[SocalBM]

What do you mean: "550 owners, I feel your pain" I do 50/50 highway and city, hit 120+ twice a day just to get it out of my system and average over 21mpg or better every fill up (which I calculate on my own, not with the car's systems).

This whole wheel weight thing isn't going to drastically help you either, not how it works. One of your biggest fuel killers is AWD.

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by The X Men

You are talking about unsprung weight vs fuel efficiency, your real life experience with lighter wheels prove that there is some flaws to those numbers.

I don't think so. If i put back the OEM 19"s with run flats, i will get maybe 17mpg overall.

Originally Posted by AVIMAX

hyperboost, you asked about the diesel… my 2014 535xd is averaging 23mpg (10.2 l/100km) so far over 6,500kms which is about 30% increase compared to my 2011 535xi which averaged 17mpg (13.7 l/100km) for mostly city driving. On the highway I can achieve 39mpg (6.0 l/100km), the best I could ever do with my 535xi was 30mpg (7.8 l/100km), but it was usually a bit lower than that more like 26mpg (9.0 l/100km) on the highway. I'm happy with the improvement in fuel efficiency and very happy with the extra 116 lb/ft of torque. Also diesel is about $0.10 cheaper than premium unleaded, not a big deal, but factor in the efficiency and the fuel cost and it is not negligible.

great to know. I am also wondering how well the car drives when it's cold. Usually takes longer for them to warm up and you have to take it easy when it's cold.

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by SocalBM

What do you mean: "550 owners, I feel your pain" I do 50/50 highway and city, hit 120+ twice a day just to get it out of my system and average over 21mpg or better every fill up (which I calculate on my own, not with the car's systems).

This whole wheel weight thing isn't going to drastically help you either, not how it works. One of your biggest fuel killers is AWD.

I am glad you are doing well with your 550. those Pre LCI 550s get much worse number than the LCI 550s. My friends 2011 550gt RWD gets about 13-15 with 70% city and 30% highway; but it is a heavier and bigger car.

I was thinking about getting a 550 when I was shopping but it's not green to do that. I drive about 20K a year.

[The X Men]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

I don't think so. If i put back the OEM 19"s with run flats, i will get maybe 17mpg overall.

You are not going to increase your gas mileage by 20% just by going with lighter wheels.

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by The X Men

You are not going to increase your gas mileage by 20% just by going with lighter wheels.

o yea? where did you get that notion?

[skalberti]

2014 535i RWD 2700 miles on the clock. Comfort mode, no mods, a little heavy pedal now and again. I got 4 wheels and tires non RFT and not sure of the weight. Getting 19-20mpg in town. 28mpg driving 80mph on the highway. Make sure your using a good tier 1 gas. I always run 93 octane. Those two things will make a difference in your mpg.

[SonicEndeavor]

Originally Posted by The X Men

You are not going to increase your gas mileage by 20% just by going with lighter wheels.

Yeah, not even close to 20%. Tire Rack did a test on a 3 series that showed dropping wheel weight by 10 pounds resulted in a 2% increase in MPG, which in their case was less than a half mile per gallon.

[kube]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

how is the diesel 5er doing in the cold? I am thinking about potential diesel model as well.

I've had the car since mid-November -- we've had some below zero days in NY and it's had no issues starting or running -- even when we had the -10 spell (the car was in my unheated garage overnight). There have been a few times when in single digits I get a message "Prewarming - Please Wait" after the car has been at the train station all day and I press the start button, but the wait has been no more than about 2 seconds so far. I have noticed that the engine does get to operating temperature (and heat) faster than my previous gas model. Very happy with it so far -- the auto start/stop doesn't kick in that often -- could be the cold but not sure.

[SocalBM]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

I am glad you are doing well with your 550. those Pre LCI 550s get much worse number than the LCI 550s. My friends 2011 550gt RWD gets about 13-15 with 70% city and 30% highway; but it is a heavier and bigger car.

I was thinking about getting a 550 when I was shopping but it's not green to do that. I drive about 20K a year.

I find it really surprising that between those 2 model years, the MPG would be so much worse. And, green is relative; my happiness = green in my book

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by SocalBM

I find it really surprising that between those 2 model years, the MPG would be so much worse. And, green is relative; my happiness = green in my book

yep, your engine is the updated version so it is better.
lately i have been switching to Sport mode. a little less Green lol.

Originally Posted by kube

I've had the car since mid-November -- we've had some below zero days in NY and it's had no issues starting or running -- even when we had the -10 spell (the car was in my unheated garage overnight). There have been a few times when in single digits I get a message "Prewarming - Please Wait" after the car has been at the train station all day and I press the start button, but the wait has been no more than about 2 seconds so far. I have noticed that the engine does get to operating temperature (and heat) faster than my previous gas model. Very happy with it so far -- the auto start/stop doesn't kick in that often -- could be the cold but not sure.

Thank you very much for your input. I was worried about diesel in the cold etc but now that gets out of the way.
second is that I have been told from by diesel truck drivers(especially tow trucks) that it's good to let diesel continuously run.

Originally Posted by skalberti

2014 535i RWD 2700 miles on the clock. Comfort mode, no mods, a little heavy pedal now and again. I got 4 wheels and tires non RFT and not sure of the weight. Getting 19-20mpg in town. 28mpg driving 80mph on the highway. Make sure your using a good tier 1 gas. I always run 93 octane. Those two things will make a difference in your mpg.

what brand is Tier 1 gas? I always use Shell 93 or mobil 1. Now I have switched to BP or Hess. Seems a little bit better.

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by SonicEndeavor

Yeah, not even close to 20%. Tire Rack did a test on a 3 series that showed dropping wheel weight by 10 pounds resulted in a 2% increase in MPG, which in their case was less than a half mile per gallon.

do you have the link to an actual test article/video?

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by SonicEndeavor

Yeah, not even close to 20%. Tire Rack did a test on a 3 series that showed dropping wheel weight by 10 pounds resulted in a 2% increase in MPG, which in their case was less than a half mile per gallon.

found the actual article by tirerack. clicky click

Tirerack didn't mention how the car was driven to cover 350miles but just to post average speed. I would not count on their numbers.

[skalberti]

what brand is Tier 1 gas? I always use Shell 93 or mobil 1. Now I have switched to BP or Hess. Seems a little bit better.[/QUOTE]

http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html

[The X Men]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

o yea? where did you get that notion?

Think about what you are saying, a 20% increase in gas mileage just by changing out your wheels? That would make your 535's gas mileage better than the 535 active hybrid.

[hyperboost]

Originally Posted by The X Men

Think about what you are saying, a 20% increase in gas mileage just by changing out your wheels? That would make your 535's gas mileage better than the 535 active hybrid.

I have another set of the exact same wheels. You can buy a set of the same tires that I am running and I will loan you the wheels, you can test them out and see how much improvement you get.
I know its hard to believe but I have run light weight wheels on many of my cars and the results are real

[The X Men]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

I have another set of the exact same wheels. You can buy a set of the same tires that I am running and I will loan you the wheels, you can test them out and see how much improvement you get.
I know its hard to believe but I have run light weight wheels on many of my cars and the results are real

I am running factory 18" with runflats and I am getting better gas mileage than you are. I drive 80% city and we both live in Boston, need I say more?

[SonicEndeavor]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

found the actual article by tirerack. clicky click

Tirerack didn't mention how the car was driven to cover 350miles but just to post average speed. I would not count on their numbers.

Are you saying they intentionally skewed the results of their own mpg test by not driving the cars in a similar fashion? Sorry, but that makes no sense. If Tire Rack was going to do something like that, they'd skew the numbers the other way to make a case for buying lighter rims from them. Not that they'd put their reputation on the line by lying.
I would definitely trust their 2% mpg increase number.

[The X Men]

There are so many factors involve when it comes in unsprung weight and fuel economy. Just because some test with a lighter car show that there is a 10% fuel economy improvement by lowering the unsprung weight by 10 pounds in each corner, that does not mean that lowering the unsprung weight on a heavier car by twice as much will result in a 20% saving in fuel economy. At some point, there has to be some sort of diminishing return when it comes to upsizing rims and lowering unsprung weight. I suspect in a heavier car like the F10, unsprung weight plays a smaller role in fuel economy. There are other factors involve such as average length of each trip or average speed.

[BigKutta]

I have a similar driving mix (maybe 20-30% stop and go) on my 528i and I routinely get 29-30 mpg per tank. I love the fuel economy for the size of this thing.

[kthankzbye]

Also, it depends on the tires. I've never hit 16-17MPG when I was on Michelin PSS. I was averaging about 12-14MPG. Then, I realized that switching to my Nokian Snow tires, which says on it's website it has extremely low rolling resistance, my fuel mileage improved by 2-3 MPG. http://www.nokiantires.com/tyre?id=1...ian+Hakkapelii

So, need to factor in wheels and the tires as well.

Edit: I am not a spokesperson or a sponsor of Nokian.

[hyperboost]

Alright, sounds fair. We all believe what we want be believe. I will keep running lighter wheel/tires.
Happy motoring fellas

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by hyperboost

Alright, sounds fair. We all believe what we want be believe. I will keep running lighter wheel/tires.
Happy motoring fellas

Nothing wrong with running lighter wheels from my viewpoint, there are clearly benefits, including a slight fuel advantage, but for a moment but look at it this way.

Motor manufacturers in Europe are desperate for fuel savings, (regulation and impending penalties). If wheel weight could really give a 20% improvement in mpg, they'd be on it in a heartbeat. What a simple way to meet targets.

HighlandPete