4 ms·

Better aerodynamics and lower rolling resistance which leads to a higher range for the vehicle. Bigger wheels are generally a stupid idea from a performance st

by pg_bot 4y ago

Better aerodynamics and lower rolling resistance which leads to a higher range for the vehicle. Bigger wheels are generally a stupid idea from a performance standpoint. Smaller tires have better ride quality, cause less pothole damage, and are cheaper than larger ones. Big tires just look cool.

ivanhoe 4y ago
It's not about looking cool, it's about not all of us leaving in the same part of the world. Living in the center of Belgrade, Serbia like I do means I have to deal with many potholes, obstacles and generally badly maintained roads, parking spots located on sidewalks that are just unaccessible with low-riding small-tires cars - but you still need a compact car because of lot of traffic and little parking space. And beside I'm not talking of some crazy huge humvee style tires, I just need normal 15" wheels on a car.
- pg_bot 4y ago
  Larger diameter tires won't necessarily help with potholes or badly maintained roads. All things else being similar, a tire that has bigger sidewalls will absorb the impact of driving over a pothole better than one with a smaller profile. So find a small tire with big sidewalls and you should be better off.
  - lost_tourist 4y ago
    Insufficient clearance above a pothole absolutely will destroy one of these things. It depends on infrastructure as well.
  - lelanthran 4y ago
    > Larger diameter tires won't necessarily help with potholes or badly maintained roads. It necessarily does. Why are you even arguing this point? There's plenty of references that bigger wheels handle the same size obstruction (which includes potholes) much better.
    - pg_bot 4y ago
      Tires are more complicated than a single variable. A large diameter tire with a small sidewall does not necessarily perform better than a smaller diameter tire with a large sidewall. The problem with the word "big" is where the tire is big matters and that seems to have been lost in translation.
lelanthran 4y ago
> Big tires just look cool. Incorrect. They have advantages other than "looking cool"; shorter braking distance, more resilience to potholes, ruts and pebbles on the road, much better ride quality on imperfect roads, etc.

by pg_bot 4y ago

ivanhoe 4y ago

It's not about looking cool, it's about not all of us leaving in the same part of the world. Living in the center of Belgrade, Serbia like I do means I have to deal with many potholes, obstacles and generally badly maintained roads, parking spots located on sidewalks that are just unaccessible with low-riding small-tires cars - but you still need a compact car because of lot of traffic and little parking space. And beside I'm not talking of some crazy huge humvee style tires, I just need normal 15" wheels on a car.

pg_bot 4y ago
Larger diameter tires won't necessarily help with potholes or badly maintained roads. All things else being similar, a tire that has bigger sidewalls will absorb the impact of driving over a pothole better than one with a smaller profile. So find a small tire with big sidewalls and you should be better off.
- lost_tourist 4y ago
  Insufficient clearance above a pothole absolutely will destroy one of these things. It depends on infrastructure as well.
- lelanthran 4y ago
  > Larger diameter tires won't necessarily help with potholes or badly maintained roads. It necessarily does. Why are you even arguing this point? There's plenty of references that bigger wheels handle the same size obstruction (which includes potholes) much better.
  - pg_bot 4y ago
    Tires are more complicated than a single variable. A large diameter tire with a small sidewall does not necessarily perform better than a smaller diameter tire with a large sidewall. The problem with the word "big" is where the tire is big matters and that seems to have been lost in translation.

lelanthran 4y ago

> Big tires just look cool. Incorrect. They have advantages other than "looking cool"; shorter braking distance, more resilience to potholes, ruts and pebbles on the road, much better ride quality on imperfect roads, etc.