Anyone have any advice for squeezing out mpgs with lighter wheels and tires? Im looking to buy some light wheels for my 2013 base. Im thinking about staying with 15" wheels. Im in it for mpgs. I dont care about looks. Point me in some directions please and thank you.

 

you not only want light but you want narrow too...

 

Thats great advice i never even thought of that. im assuming narrow would be lighter? should i look for wheels more narrow than stock or the same? stock seems pretty narrow.

 

See my response in your other thread.

 

narrower is lighter, but it also cuts down on rolling and wind resistance...

 

High mpg ≠ comfy ride.

Low rolling resistance is hard and skinny. Comfy is soft and squishy.

 

You can start with a set of pie plate rims from the Canadian LX model. They will bolt right on, light, aero, skinny. There are limited tire choices, just get one with high mileage rating and pump them to Honda spec, or slightly higher. Do a search, there are many discussions. Here is one link.

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/2nd-...er-ride-2.html

 

Fit Charlie is right on.

Look for a rim thats around 14 pounds and under I'd say. Stay with 15s and same 6.5" width. Just pump your tires up to 34-35 PSI. It will be a little harsher but you'll get better fuel mileage. You can't get both a comfy ride a great mileage, you'll have to sacrifice somewhere.

 

understood. thank you. i said comfy ride referring to staying with a smaller rim.

 

thanks. i said comfy ride earlier referring to a smaller rim. honestly i would sacrifice anything to squeeze out mpgs. mgp is the goal.

 

Max sidewall pressure is the first mod. Buying new wheels and tires may get you a slightly higher number, but it won't pay for itself for a long time. Airing up the tires to the max rating on the sidewall is free and will noticeably reduce rolling resistance.

When the time comes to buy tires, look for LRRs and think about upsizing. Tweaking the outer diameter a bit that way will give you slightly longer legs: somewhat fewer revolutions per mile. This won't be a pure benefit because the larger tires will weigh more and depending on your driving style won't help, yadda yadda yadda.

 

Agreed. I'm due for new tires, and I'm considering a few. Goodyear Fuelmax in 195/55/16 is one. I had a good experience with them on my Odyssey, adding about 1 mpg (out of 20, so 5%). It's ever so slightly oversize compared to the stock 185/55, which will lower highway rpm by a miniscule 50, but they're not available in stock size. Be willing to look a little bigger or smaller when you're shopping.

Some other good ones, haven't checked sizes:
Continental PureContact
Michelin Energy Saver
Michelin Defender (more traction but less mpg than the ES above)
Bridgestone Ecopia

 

Read this article in Honda Tuning a few months back when they tested some LRR tires, the results are suprising:

Falken Ziex ZE-914 Tires - Honda Tuning Magazine

 

We have the Ecopia 422s' for the '11 base FIT w/ a 5 speed auto . They're wearing very well and car handles fine . We got them for under $60 each and free mount / balance . Went through G.M.. Keep them at 33.5 > 35 p.s.i..

 

Helpful tip from a parts guy: Stay away from Continental. You can look up a replacement tire and get three or more part numbers in the same size with the exact same description, speed rating, etc. When you need to replace one tire and the garage can come up with three or four choices, they're not going to order all of them and sell you the one that's an exact match. They'll sell you what they can get the quickest and maybe someday you'll notice that you've got an oddball.

 

Rays Eco Drive wheels.... Best wheel for mpg

 

The lighter the wheel and tire the better mpg assuming you don't go for less tire diameter. Tire weight counts more than wheels because teir weight is further from the axle and thus the radius will be more for torque, that is the effoprt the engine has to put out to rotate the wheel/tire combination.Our guy here who frets about mpg has settled on 175/65x15 tires on 10 pound wheels. He got tires from tirerack I think and the lightest wheels he could find on tireracks specs for wheels and tires, He thinks nothing of getting 40 mpg but then he's slow as ... Well, he's slow. And he runs 45 psi tire pressures, maybe 50.