Okay, so some background info on my wheel purchase. For a while I was a little hesitant on going up to a 22" wheel because I knew it would be heavier than a 20" wheel (this article was very helpful in preparing me for what to expect:
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a15130598/upsized-wheels-tires/). However, the aesthetic look of a larger wheel was a worthwhile tradeoff (to me). I had been trying to decide on which aftermarket 22" wheels I wanted to go with for a while, and one of the reasons I went with the Vossen VFS-2s was because of the "hybrid forged" technology they use to make the wheels a little lighter (each 22x10.5 wheel is 36 lbs). At first, it was hard to justify the price, but when Vossen ran a sale, they brought the prices down so much that it was really a no-brainer when comparing them to the other wheels I was considering (Niche Form at 39lbs and Ace Alloy Devotion at 38.5lbs). For the tires, I went with a 285/35/22 size to keep the overall wheel diameter as close to OEM as possible. I chose Nexen Roadian HP as they worked with my budget and had generally good reviews as an all-season tire.
Now, here's some interesting information. My new wheel/tire set up is actually almost
4 lbs lighter per corner! The OEM wheel/tire setup is pretty heavy. I weighed the Bridgestones when I took them off and each tire came in at 35.5 lbs. Then I contacted Mazda Canada, who told me that the OEM 20x8.5" wheel weighs 39.55 lbs.
One Vossen VFS-2 22x10.5" wheel with Nexen Roadian HP 285/35/22 tire weighs
71.2 lbs, which isn't great, but it's not bad either.
The OEM 20x8.5 wheel and the Bridgestone Ecopia HL 422 Plus 255/50/20 tire weighs
75 lbs!
I'll also note that while a 3.8 lb difference per corner doesn't seem like much, it's a reduction in unsprung weight. This should equate to a very slight increase in mileage and, most importantly, a small improvement in handling (especially when you consider the wider tires). This was a nice surprise, since I was expecting the new setup to be heavier than OEM, which would have resulted in a slight decrease in mileage and slightly more sluggish acceleration.
Note that this is all speculation, based on what I've read/heard from those who made the switch to a lighter wheel setup on other cars.
Anyway, I had refurbished Mazda TPMS sensors installed, had the tires mounted, and got the wheels balanced this weekend. They're now sitting in the basement waiting for the summer. Eventually I'll get around to applying the ceramic coating (and will probably document the process and post a How-To at some point). No rush as I've still got 2-3 months of winter to get through.