MPD47

Ashton I've gotten pretty serious about shaving weight off my car. Everyone I have talked to said if my car sees street use, even for 1/4 windows or the hatch I do NOT want to goto Lexan stuff. I've gotten pretty aggressive with the weight savings I think the only power thing I have left is the windows, which I may or may not convert to manual. Depends on what I end up doing for door panels (yeah you heard correctly, I have no door panels right now). I'd venture a guess and say my car is under 2600lbs, but that's just a guess. It was 2670 IIRC last year before Sparco Pro 2000's, the custom headlights, the AC delete, and with stock wiring and motronic. It's certainly less now.

FYI, Dynamat is HEAVY as hell. Imagine it as sticky rubber in a sheet, certainly NOT lightweight. You can EASILY triple the weight of something you are working on with Dynamat.

eniac

Everytime i do work on my car I think about how it can lose weight. I have removed a few brackets that were no longer needed, the rear seat back, all insulation from the rear hatch floor, spare tire, jack, pump etc., the entire fuel vapor purge system(I was suprised how much all that weighed)...don't remember off hand all the other little stuff. When I moved shops I had most of what came off my car in a container and it felt like it weighed ~125lb, that's not included the seatback or spare.

Next on the list is a sunroof delete(I want to put in a fiberglass roof panel) and stationary headlights once some good ones come on the market.

My goal is to remove enough weight so when I install a roll cage and other safety equp. the car will still weigh less then stock.

pearldrum944

Might I suggest the everything delete?

MPD47

You still have a brake booster And a cruise control cable!

pearldrum944

Those are necessary to proper function of the vehicle.

MPD47

As is an engine!

tifosiman

Forza's are 17lbs each without the sliders. The passenger seat doesn't need a slider, can be hard-mounted to the floor with the proper spacers to bring it up to the driver's seat height (with the slider). Depending on what seats you have in the car now, (probably power driver and manual passenger?) you will save 42-64lbs with just this change.

Next best value for the buck is going to be a tie between euro front and rear bumpers (which you have in your Fred Sanford lot already, I believe), and A/C delete. Each are good for 30-40lbs depending on how you do it. Go all out and source a non-A/C car heater control if possible.

Remove the rear hatch carpet, spare tire, jack, inflator, etc. That is a huge savings there. Carry a cell phone and a can of fixaflat, and your AAA card (I bet you've used that one before, eh?).

After that, the little things start adding up, just not as fast. Get rid of:

rear hatch release motor, wiring, and switch
power locks and wiring/switches
cruise control
rear seat back and luggage cover
rear seat belts
stereo
door pockets

Then start getting into the really small changes, like manual mirrors, manual steering rack, etc. Honestly, manual windows don't save a lot, but are much easier to deal with and have zero chance of failing on you. Manual mirrors do save some depending on what you get, IIRC my savings going to 968CS mirrors was around 8lbs including the wiring loom and switches. Those power flag mirrors are heavy.

By the end of all of the changes above, the car will still be "streetable", but not to the liking of a lot of people, especially dates (female or male, whatever floats yer boat). Also, another thing to consider is whether or not you will be doing and autocross events, because all of those changes will bump you in most sanctioning bodies regs. Check those first if you have any inkling of it.


Of course, upgrading the brakes as Albert mentioned is going to add a little weight back into the car, but that is really offset by the performance gained.

Serge944

Theyre pretty light as it is - seems like wasted money as Lexan isn't cheap.

TD in DC

Unless you are using your car primarily on the track AND you are not subject to minimum weights for racing classes, I would not bother with Lexan. It is expensive, it flexes, and it scratches. A dual use street/track car will always be a compromise, and I do not think Lexan windows fall on the sensible side of this compromise for a car that will be used on the streets.

Serge944

SO true. Even the minor mods I did (sound deadening/no back seat/carpet) kept my gf out of the car...

You still haven't told us what youre intentions are.... Whats happening to the fancy interior from your old car?

Get rid of the whole "boy racer" outlook and realize that unless youre VERY careful and dont lose much weight at all (which is pointless) youre just going to ruin your car for daily driving. You either go all the way and make a "track car" or you spend major bucks to get light-weight components - not remove every other thing you see.

yellowline

I have an '83, so I don't have any power junk except the windows and mirrors, and I'm satisfied with the car's weight. I have the opinion that if it works well, it should remain on the car. I'd rather take $500 (when I have it) and make the AC work reliably, rather than remove it.

I get a lot of satisfaction from having a car where stuff just works, rather than being able to say "mine's 20 lbs lighter, but I suffer for it!" I replaced my heater core hoses this weekend, and I'm incredibly happy that I fixed the clock and now have a dash that's tight and doesn't creak. I personally like my car for being a simple, relatively comfortable GT that still has throughbred driving dynamics and a little bit of rarity.

Like Serge admitted, the 944 does have limits I won't be finding on the street, so why go all out to make those limits just a little higher? I'm taking my car autocrossing when I'm 18 and have a helmet, but I honestly don't care about having an extra 0.02g of grip when I need it once a month. I'm just planning on learning a little and having fun.

M758

Well I got some 400 lbs out of my 944 without spending much on replacement parts. Only problem is sounds like bath tub on the street.

Ashton,
How much comfort are you willing to give up?

TD in DC

Hey Campeck!

Don't forget to swap out your OEM muffler bearings with lightweight CF bearings! I hear you can save a good 15 lbs with no appreciable deterioration in exhaust note quality! You owe me one for parting with this secret.

TD

M758

So that is where those muffler bearings are... If I replace mine will get more hp?
... TD could you sell me some?

TD in DC

Guaranteed 50 hp bump. Now, where is that pesky dyno sheet when I need it? Oh well, just trust me on that. I will sell you one for $350. Also, note that the rust is normal: it helps make the engine "breathe" better.