Buying new wheels, thinking about weight

the 10 years prior to owning my truck I was a european car guy (Volvo primarily) and when buying wheels I always looked for the strongest wheels at the lowest weight for my applications. As I get ready to do a new set of wheels on my truck, I'm starting to think a little differently.

I'm primarily looking at Method 314s, but of all wheels I'm considering they seem to be the heaviest at 32.8lbs. I'm also considering the 17" TRD Pro SEMA wheels, but don't know if I want a 7" wide wheel.

Does anyone have any comments on inherent issues with going with a heavier wheel on a truck application? I don't know that efficiency is truly going to play a role as I'm not going for off the line acceleration, and I also will not be going larger than a 265 / 75 / 17, at least anytime soon. Also, at that tire size is there any benefit to a 8.5" wide wheel vs just running a 17x7 like the SEMA wheels?

Thanks!

 

You will hear me go on ad nauseum about this, especially since, as of this morning, I'm the proud owner of a set of 17 x7 TRD Pro wheels (25lbs) shod in 255/75/17 Cooper AT3 4s (39lbs). The lightest, most capable, and best reviewed tire/wheel combo I could find, which sits ~3lbs lighter on each foot than stock (2020 Sport DC, Toyo A30's). All that with an upgrade to a 32" tire that sits perfectly on a native Toyota 7 inch rim. Just love the way it looks and drives (so far.)

At 3lbs a wheel x 4 and the x 4 to account for rotational vs static weight, I'm essentially losing 50lbs over stock weight. Conversely, a set of 32" KO2's in E, would be the equivalent of adding 200lbs to the truck.

Basically, I'm trying to minimize stress on my vehicle (which I feel isn't really designed to run E's), improve range (I don't think enough people talk about this), improve MPG's, and minimize suffering from an overly stiff ride. This is an overland build in progress btw.

So unless you like to wheel through knee deep shards of broken obsidian, I see no reason to go heavy.

 

God damn you make a lot of great points...

 

Save up some serious cash... grab a set of Volk TE-37’s... maybe even an extra for your spare, if you feel like being the big dog on the block... and call it a day. Ask anyone, in any car/truck circle and they’ll all agree that Volk is “it”! Then you can on slap a set of BFG’s...done.

 

It's definitely worth considering wheel and tire weight, especially if you travel a lot with your rig. 32.8# is heavy AF! Assuming they are 17's.

 

Yeah 17x8.5 @ 32.8lbs and I wanted a reason to think that was a good idea but the more I think about it the less I want to. I'm definitely hoping to have good aesthetics but I won't sacrifice performance to get it.

I'd love a set of Volks but IMO I'd rather use the extra funds on other modifications.

 

I've been looking at this too, and landed on the exact same tire/wheel combo. I have a whole spreadsheet of tire weights and that AT3 4S beats the others by a few pounds. Any idea on the durability of them offroad?

 

This is the key question. If you cruise through all 80 pages of this...
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/cooper-discoverer-a-t3-megathread.546259/

...you will find that people who run these tires offroad have nothing but good things to say. But then you have your doubters who insist on E rated or at the very least, SL (and the cooper discoverers have all three, but the 4s remains the best allrounder imho).

Generally speaking, at Tacomaworld, you have the opinions of those running the gear you are asking abut, and then the opinion of those who can't imagine that you can offroad in anything but an E-rated tire. That's a problem of imagination I would say. Especially after watching this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2JoVisyIOQ

 

And just so you have a visual:

 

Thats pretty much what I had found too, same video even. I think E's are overkill as well, especially for the weekender type like me. Thanks for the thorough reply!

 

I weighed the stock 2021 16" TRD offroad wheels and factory Goodyear Wrangler Adventures at 60lbs (25lbs for the wheels and 35lbs for the tires). The tires were relatively light for their size. Based on those weights your set up should be 4lbs more than the stock combo if you have a TRD offroad with factory 16" wheels. If you have the Sport with 17" wheels, these weights may not apply.

I installed Michelin Defenders in a 265/75-16 size on my Koenig 16x8 zero offset Countersteers (first production from back in 2009/10). The combo weighed 4 lbs less than my stock set up of 60lbs.
39lbs tires / 17 lbs wheels =56 lbs total
This combo is 8 lbs less than your combo at 64 lbs.

@TacoTimo
For the OP, I believe that FN has a 17x8 wheel (six shooter) that is ~21lbs which might be worth checking out if you prefer a light wheel/tire assembly in 17" size.
I'd also agree that some of the heavier wheels, even those with fake bead-locks, and E rated tires certainly look good but I'd plan on the cost to re-gear and to improve the dampeners so they do more than just look good. Last thing you want is a "all show-no go" Taco.

I've spent a number of years racing sports cars in SCCA events, dirt motos, street motos and pedal bikes competitively, where by all these endeavors required conscientious decisions with regard to rotational weight (impact on acceleration, braking and suspension performance). For a lower torque over-geared Tacoma V6, you will notice tire diameter increases, increased tire weights along with more wheel weight. I've noticed that when you go considerably heavier with your wheel/tire assembly you will require increased compression/rebound on your suspension dampeners to control the extra weight. It may not bother you and many seem just fine with heavier assemblies. Your money so buy what makes you happy, not what someone else likes.

Took the old school Countersteers off my old 2006 4 banger and put them on the new 2021 with larger 31.6" tires. I'd be willing to bet I've had that 4 banger as pictured offroad in more places in Colorado and Utah than 75% of those that have e rated tires without any problems what so ever aired down to 14 psi. Last trip I made last fall was over 1000 miles of offroad in CO and UT.





Advan also makes wheels that will fit Tacomas

Here is an example of a similar styled 17x8.5 wheel at 21 lbs but it doesn't come cheap. There are other Advans available




Rays also has wheels that fit Tacomas, but again they don't come cheap

 

As I noted in my post *cough* stock for me is a 2020 Sport DC (i.e. 17 inch wheel) so I stand by my calculation.

 

So your 2020 sport OEM wheels and stock tires weight 67 lbs? Are you positive about that weight? Toyo A30 in stock 17" size are speced at 36lbs. That would mean your stock 17" wheels would have to weigh 31 lbs?

and stock TRD offroad 16" wheels/tires weigh 60 lbs.

Now imagine how good wheels/tires that weigh 56lbs feel, 8 lbs less per assembly than your new set up at 64 lbs *cough*.

 

33 lb wheels are absolute pigs and will cripple your fuel economy. I would much rather get light wheels and spend the weight on heavy durable tires than the other way around.

FN/Koenig makes some light wheels. My countersteers are 18 lbs and stronger than OEM. Also cheap. You can put light tires on them and get a boost in fuel economy and braking/acceleration over stock or put on big heavy mud tires on and mitigate the performance penalty while getting the off road benefits.

 

My current 20s and ko2’s are 85lbs. The previous wheels the package was 92 lbs a corner. I’ll be switching to something lighter once I sell off some old car parts

 

I stand corrected - my sport tires and rims on the scale, weigh almost exactly the same as the specs on the new TRD 17x7/Cooper AT3 4s combo. So, with apologies for coughing, I believe we are otherwise on the same page re the utility of lighter, non-E set-ups. While I may have imagined my 50lb bonus, I am most definitely not suffering from 200lbs extra in KO2 bulk (rotational mass penalties included).

 

The Discoverer 4S is SL rated. I think you meant to say those folks insist on E or at least LT/C. The Discoverer is available in SL, LT, and XLT versions. SL are the lightest version.

 

After some thinking and researching, I think I'm convinced to go light. I already wanted to keep the tire size under 32" just for daily use and I think I'm going to go with Toyo OC AT3 in 265/70/17 and just need to decide between TRD Pro 17s and Method 316s. The 316s weight out at 24.7lb a piece which is great in my book, and the Toyo's are only 41lbs. A bit heavier than the Cooper but I've been wanting to try them out so a bit of compromise.

Anyone have thoughts on wheel width? Obviously I'm not going super wide so not sure if I need the 8.5" wide wheel of the Methods, but I do prefer the 0 offset they provide as opposed to the TRD Pro wheels.

 

That is the exact tire I would install for a Baja winter trip or a summer trip in Alaska.

If you check the Toyo site you will find that the black wall in that size is speced at 39lbs.

https://www.toyotires.com/product/open-country-at3

 

I am based out of Phoenix Arizona area, but I frequently head up into the mountains. It sounds like that tire choice would be pretty excellent for the majority of my needs. I have heard they are decent in the snow though, which my truck will occasionally see.

Thanks for sharing that weight comparison though. Gets me even closer to the AT3 4S!