Righty..

as most of you know, ive got a nice set of 17" Kahn RSRs on my furby vRS.. when i put them on i noticed a bit of a drop in mpg but i put it down to my driving on the better tyres

Anyway.. after switching back to the 16" OEM tyres ive noticed a few things:

1) the RSRs are WAY heavier than the OE ones..

2) fuel economy has gone up by at least 10mpg, my usual trek home from work on the RSRs is usually 45mpg at a steady 50-70mph, today on the 16s i got 54mpg.. and my mph was close to 3 figures, so i was wellying it a bit more.

3) performance seemed more perky, better accelleration (tho less grip - wheelspin in 3rd)

4) these wheels are alot more comfortable and much quieter, the car seems better balanced.

i cant really comment on the actual handling performance of them as its not a fair comparison.. michelins vs Toyo-R tyres.

now all of the above are due to the weight of the wheels.. i have no idea how the RSRs are in relation to the octavia 17" wheels or any other aftermarket one... but just something to bear in mind....

this was a public service announcement courtesey of Neo_VR

Discuss.....

I seem to recall Jason (Devonutopia) commenting that bigger wheels had a significant effect on fuel economy and on performance too.

I seem to recall Desmond (Delcac) commenting that bigger wheels had a significant effect on handling due to the more flexible sidewalls (for a same tyre).

Not really suprised by any of the above.

Trying to make yourself feel better by having a standard looking car Colin? He He He

Has that 4x4 suspension kit dropped yet?

You can get really light wheels (and strong ones if you like driving over potholes) but sadly Colin they aint cheap. Have a look at Speedline and O.Z, I think they are usually lighter.

Lol.. yep, its dropped, but the car looks rubbish back on OE wheels.

it doesnt look as low as yours due to the RSRs not having the extra offset that your wheels have to fill the arches

I have found that I have lost some performance and economy with the 17's, but I'm afraid looks are slightly more important. I know, I'm a tart!

I think the standard wheels look good, and I would not change them because I knew all of the above is EXACTLY what would happen. They [the manufacturer] tend to choose their wheels for a good reason IMO.