Another change? 20" AT wheels no longer forged?

[lg3103]

Pretty sure the conversations regarding the 20s included the fact that the wheels were forged vs. machined. I know seems that in the configurator all wheels are machined including the 20s

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[electruck]

Pretty sure the conversations regarding the 20s included the fact that the wheels were forged vs. machined. I know seems that in the configurator all wheels are machined including the 20s

The wheels are either forged or cast. You seem to be confusing "cast" with "machined". Machining alters the surface shape/finish and has nothing to do with whether the material was forged or cast. Also, Rivian has indicated that their cast wheels use a higher end process known as flow-forming.

edit: I would not be surprised to learn that the 20s aren't forged but this isn't evidence of that.

 

[lg3103]

Thanks, guess I’ll delete this thread again

 

[cohall]

It still says that they’re forged right on the main page.

 

[Jamuso]

It still says that they’re forged right on the main page.

Asked a similar question to CS - this was the response

All three 20” wheel options are indeed forged! The 21” and 22” wheels are, on the other hand tilt cast and flow formed. To clarify, the 21” wheel is the “road” wheel, but this does is necessarily specific to the tire. Both the 21” and 22” wheels have all season tires as standard, while the 20” option comes with heavier-duty all terrain tires.

 

[brianmartin]

i think what we need are official wheel weights.
wheel weight has a massive effect on energy consumption.
I'd love to see what the 20" forged wheels weigh vs the cast 21 and 22s.
i can see people ordering the stock 21" road wheels to save money now, and upgrading to much lighter/better forged off road wheels later on. But that strongly depends on how light the OEM 20's are.

 

[Trekkie]

for the uneducated what's the difference between forged and cast?

 

[Friscorays]

Bummer about March 1, 2022.

 

[kneebuster]

wheel weight has a massive effect on energy consumption.

I'm not sure that's as big a deal with an EV as for an ICE. Yes, the added mass (actually moment of inertia) makes it harder to accelerate, but also helps it maintain speed. When braking the added inertia would also require more force, and wear your brakes faster, but with regenerative braking you'd capture much of that energy. The tires also tend to matter more than the wheels, but the same logic would apply.

 

[brianmartin]

I'm not sure that's as big a deal with an EV as for an ICE. Yes, the added mass (actually moment of inertia) makes it harder to accelerate, but also helps it maintain speed. When braking the added inertia would also require more force, and wear your brakes faster, but with regenerative braking you'd capture much of that energy. The tires also tend to matter more than the wheels, but the same logic would apply.

you are correct, however that's only true for constant speed driving. wheel weight matters more the more you are stopping and accelerating. Regen doesn't recapture all the energy, so wheel weight still matters. Look at the range hit for the 22s. it's 10 percent. that's all wheel weight.

 

[DuckTruck]

you are correct, however that's only true for constant speed driving. wheel weight matters more the more you are stopping and accelerating. Regen doesn't recapture all the energy, so wheel weight still matters. Look at the range hit for the 22s. it's 10 percent. that's all wheel weight.

While the wheel/tire weight certianly has a big effect on range, the tire structure and compound of the 22's likely has something to do with it, as well. It's a performance tire designed to maximize grip and handling versus the lower rolling resistance All-Season radials on the 21's, intended, in part, to maximize range.

I know all of the Pirellis are designed to minimize rolling resistance, but I think that was perhaps of more importance in the mission and design of the 21's.

 

[SeaGeo]

While the wheel/tire weight certianly has a big effect on range, the tire structure and compound of the 22's likely has something to do with it, as well. It's a performance tire designed to maximize grip and handling versus the lower rolling resistance All-Season radials on the 21's, intended, in part, to maximize range.

I know all of the Pirellis are designed to minimize rolling resistance, but I think that was perhaps of more importance in the mission and design of the 21's.

With the 3 mountain twin tunnel 8 snowflake rating or whatever the 20s have (too lazy to look up the snow rating) being able to reasonably avoid winter tires and get decent performance in cold and snow is a nice perk. No storing a second set of tires, no cost to swap them, etc.

 

[Zoidz]

Perhaps it would help to take a step back and consider practical issues in this forged vs cast wheel weight discussion. A cast wheel is roughly 25% - 30% heavier than forged or perhaps 10-12 lbs each, so approx. 50 lbs total added weight.

That's equal to 4 bags of groceries, or two heavily loaded backpacks, or a child, or 1/2 to 1/5 of an adult. What you carry in your vehicle each day is going to affect your mileage more than cast vs. forged wheel weight. If you are going to obsess over wheel weight, then you should also be planning your daily cargo like a C130 Loadmaster, lol.

As DuckTruck mentioned, it's by far the tires that affect the mileage the most, not the wheels.

 

[sub]

Just removing the plastic hubcaps from the Tesla 3/Y Aero wheels decreases range by 3-5%. Same tires, less weight, but significantly less range due to the loss of aerodynamic efficiency.

The design of Rivian's 21" wheels look like they are flatter and have less open area than Rivian's 20" and 22" designs. They look more like a Tesla aero hubcap. I agree that the tires are the biggest factor. But design of the 21" wheel is probably a bigger factor than the weight.

 

[BrayBay]

Just removing the plastic hubcaps from the Tesla 3/Y Aero wheels decreases range by 3-5%. Same tires, less weight, but significantly less range due to the loss of aerodynamic efficiency.

The design of Rivian's 21" wheels look like they are flatter and have less open area than Rivian's 20" and 22" designs. They look more like a Tesla aero hubcap. I agree that the tires are the biggest factor. But design of the 21" wheel is probably a bigger factor than the weight.

Thanks, this actually answered a thought I had in the EPA range thread. I'm hoping the 20" wheels get the aero inserts as an option going forward.

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