&D behind their wheels to be as light, yet as strong as possible. That is what you are paying for, the name and the cost it took to get to that wheel, the testing, the road races, etc. Now I would not spend $5k and over for wheels, that's just not cost effective for me and I understand what you are saying. This is why other companies that do not have the racing lineage behind them for a tried and true wheel like ADV 1, 360 forged, Nutek, but charge well into the 6k plus range for their wheels, its absurd. in 19" some of the lightest forged monoblocks you will find are in the 18lbs range for the front and the rears might push 19lbs, just under 20 maybe (you do the conversion to Kilos).


If you truly want lighter than that, you got magnesium and carbon fiber but who wants to spend that $$ for that.

 

Those weights equate to 11 pounds and 13 pounds. That seems unbelievably light. Can you possibly recheck them for us?

 

A set of light wheels is definitely noticed and nice.

As has been mentioned on this site (and most others) you can only have two of the following:

Light / strong / cheap

I have a set of Volks on my RX-7, they are light and strong, and definitely not cheap. But at the relatively 'small' diameter of 17 inches, a 16-17 lb wheel is possible. FWIW the stock 16 inch wheels were 14 lbs-16 lbs (there were 2 versions for the early 3rd generation model)


As you start getting into larger (18/19/20) and wider wheels (to accommodate 265/275/285 + width) (what most people seem to want) a weight of around 19-20 lbs is not too shabby.

I personally want a wheel that will not crack a spoke if I hit a pothole, and will not give me a reason to not attack a corner on a track.

I agree that you don't always get what you pay for (meaning some wheels you over pay), but to get a good quality wheel that is light will cost $$$.

 

See...I'm with you guys and I do agree with the whole fast/cheap/reliable methodology....I really do. It's just that my perception of 'light' has been skewed somewhat by the Taiwan wheels.

@zcct04 yes i'm pretty certain that the weight above is accurate and if i'm wrong, it's by a lb or two, nothing more.

Going back to light/strong/cheap...a friend had the Volk LMGT4 rims on his 350Z in 19 x wide fitment (lol they we're probably 10J) and WITH tyres, they were about as light to pick up as my Volk TE37 rims in 16 x 8J, granted the TE37's had beefy tyres on them (225/50/16). Furthermore, if I take the tyre off my TE37 (yes I know they're tiny wheels) wheels, they are quite literally light enough for me to pick up by fingers and in the sub 3kg weight. Now...i'm not saying that the LMGT4 rims are going to be that light...surely it was a combination of the tyre compound and size overall, but if those can weigh a similar amount to my 16" (already very light) rims, then why are my 19" AMG wheels so much heavier?

I guess my entire argument above falls totally flat if someone says "that's because the LMGT4 wheels are magnesium" but if that's the case, it almost makes me want to buy some cheap Taiwan wheels to get a similar level of weight saving but without the cost of going for magnesium. I'd hate to imagine the AMG tax that i'd have to pay for something like that...



FWIW I ran the Euro 63 RS wheels in 19" size on my E55 for over 18 months and didn't have any problems with pot holes etc, despite living in rubbish London where the roads are cracked and broken everywhere. Oh and I also drive like a loony on bumpy country roads and they held up ok there. Maybe I got lucky, but I guess they can't all be that bad in terms of quality. Hmm..now to find a design that I'm happy with. Or not.

 

There is no debate for me here. Either you only street drive your car and you don't really care about quality/performance and you go cheap wheels for the look of it. Either you care about quality/performance or are interested in tracking your car then you go with reputable manufacturer.
That is as simple as that IMO.

 

OP don't bother with extremely light rims, i have a set of 20inch vorsteiner that weigh next to nothing, 17 lbs front and 19 lbs rear ..they were expensive as hell too ..10k+ ..and guess what? they now rot in my garage because the barrels keep cracking and aren't replaceable.

Been rocking a cheap $2k set of cast rims..beaten them up tons and hit some big potholes and 0 issues, yeah they weight more but screw it..having to get barrels welded all the time is such a pain in the a$$

Also guys any rim will bend/crack ..infact I bet alotta dudes are rollin around with hair line cracks on the back of the barrels and don't even realize it, because you don't notice until its too late

 

That settles that then.

I might just buy some cheap but nice looking wheels for use this year and then sell them in the autumn, hopefully while still in mint condition.

Ideally I'd have some baller Rennen 3pc wheels, but my car is heavy and slow enough as it is and I don't want to completely ruin the performance.

 

22+ LBS is medium weight to be honest.

I had 19" Volk RE30's on my M3 and the feeling before and after installing the wheels was night and day.

Light wheels TOTALLY make a huge difference in driving dynamics. Quite frankly, they are totally worth the money.

 

Reduction in unsprung weight has the most noticeable effects on any vehicles performance. Less weight on wheels / Tires / Brake rotors immensely change the driving characteristics of the vehicle.


Are you sure about your measurements? your aftermarket wheels seem awfully light for a cast wheel.

 

I doubt your measurements are correct for the cast wheel.

I usually go by, if the wheel is lighter than it's diameter, then it's light.

19 Pounds for a 19" Wheel, 18 Pounds for an 18", etc.

 

Near enough 100% about my measurements guys... this is the wheel in question (granted it's a google images pic)



For what it's worth, it did feel so light and brittle and wallowy, that I'm sure if I used a crowbar, I could easily dent the wheel.

Actually now that it comes to mind...on my set of these wheels with my old E55, the tyre shop guy had a hard time getting the tyre on and used his crowbar...he literally dented the rear lip/dish from the inside and then tried to blame it on my wheel being cheap I mean...he was right...but damn.

I wish I took a pic now. The thought did come across my mind, but my hands were dirty and I didn't want to make my phone dirty with wheel dirt etc

 

Lightness is of significant importance but where you find lightness may not necessarily mean that quality and structural durability are coming along for the ride as well. What makes an excellent wheel is when you can blend a wheel that has the durability and structural rigidity, with a wheel that is light, but also looks great too.

Like a lot of members on this forum most consider wheels an investment in performance and style. With any investment you want to make sure that it's protected, and what I'm leading to is that the wheels that you see that may be very lightweight, might not have the structural rigidity that is required for the abuses of every day driving, or track usage. Now does this mean that if you want a light and structurally durable wheel that it will cost more? Typically yes, that's not uncommon to see. Materials cost more (better quality usually comes with a higher price of course), then there is more machining involved to make the wheel lighter, and more intricate cuts to find creative ways of literally shaving off more weight, and the machines that are required to make those particular cuts are not cheap.

If you want wheels that will last a lifetime, which is the exact reason all of our wheels that we make come with a lifetime structural warranty, Forged is the way to go but you need to make sure that you trust the company in which you are investing your hard earned dollars.