This isn't really about 964's, but I was reading the Sept edition of 911 & Porsche world, the article about the red 3.2 Carrera with a 993 engine in it. I am slightly puzzled by the statement that the weight of the car has been reduced by approx 120kg. This is a huge amount of weight to lose when from the article it would seem that only the seats, door cards, rear seats and sound proofing have been removed/changed. At a guess I reckon this would save 50kg (max ??). In addition the car has had a 993 engine transplanted, and bigger brakes (all increasing the weight ?).

Can anybody shed any light on this, if the reductions are true, then they could equally be applied to a 964.

Thanks

Gavin

 

I've reduced about 270 lbs ffom my 993. Here's quick list what I've reduced changed:

-Engine tray
-Fabspeed mufflers
-Strut Brace (adds weight)
-Fire exstinguisher (adds weight)
-Spare tyre, compressor, tools & jack
-Rear Seatbacks
-Rear wiper
-Optima battery
-Trunk Carpet
-Porsche Motorsport steering wheel
-PSS-9 Suspension & RS sway bars etc.
-Front Protection Bar (adds weight)
-Rear Sound Deadening, Rear Deck, Speakers & Seat belts
-Sparco Evo Bucket Seats
-RS Door panels with Kenwood 4.5" speakers
-Cat By-Pass pipes.
-I ain't done yet... I even still have some "easy" items left (passenger air bag, lower dash, engine compartment sound deadening...)

Biggest items: Seats (about 70 lbs off) and cat by-pass & supercup mufflers (50 lbs off), sound deadening, rear deck etc... (40 lbs off).

 

Gavin

I cannot comment on the weight saving that was claimed for that 3.2. What I can tell you is that similar weight savings are quite possible on the 964, depending on your starting point. For example, my car is a fairly low option car, for example no aircon. The aircon alone will weight around 15-20 kgs. I have a non standard exhaust which lost me 22kgs. I know that my car weighs 1342kgs with half a tank of fuel in it, so my starting weight is already slightly under 1300kgs dry weight.

The main areas to save weight in are:

Seats - swapping out the old powered seats for Sports seats (like GT3/Cobra/Recaro) will save around 35kgs alone!

As above the original exhaust system weighs a lot.

Rears seats removed should save around 6kgs.

Sound proofing removed will save some kgs, how much depends on how much moisture has been retained!

Wheels - I have seen a set which weighs 31kgs all in. This is probably 4-5 kgs less than the D90's let alone the 17" cups most of use. And that is unsprung weight as well.

There are so many things you can do, including CF bodypanels etc, but the seats are a major diet problem.

 

Just recently I had my car weighed when I had it corner balanced after installing an original RS suspension.

These were the weight watching activities:
- Removal of sound deading material in the rear seat area, on the floor and along the central tunnel
- removal of rear seats
- RS carpets
- RS door panels
- perspex rear window without wiper
- carbon front hood
- Recaro Pole Position seats
- RS 3.8 rear wing

These things add weight again:
- club roll bar
- front strut brace

And these things could be removed to reduce weight further:
- air con
- CD player, amplifier, speakers
- sun roof

As is, with a full tank of fuel and spare wheel, the car weighs 1340 kg. Assuming that the steel roll bar weighs roughly 30 kg, I managed to take approx. 100 kg out of a car that typically used to weigh 1395 kg with usual options.

And you bet, I can feel the difference!