dhanson865
Well-known member
The weight helps for starting and stopping but not steady speed.
But moving to 15" tires also changes the contact patch (tread width) and profile of the tire (aero, narrower overall shape) and depending on your choice of rims/tires won't stick out from the wheel well as far (aero, less exposed leading edge).
It also gets you into tires that are designed differently even though they have the same name or opens up options to buy different tires (not all 15" tires are available in 16 or 17" at the right RPM for the leaf). Generally speaking the lower profile tire (higher diameter tire) will have a stiffer sidewall and higher rolling resistance. Moving to the 15" gets you away from that.
But moving to 15" tires also changes the contact patch (tread width) and profile of the tire (aero, narrower overall shape) and depending on your choice of rims/tires won't stick out from the wheel well as far (aero, less exposed leading edge).
It also gets you into tires that are designed differently even though they have the same name or opens up options to buy different tires (not all 15" tires are available in 16 or 17" at the right RPM for the leaf). Generally speaking the lower profile tire (higher diameter tire) will have a stiffer sidewall and higher rolling resistance. Moving to the 15" gets you away from that.