Is there an easier way?

[SHO92]

The Gen 2 was available with crank windows. I've only seen it once in a junk yard. Mark has noted before though that there is no weight to really be saved. I think he old got a pound or so per door.

 

[NJSHO]

The Gen 2 was available with crank windows. I've only seen it once in a junk yard. Mark has noted before though that there is no weight to really be saved. I think he old got a pound or so per door.

If you take that attitude, you'll never get any weight out of your car. 4lbs is 4 lbs.

 

[chrism3784]

How about, a lighter battery like an optima, can save like 5-7 lbs. The A/C bypass pulley and strip all a/c out is a great idea. Also throughout the car, cut off useless metal that doesn't support anything important. Every little bit counts. Don't take out your spare tire, leave the donut tire in with the jack, when you start getting that crazy, thats when you'll need it. Instead, take out all the seats and put in milk crates. LOL.

 

[HoustinoJillian]

How about, a lighter battery like an optima, can save like 5-7 lbs. The A/C bypass pulley and strip all a/c out is a great idea. Also throughout the car, cut off useless metal that doesn't support anything important. Every little bit counts. Don't take out your spare tire, leave the donut tire in with the jack, when you start getting that crazy, thats when you'll need it. Instead, take out all the seats and put in milk crates. LOL.

heck one of my friends that used to have a s13 240sx ran a motorcycle battery. granted he had the ka in there with like 0 accessories, so i doubt a motorcycle battery'd be enough for the SHO fully loaded but het, worth a look if you're going all out.

also, ditch the spare. an AAA card is much lighter.

 

[Waterclown]

How about finding a place that will stamp-out a fiberglass or otherwise composite hood and/or trunk? You could save a lot of weight that way without giving up things like that factory system, heating and cooling and I'm assuming the labor is much easier since it would be all external and you wouldn't have to rip up the flooring and strip all that gooey stuff out... One problem I see is finding a place that will make a mold for a TAURUS/SABLE - they aren't cheap if the demand is low.

 

[bryantaylor]

also, ditch the spare. an AAA card is much lighter.

i refuse to drive on those spares

 

[jayro]

Yeah, I'm not a big dounut fan either. I can call AAA. If this goes well I could be looking into a hood and trunk lid, but the ones I have found were kinda pricey.

Jeremy

 

[hawkeye18]

You won't find a new hood for less than $500. The trunk is not as beneficial as the hood, as weight distribution is IMHO more important than total weight. If you remove 300 pounds, but 200 is from the back, then your weight distribution is even worse than it already was. I'm not saying that would happen, but you really need to focus on the front of the car as far as weight savings goes first. Balancing the car out is very important.

 

[Waterclown]

You won't find a new hood for less than $500. The trunk is not as beneficial as the hood, as weight distribution is IMHO more important than total weight. If you remove 300 pounds, but 200 is from the back, then your weight distribution is even worse than it already was. I'm not saying that would happen, but you really need to focus on the front of the car as far as weight savings goes first. Balancing the car out is very important.

I can live with 500$ - I think this will pay for itself after some time in light of high gas prices. However I can't find any performance places that have molds for a TAURUS or a SABLE so really the cost would be way more if you had to pay them to make a mold for you...

I've found several places just by "googling" that produce fiberglass Fox hoods and I'm going to do this when I get some loot for my 88 convertible. This issue of balance can be serious for this car because there is no variable assist in the steering so I would basically have to relearn how to drive it. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Also I don't know if balance is a major concern for SHOs unless you're racing them... My SHO is my daily driver and I only try to own ricers once in a while so the change in the SHO's inertia is less of a concern for me than either acceleration in a straight line and gas mileage. Did you mean that the inertia will influence the gas mileage? I missed the point...

When you mentioned the weight distribution - where should the CoM be? I'm guessing somewhere near the front seats so as to minimize the stresses on the driver when sharp turns are needed... If the weight is reduced by approximately the same amount and at about the same distances from the driver, it shouldn't change the CoM that much.

If anyone knows different, holla...

 

[SASHO91]

How about, a lighter battery like an optima, can save like 5-7 lbs. The A/C bypass pulley and strip all a/c out is a great idea. Also throughout the car, cut off useless metal that doesn't support anything important. Every little bit counts. Don't take out your spare tire, leave the donut tire in with the jack, when you start getting that crazy, thats when you'll need it. Instead, take out all the seats and put in milk crates. LOL.

Have you felt an Optima??? They're as heavy, if not HEAVIER than a stock battery.

Maybe you meant Odyessy(they are the light ones)? Now that's the battery to get! PC925... :wave: