Roller vs. Wood Differences

Mario and Sonic Guy · 08-02-2012

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Here's the third wheel rivalry that exists in Mario Kart 7. The Rollers and Woods are rivals for the fact that they rival each other in the underwater races. But there are a few differences between the two that need to be kept in mind...

Stat Differences

Roller vs. Wood

Speed: -0.75 / -0.5
Acceleration: +0.75 / +0.5
Weight: -1 / -0.5
Handling: +2 / +1.25
Off-Road: -1.25 / 0
Sea Speed: +1 / +1
Sea Handling: +1.25 / +2.5
Air Speed: +1 / +1
Air Handling: +1 / +1
Drift: -1 / +1
Mini-Turbo: +1 / -1
Stability: +1 / +1

Stat Totals: 5 / 7.25

How to Unlock

The Roller wheels are available right from the start.

The Wood wheels are unlocked randomly by collecting coins, or by using StreetPass.

Spacing

The Rollers seem to take up less space, seeing as they're the smallest wheels in the game.

Which is better?

Based on stat totals, it's pretty much final that the Wood wheels are better. However, there are some combos where the Roller wheels are more dominant with. It mostly comes down to how much acceleration is hindered with the kart bodies.

Both wheels boost stability, and offer the same sea speed, but the Wood wheels offer much stronger sea handling, only being as low as 4.5, and maxing out at 5.5. The Rollers can only get up to 4.25 sea handling, and at their worst, goes down to 3.25 sea handling.

In terms of air abilities, the two wheels are completely identical in that scenario, offering air speed and air handling boosts.

In terms of acceleration, the Rollers offer a little more acceleration than the Woods. When you take into account the acceleration scale, the 0.25 increase could make a big difference. The acceleration maximum for the Rollers is 5.5, and the minimum is 2.25; the Woods have a 5.25 acceleration maximum, and a minimum of 2 acceleration.

In the speed department, the Rollers can only get up to 3.75 speed, while having a minimum of 1.75 speed (the lowest possible stat for speed). As for the Woods, their speed maxes out at 4, and their minimum is 2.

Regarding off-road abilities, while the Rollers and Woods can't hold their drift on normal off-road, the Woods offer better traction, enabling them to handle slippery roads better than the Rollers. Add the fact that the Woods also boost handling, and it becomes clear that they're top notch for almost any environment. On the flipside, the Rollers offer the strongest handling abilities, which can easily offset their traction flaws.

Drifting and mini-turbo really don't offer any drastic differences, so the mini-turbo weakness that the Wood wheels have, and the mini-turbo strength that the Roller wheels have are pretty much minor. Likewise, the drifting weakness that the Roller wheels have, and the drifting strength that the Wood wheels have are minimal too, as it's mostly the handling stat that affects how well the wheels can drift.

Now for some combo comparisons...

Feather + Tiny Tug + Roller + Any Glider
Feather + Tiny Tug + Wood + Paraglider (Swooper, Flower Glider, Peach Parasol)

Both combos are at the 4.75 acceleration level, but the latter combo offers a slightly better top speed. Additionally, handling is boosted without having a negative impact on off-road. And the final difference is the sea handling increase. While the former combo offers better handling, the latter combo is a better option, overall.

Light + Cloud 9 + Roller + Paraglider (Swooper, Flower Glider, Peach Parasol)
Light + Cloud 9 + Wood + Any Glider

The latter combo can only get up to 4.5 acceleration, which accelerates at the same rate as 3.75 acceleration. The former combo, on the other hand, actually reaches the 4.75 acceleration mark, making it a better option, despite of the slower speed, off-road hindrances, and reduced sea handling.

Feather + Pipe Frame + Roller + Any Glider
Feather + Pipe Frame + Wood + Any Glider

Both combos are at the 4.75 acceleration level, regardless of which gliders you use. But as usual, the latter combo offers a lot more than what the former combo can dish out.

Conclusions

Thank you for reading this, and maybe it'll influence how you set up your combos.