weight reduction

[txchevy]

any good ideas about shaving weight without reducing structural integrity? goint to install lt1 and t56 and want to reduce weight about 100 to 150 pounds is it possible? maybe remove ac and all heater controls as well as anything i dont need. it is a street drivin can but i only drive it when its warm. it has 410 gears and mini spool in rear. carbon fiber shaft maybe? ant helpful tips will be greatfully helpful. im not used to a unibody and dont know the effects it will have on the structural rigidty.

[SMOKEY818]

Well first off you should get a new fiberglass hood, relocate your battery to your trunk, remove anything you have inside that isn't neccesary floor mats etc, get a aftermarket k-member, a-arms, carbon fiber drive shaft (really expensive), some aluminum rims, remove your rear seats and you have easily dropped over 200lbs.

[Xenostalgia]

Take the Jard Diet and dont eat anything the week before your race.. remember you weight alot too...

If you are only using this as a dragster you should only have your drivers seat in everything else stripped out, take out everything that you dont need wind shield wipers, ac, blower fan, etc take out everything that is optional.

If you are real serious take out the windows and put in the plastic crap that just goes over 'em. Glass is heavy. Not sure how much else you wanna do. Maybe chop the top off, that saves you 50 lbs (guess).

Put helium in your tires, less heavier then CO2

[Chevyracincamaro]

the fiberglass hood a the first things that comes to mind. the hoods on these f-bodies have to be at the very least 50 lbs. in my opinion, there are certain things that are pointless. like removing the seats and stuff. if its a daily driver i would rather have the interior intact, pullin out the 2lb floor mats and 10 seats prolly isnt gonna drop your ET much. but pullin the a/c and heater system helps, i dont think you need to go all the way to a CF shaft (aluminum would prolly do the trick). also, moving the battery just adjusts the distribution, it doesnt drop any weight. you can get special low-weight racing batteries though. what i would like to do is replace my hatch glass with lexan cause that would drop a cool 75 lbs easy...

[txchevy]

can lexan be formed to fit the contours of the back glass? you have hit on a major idea. i wonder how much it would be. do you know of any links that might offer any info on the idea? its a street drivin car so im going to keep the interior but i dont need the ac or heater, thats why ive got windows in it i wonder how much i can shave off the rotating weight and if it would be enough to tell and make it worth my while.

[CamarosRsweet94]

If you are concerned about rotating weight forget putting in an LT1 and put in an LS1. LT1's are alomst all iron whereas the LS1 has a lot of aluminum components. Oh yeah and if it is street driven I would not recommend removing the windshield wipers. (I think it's illegal)

[Chevyracincamaro]

im quite positive that lexan could be formed to the hatch glass with little problem. the major hurdle with lexan is that its not very strong, so you would have to add supports to keep structural integrity. also, you would have to be in or only drive in warm weather. i dont really see you being able to graph a rear-defroster onto the lexan...

[cuda_dude]

when i changed my hood over from stock to fiberglass i was surprised how close in weight they were.... sure its a difference but i figured it would be a much bigger difference..... i would suggest putting the batery in the back for better wight transfer and to free up more room in the engine bay...

[88ReX]

If you can get a carbon fiber hood then go for it, as cuda_dude said going with a fiberglass hood is not much of a weight savings and its a lot less rigid too. A carbon fiber hood you can jump on without ruining anything, try that on a fiberglass and you would probably crack something. Some other ideas that haven't been mentioned; if you want to keep the interior, look into taking out all the sound deadening underneath your carpet and throughout the car, if you live in a climate where you don't see any salt or sand on the roads then think about cleaning off the undercoating from the car. Sometimes you can remove the foam or bumper support from the bumper(illegal) to shed a few pounds. Say no to big stereo equipment. Get some lighterweight wheels. If you have a stock exhaust mani they can be heavy, replace them with headers.

[Chevyracincamaro]

the only CF hood i have ever seen for the camaro is a fourth gen 3in cowl induction hood, and it was 2700 dollars.

[88ReX]

Originally Posted by Chevyracincamaro

the only CF hood i have ever seen for the camaro is a fourth gen 3in cowl induction hood, and it was 2700 dollars.

Wow thats crazy expensive, they're $300-600 for hondas depending on quality.

[Chevyracincamaro]

oh i know. considering that the fbody hood is prolly 1/3 of the size larger than a civic's, CF hoods arent exactly a fashion statement like they are on the imports. me thinks fiberglass is the way to go...

[cuda_dude]

you can get a carbon fiber ss hood for my car from rksport..... pricey though

[KaotiKCamaro5]

i would never put a carbon fiber hood on a camaro no matter what it cost.. lol.

*did any of you guys see that website link up about a week or so ago that said for every like 17 pounds taken out you gained 1hp.. LOL.. funniest thing i have read on here in awhile.

[whoisdabomb86]

i put fiberglass instead of my steal took off all the hinges and the front latch and shaved AT LEAST 45 pounds if not more considering that i can lift off the hood no problem but in now way shape or form lift that heavy steel hood. plus i noticed a differeance just like the jegs add said. def do fiberglass cuz carbon fiber is well ricey??