Wheels & Tires

[CheeseheadEarl]

Yes, all so, the front tires will be narrower than the one's you see on the car now. Engineering dictates the foot print of the rear tire be a certain percentage of the two front tires combined. That is why the rear tire will be bigger than the two front.

I don't see the need for a wider rear. Maybe my engineering skills are weak (PhD in Applied Hillbilly Engineerin, Duct Tape U), but with no power going to the rear, and a light load, even less during braking due to weight transfer; they should be fine being the same size.

Too wide is just unneeded drag unless you have the down force to plant it to the road.

 

[Buddy Hatfield]

I think, I will leave all that up to the engineers. I'm sure they got the trier thing taken care of. I was just wanting to know the size!!!

 

[Lil4X]

One concern I hadn't thought of: Streets in our neighborhood, thanks to shifting soil and over 80 years of re-surfacing, develop deep cracks along the length of the roadbed. If neglected (a given) by the city, these cracks can open up to 4-5" in width, making the dangerous for bicyclists - and eventually riders of many motorcycles. Drop a narrow wheel in that crack and if you don't rip up the sidewall, you've lost control, and you're probably going over the handlebars. I'm sure this kind of road condition isn't just limited to my street, and if automakers, including Elio, trim the width of tires in the quest for reduced rolling resistance, we could have another route to a one-car accident waiting out there for us.

 

[Buddy Hatfield]

One concern I hadn't thought of: Streets in our neighborhood, thanks to shifting soil and over 80 years of re-surfacing, develop deep cracks along the length of the roadbed. If neglected (a given) by the city, these cracks can open up to 4-5" in width, making the dangerous for bicyclists - and eventually riders of many motorcycles. Drop a narrow wheel in that crack and if you don't rip up the sidewall, you've lost control, and you're probably going over the handlebars. I'm sure this kind of road condition isn't just limited to my street, and if automakers, including Elio, trim the width of tires in the quest for reduced rolling resistance, we could have another route to a one-car accident waiting out there for us.

Wow, I through we had bad roads in Oklahoma but nothing like that. I think I would be getting a hold of the city manger and having a talk the them. That is a public hazard and needs to be fix.

 

[olddog1946]

A 5x4.75 hub is WAY overkill for a car this light as much as I'd like the wheel options.(already have a few sets that would work actually) In Nashville the P4's hub was either a 4x100 or 4x108(didn't have anything but a plastic ruler to measure with b/c my micrometer was at home on the workbench.

Anyway here's a pic of the P4's rear lug nuts.

And where the hub assembly mounts

Going any larger with the hub would also likely mean, an extra stud and lug nut, a larger rotor, larger than necessary bearings, as well as all the associated unsprung weight.


That said, having 4x100 or 4x108 hubs is fine with me. There are some great adaptors on the market these days for adapting overlapping lug patterns. I actually run one of my 5x120 sets of wheels on a 4x100 car on the track b/c 5x120 wheels are easier to find in wide widths.

You are right about 5 x 4.75 being over kill,, just mentioned it because I am really a chevy guy and have lots of gm wheels, not so many 4 lug,,actually do have 2 4x108mm mags..

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

Tire size is dictated by weight, and traction. In this case, traction for the engine to ground are the front wheels, which will take 75-90% of the stopping force. Having the rear wheel the same size is actually overkill, but should (might) remain due to parts count and acquisition costs.

 

[Sam]

Wow, I through we had bad roads in Oklahoma but nothing like that. I think I would be getting a hold of the city manger and having a talk the them. That is a public hazard and needs to be fix.

Hi Buddy. I live in Miami and we do have bad roads in Oklahoma. I've noticed how the roads get worse the further you go from OKC. Our City "Leaders" pushed through a great sales tax hike to pay for fixing our city streets. Been about 3 years ago. Ain't much happened.

 

[eddie66]

And something else to think about with the Elio, is when you center the front wheels over a pothole to avoid hitting it, you are now going to hit it with the rear wheel. Probably will take some getting used to.

 

[outsydthebox]

And something else to think about with the Elio, is when you center the front wheels over a pothole to avoid hitting it, you are now going to hit it with the rear wheel. Probably will take some getting used to.

Someone addressed this a while back. IIRC, there is about 2 feet between the inside of the front wheel and the side of the back wheel. So it could still be a pretty big hole and not be an issue. Also, from my experience, most potholes occur in either the right track or the left. Not in the middle. So just a little correction would avoid it with the front, and still avoid it with the rear.

 

[Joshua Caldwell]

That would make the most sense, having the same size for all 3 tires. That way they only have to buy 1 size from their supplier. Greater quantity = bigger discount for them.

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