Question about Rims for the eGolf

[michael1122]

I will be picking up my eGolf in January, and I need to get snow tires as winters here in Ontario, Canada can be brutal. I was researching rims, and some other sites said EV's sometimes require different rims than regular vehicles, due to the regenerative braking system. Is this the case? Or just more misinformation?

Thanks

 

[f1geek]

As far as I know, the e-Golf rims are optimized for aerodynamic efficiency. If you look at them, you can see that there is very little open area, and my guess is that since most braking is regenerative braking, the friction brakes don't get very hot and thus don't require much external cooling; this enabled VW to implement a much more closed rim to enhance aero efficiency.

If the stock rims aren't too expensive, you could buy another set and mount your snow tires on them. I'm guessing snow tires alone will reduce your driving efficiency both for increased aerodynamic drag and for and increased surface contact friction. If you switch to steel rims or some other aluminum rims, you will also lose driving efficiency due to more aerodynamic drag.

It's up to you how much of a hit in efficiency you are willing to take. Unfortunately, I don't think you'll be able to find out the loss in efficiency until you get the new tires and rims mounted on your e-Golf. Not that I have any financial stake in the Tire Rack, but I have been using them for over a decade and find their customer service to be very good.

Best of luck!

 

[Kosta]

i got the steel set from VW with pirellis pkg offer from dealer- we don't test the distance limits on the car so hyper miling is not critical - the biggest hit to range in winter is the cold correcting 20 C + interior takes energy they were standard VW rims .. nothing special and the plastic hubcaps with emblem sets them off ;-)

 

[miimura]

The 2015 US model VW e-Golf in the Limited Edition trim came with steel wheels and plastic covers. This is a good setup for snow tires but they are the same size as the 16" alloy Astana wheels that are used now. Some people like to go down an inch in wheel size with snow tires. 15" is common on other Golf and Jetta models, so those wheels can also be used.

 

[Kosta]

yes - forgot to mention , steel rims down 1 inch and regular sidewall on snow tire brings radius back to near sameness - a smidgen more flex is noticeable in windy ( cross ) conditions from the stock feet

 

[Rsolaregolf]

We used the 15" steel winter tire rims from our 2000 Passat on our 2015 SEL. Offset and bolt pattern are the same or close enough.

 

[arcticClover]

I just put 16" snow tires on the stock rims. I figure things will balance out with having traction/lowered efficiency with the snows, but aerodynamic/no slush build up with the rims. In the summer I'm thinking of having my 16" tdi rims painted black and mounted with stock/better all season tires, which will have the opposite effect of efficiency.