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View Full Version : MODIFICATION, WEIGHT REDUCTION



A20A1
04-07-2004, 05:21 PM
Post your weight reduction modifications
*Serious Mods Only!
*Must Include Pics!
The usual, do these modifications at your own risk disclaimer applys.

Here is my first one:

REMOVED :
AC / POWER STEERING / EMISSIONS / CRUISE CONTROL
RELOCATED :
BATTERY
http://www.3geez.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3566&stc=1

REMOVED :
FRONT AND REAR METAL BUMPERS

-- Front bumper removed, metal brackets welded and bolted to the frame.
-- I used a metal rod and flat bars, I used a hand drill to make the bolt holes, I welded the L brackets first, then I bolted the brakets to the frame and welder the rod between the brackets, bending the rod slightly outwards to help support the front of the bumpre skin.
http://www.3geez.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3095&stc=1

Next shot is a close up of the front L bracket.
http://www.3geez.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3567&stc=1


Here is a wide shot of the rear...
-- Removed rear bumper, cut metal triagles off of metal bumper, welded new flat bars to the triangles.
http://www.3geez.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3568&stc=1

Here is a close up of the rear bracket.
http://www.3geez.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3569&stc=1

lightbulblxi
04-07-2004, 07:04 PM
http://images.cardomain.com/member_images/8/web/488000-488999/488241_16_full.jpg


this is all i have done, i took out all of the carpet and shit from the sides of my trunk.

Justin86
04-07-2004, 07:59 PM
Well lets see I have pulled everything out on my engine bay as possible except the power steering. I'm still looking into way to make that even lighter, like another distrubitor or something. Also I'm going to go through the wire harness and pull out everything I don't want or need, just the basics.
http://images.cardomain.com/member_images/1/web/469000-469999/469581_23_full.jpg
Next to to shave the spare tire well and as much trunk metal as possible. Here's what I have so far and I will start the cutting and welding in maybe a week or two so more pics to come. :)
http://images.cardomain.com/member_images/1/web/469000-469999/469581_22_full.jpg

'A20A3'
05-02-2004, 12:43 PM
Removed A/C Compressor and Bracket
Removed A/C Condensor
Removed Stereo
Removed Grille
Removed A/C Lines
Removed Hood Latch(got hood pins now)
Removed Radiator Support Brace
Removed Cam Gear Cover
Removed Door Trim
Removed Dome Light

That's all I can think of right now. Pics coming soon.

night
09-04-2004, 01:23 PM
ok, here are some pics of my car :devil:

http://members.lycos.co.uk/niqht/P1010006.JPG

http://members.lycos.co.uk/niqht/P1010007.JPG

http://members.lycos.co.uk/niqht/P1010008.JPG

http://members.lycos.co.uk/niqht/P1010009.JPG

that is no cutting yet, not even done scrapping tar yet. i just yanked the motor out 2 weekends ago. glass will be going soon, but havent decided about sunroof.
i do miss the interior sometimes. since i had redone all of it. but after the wreck i decided it was time for a new life (3rd one) for the car. though sadly i never got pic of the interior :(

train
10-04-2004, 06:52 PM
i like that garage. :)

SlammedAccord89
11-04-2004, 05:50 PM
i have no pics but i can list the stuff done to my drag car, its an 89 accord dx, no interior, no dash, nuthing, ive cut most of the uneeded metal on the inside of the car.the rear deck where the 3rd brakelight and speaker are has been cut out. Im in the process of getting plexi-glass windows and then cutting all the metal out of the door, it has all the bumper supports and such cut out, all the tar crap or sound deadener, whatever its called has been removed, im cutting the bottom of the trunk out and riveting in thin sheet metal. it has a 8 gallon fuel cell, all the accesories have been takin off the motor. Basically a full out drag car

Vanilla Sky
11-05-2004, 07:44 AM
one modification you can do that doesn't cost much and is almost unnoticable is removing the fold-down rear seatback and replacing it with a stationary seatback....

POS carb
11-08-2004, 02:17 PM
what the hell I swore I already posted here.... Anyways I was saying the 5-speed is lighter by 20-30 lbs than the auto (I can pick it up a lot easier then the auto)

AccordEpicenter
11-08-2004, 02:26 PM
i think the auto and related equipment makes the car up to 75lb heavier than the 5 speed.

Vanilla Sky
11-08-2004, 06:30 PM
yes, the auto is heavier... just the transmission is a lot heavier... that's not including the TC... let me see if i have a large enough scale to weigh the 2 transmissions i have and i'll get a number for you guys...

AccordEpicenter
11-08-2004, 06:39 PM
in the manual, the automatic cars are "automatically" 75lb heavier...

customandsound
01-16-2005, 09:54 AM
here is the weight reduction i have done so far:

removal of all trunk trim:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v174/customandsound/accord/Dcp_0203.jpg

removal or all intertior trim all but dashboard:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v174/customandsound/accord/Dcp_0206.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v174/customandsound/accord/Dcp_0205.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v174/customandsound/accord/Dcp_0204.jpg

more of the sheet metal is getting removed and aluminum plate welded in. trunk is getting cut out and aluminum plate put in. all the sound pad was removed complete rear harness ect.....

this car was under 6' of water so there is no need to put it back on the street. it is going ndra hotrod class

buzzbomber88lx
01-18-2005, 01:09 PM
aluminum isnt much lighter than thin sheetmetal and you could just remove a lot of that and put braces across the rear strut tower.....
heres what I have done to the celica which only weighs about 100lb less than your 3geez and can be comparable to the hatchie(disregard rwd):
removed ac
removed power steering
beer bottle for a coolant overflow
removed tow hooks
removed fenderwells
cut holes behind headlight assemblies and several other places
removed airbox and installed cold air intake
removed charcoal canister and emmissions
removed cruise control
removed sound deadening
removed spare tire

heaviest thing that should be removed if your hard up on weight reduction is windows ;) replace them with lexan

b20a86lude
01-19-2005, 10:25 AM
hey what did u use to take off al the sound dampning im in the process of trying to tak mine off and y was ur car under 6 inches of water confused

ehulst
02-01-2005, 05:42 AM
So Far Removed:
-Rear Seats
-Carpet
-Washer fluid
-Trunk plastic/carpet
-Passenger seat
-Interior Plastics
-Cruise Control
-Heating Control unit(center dash)
-Glove Box
-Rear bumper brace

http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/514742

Integral
05-26-2005, 10:46 PM
what a coincident i was just removing things from my car yesterday and today i come accross this wow, well i have removed,

rear upper seat
rear bottom seat
all rear seat belts (cuz they look well retarded)
all carpet out of rear and trunk
almost all the trunk installation
approx 80lbs trailer hook up thing
and AC since it didnt work anyways

Note* my car is most likely still heaver than its stock counter parts, because i have like 100+ lbs of subs in my completely empty trunk. talk about a loud and annoying car audio system for all surronding passanger vehicles :rofl: :rofl:

Heikki
05-30-2005, 09:33 PM
Hi..

Anyone done anything with fiberglass?

A20A1-4 serie's cars are clearly front-loaded and if you guys removes all from rear seats and trunk you don't help that front-loaded problem any.. If you want make good racecar you need to think how to get car well balaced. Battery to trunk etc and remove as much as possible weight from front! So have anyone done hood or front fenders/bumber from fiberclass? And why not doors too..?

Pictures & how-to-make stories -thanks :)

drewtyson
07-22-2005, 10:44 AM
mild:
4lbs-Clean the inside on the rear wheel walls (I had about 4lbs of dirt fall out)
15-20lbs-spare tire
2lbs-cardboard piece in trunk
20-25lbs-Interior of trunk

Wild:
80lbs-rear seats
30lbs-passenger seat
25lbs A/C unit

Any other suggestion?

Vanilla Sky
07-22-2005, 01:02 PM
those rear seats do NOT weigh 80 pounds, even for the heavier LXi seats.

Cheeseburger
07-22-2005, 01:05 PM
ya the rear seats are really light, maybe at the most 45lbs

Slipknotcraig133
07-22-2005, 01:37 PM
I would say more like 20-25 lbs they are lighter than i thought as well.

Vanilla Sky
07-22-2005, 01:56 PM
30 pounds for an LXi sedan rear seat. i weighed the top and bottom just now.

ShimriC
07-22-2005, 02:03 PM
mild:
4lbs-Clean the inside on the rear wheel walls (I had about 4lbs of dirt fall out)
15-20lbs-spare tire
2lbs-cardboard piece in trunk
20-25lbs-Interior of trunk

Wild:
80lbs-rear seats
30lbs-passenger seat
25lbs A/C unit

Any other suggestion?

My passengers seat is no more than 15lbs. i smell bs,.. i know 30lbs its not 30lbs,. 4lbs of dirt?? r u serious. that spare isnt 10lbs.

Vanilla Sky
07-22-2005, 02:12 PM
a full size spare would be.

and that's about right for a seat.

the trunk lining is way off, too. it's closer to 5 pounds.

the AC is quoted low, though. i think honda lists the difference between AC equipped DXs and non-AC equipped DXs as like 53 pounds.

mag_pbg
07-22-2005, 08:58 PM
Ya the rear seats where really light, but the whole a/c system weighs a ton, also switching from a 5 speed to a auto will help alot out on weight, just replaced mine the stupid torque converter it's self had to weight at least 30 lbs lol

ICEMAN707
07-22-2005, 10:58 PM
for WILD, i would say:

- changing your glass to lexan plastic
- removing your bumper support frames and make custom mounts to be able to put the bumper covers back on for that stock look
- carbon fiber hood
- 87 lxi 13" wheels (unless you have 4 wheel disc brakes then the minimum you can fit are the 14" se-i wheels)
- remove ALL a/c components, including lines
- remove power steering if you don't mind not having it
- gut the whole interior including the dash (interior should be bare metal except for driver's seat and steering column); zip tie the instrument cluster and plug it back to the harness and speedo cable - THAT IS only if you need to keep your instrument readings.
- use a small civic battery and 1/2 size radiator
- gut doors of power window assemblies and find a way to keep the lexan plastic glass in place. use cargo net for the driver's side 'a la' nascar style.
- remove exhaust system from downpipe back; run open downpipe or add a short resonator if necessary. although i would personally keep the exhaust system cus running an open downpipe is way too loud and you will have so much backpressure you'd lose torque and the car would barely move. i would just change the piping to aluminum and the muffler to a carbon fiber muffler instead of steel.
- atkins diet, jenny craig, bally fitness, la fitness, slim fast, etc. are also good ways to lose weight :lol:

truetune
07-23-2005, 08:19 AM
A/C & heator blower unit 10-15lbs (there was still freion in the A/C unit inside the car.) My car didn't have the AC compressor on it when I go it so unknow but its said 53lbs so Ill go with that. All A/C lines were still left so umm 3lbs. A/C and PS mounts 8-10lbs all PS 10lbs trunk sound deadner 5+lbs trunk lining 5lbs. trunk card board lost it to the rain. umm cruz controle shit 4lbs wiper washer bottle eh 1lbs. back seat sound deadner umm 5lbs.

lotal weight loss possibly 105lbs thats good for a whole 1/4 of a sec off my ET lol WOOT.

Justin86
07-23-2005, 09:07 AM
yea take out everything not necessary and I have been thinking about putting lexan in the rear door and completely gutting it. Some light wheels under 15lbs, aftermarket header, light muffler, exhaust, and fuel cell. The list does go on but I doubt most people have the funds or tools to complete some of my many R&D projects

Vanilla Sky
07-23-2005, 09:14 AM
http://www.3geez.com/showthread.php?t=9293

according to that, the ENTIRE AC UNIT weight 49 pounds. that would be compressor, condensor, evaporator, compressor bracket, dessicant dryer, and the extra tubing. the heatercore wouldn't count because from what i gather, heat was standard in ALL 3geez.

drewtyson
07-23-2005, 11:16 AM
Sorry all weight measurements are all guessing. I thought it would be good to put together a sticky forum on Weight savings from mild to wild.

Vanilla Sky
07-23-2005, 11:18 AM
there's already a very informative thread on this subject in the research/development area of the forum.

AccordEpicenter
07-23-2005, 05:05 PM
passenger side seat weighs close to 30lb i believe, back seat is worth about 50lb, the ac is pretty heavy too

Vanilla Sky
07-23-2005, 05:23 PM
lol, the back seat weighs 30 pounds, i weighed it yesterday.

the rear seatbelts would would be another place to lose weight. if you don't have back seats, you don't need seatbelts back there. trash them.

Low Tek
07-23-2005, 06:23 PM
I know I pulled the ac on mine, and it was H E A V Y

w00tw00t111
07-23-2005, 09:07 PM
Everybody's forgot the most obvious one! Interior carpet and sound deading. From what I've read over on a 240sx forum most cars non-luxury are have about 200lbs worth. Most of what has been listed will be free minus the lexan window but that is insanely cheap if you make it yourself. But if you really want to go light then get carbon fiber doors and fenders. A friend of mine that races in the pro mods truck class has lexan windows and cf doors on his s-10 and all of that combined weighs 5lbs. When he took it off it's hinges he goes, "here allen hold this." So I took it from him and I started throwing it up in the air it was so light! That should make some definate improvements. If 100lbs takes roughly a second off of 1/4mile time then about 400lbs should take about 4 seconds off right? So, if we're in the 16 second zone right now then technically we should be in the 12's? And with a few modifications drop down into the 11's? That would be insane!!!

88accordalltheway
07-23-2005, 09:23 PM
havent you guys seen the thread when this magizine took this kitted nissan(i think) and totally chopped the entire car until there was a frame seat and engine. It took like 5 seconds off the .25

Go on a diet of you want to have an efficent weight reduction.

honestly, gutting your car is plain stupid unless you are planning on strapping a v8 to it and dragging it. I dont think anyone really needs to get to work 2.43 seconds faster than usual.

w00tw00t111
07-23-2005, 11:18 PM
honestly, gutting your car is plain stupid unless you are planning on strapping a v8 to it and dragging it. I dont think anyone really needs to get to work 2.43 seconds faster than usual.
Well, I would assume that noone would do that unless they were planning on making their accord primarily for track duty. *haha I said duty. haha diarehha haha hey louis diarehha. Peter I'm holding ice tea. :bowrofl: *

Although a kid at my school w/ an eg6 gutted his b/c he wants to be quicker? So it is possible but I would assume that no carpet would get a little hotter then usual since metal is exposed to the sun. But in regards to removing the back seat I don't see a problem w/ that bc noone ever rides in the back. And removing everything in the trunk isn't a problem. Removing a/c shouldn't be a big deal for you guys in the north. Power Steering, with a car as small and light as ours shouldn't be much of a problem either. The same guy w/ the eg6 also removed his power steering and he can turn fine as long as he's going at least 2 miles an hour. :) So as far as all of those super easy one's it should help and not affect much of anything.

Vanilla Sky
07-24-2005, 01:56 AM
tenth of a second. notice the decimal point before the 1.

w00tw00t111
07-24-2005, 03:41 AM
tenth of a second. notice the decimal point before the 1.
I was about to say! But still that's better then nothing seeing as though most of the stuff is really cheap or free to do.

A20A1
07-25-2005, 03:20 PM
havent you guys seen the thread when this magizine took this kitted nissan(i think) and totally chopped the entire car until there was a frame seat and engine. It took like 5 seconds off the .25



I have that issue laying around somewhere.

FyreDaug
07-25-2005, 06:11 PM
Yeah 100lbs is about 1/10th second. General rule, the less weight you have the better your fuel economy will be along with speed/accell etc. Handling improves too

FyreDaug
07-25-2005, 06:20 PM
Wild would be anything you need as a piece of something made out of carbon fiber. Complete panels eveywhere, lexan windows etc.

(btw where can you get lexan, and some tuts to make it yourself?)

w00tw00t111
07-26-2005, 01:40 AM
Wild would be anything you need as a piece of something made out of carbon fiber. Complete panels eveywhere, lexan windows etc.

(btw where can you get lexan, and some tuts to make it yourself?)
When I was messing around w/ lexan I just got it from a glass shop. Same place where I get my plexi glass from. Now I know that they make insanely high temp lexan and I don't know where to get that. When I was using it though it worked and felt pretty much the same as plexi so if you have a lot of experience w/ plexi then you should be fine.


Yeah 100lbs is about 1/10th second. General rule, the less weight you have the better your fuel economy will be along with speed/accell etc. Handling improves too
Well that's true but, I was wondering about the handling part. If you reduce to much weight it induces major understeer right?

FyreDaug
07-26-2005, 06:28 AM
Well that's true but, I was wondering about the handling part. If you reduce to much weight it induces major understeer right?

No thats not always true, unless you take alot of weight off one part and throw the car off balance a lighter car will always handle better. Theres less stress on suspension, tires, less body roll, less momentum (which can be a bad thing sometimes) and increased stopping power. If you strip everything from the rear of the car and its utterly front heavy, then yeah you would have some understeer issues. The purpose of me removing stuff from my car is to obtain as close to a 50/50 balance as I can without spending too much. But you know how that is...

A20A1
07-26-2005, 12:25 PM
What about traction though... You'll have to buy new suspension parts or your lighter car mixed with springs/shocks ment for a heavier car will cause problems right?

w00tw00t111
07-26-2005, 02:09 PM
What about traction though... You'll have to buy new suspension parts or your lighter car mixed with springs/shocks ment for a heavier car will cause problems right?
Yeah that should be true also. I mean just using basic common sense if your springs/shocks don't have enough force to keep the car down then when you accelerate you should just spin the tires. And actually shouldn't more weight front less weight back creat oversteer? I mean more weight in the front=better traction, less in the back= less traction. front traction + no rear traction = drifting and drifting = oversteer.

09-09-2005, 12:15 PM
This is an interesting thread. I'm all about making things go faster. I read 100lbs dropped = .1 sec in the 1/4; but at some point wouldn't that become exponential rather than stay linear. An exageration would be if the same engine (say dx, no fi, 98hp) was on a 200lb go cart frame - it surely could do a sub 10 sec 1/4 mile (provided there is traction) rather than only drop just over 2 seconds, right? So, if you stay within say 100-250lbs this might be true, but if the weight was reduced to an extreme, say dumping 500+, the car would be noticeably faster and more responsive. Comments?

Oh, has anyone actually got experience with lexan? I might try that for the he11 of it. I have a little $$ to burn and I'm in the mood for some major body demolition, lol. I've even considered chopping off the roof. I still have some miles in this engine so why not enjoy it while it last?

A20A1
09-09-2005, 10:57 PM
88turboaccord

has used lexan to replace his rear window.

.

cody509
09-17-2005, 12:57 AM
Yeah 100lbs is about 1/10th second. General rule, the less weight you have the better your fuel economy will be along with speed/accell etc. Handling improves too

exactly what i was going to say. a lot of people that reduce their weight arent just doing it for "racing" purposes....

why make your tired old motor drag around an extra 200lbs if it doesnt have to?

09-19-2005, 09:46 AM
Now that gas is very high, removing dead weight becomes even more appealing. I'll be removing anything i can live w/o once i move into my new house. (2car garage = always good weather and a place to store this stuff.) I would say 10% of the stock weight can be removed and it would still be very drivable. I dont care how quiet it is or if i'll be able to sell it. The bare paint surfaces I exposed when replacing the rear struts looks better than the nasty old grey carpet anyway!

hot-87-hatch
09-21-2005, 07:54 PM
I heard or read or something somewhere that the general rule of thumb is that one horsepower is gained for every 6 lbs.. Or was it 60? I dont know anyone ever hear of something like this?

hot-87-hatch
09-21-2005, 08:13 PM
I believe the steering rack is lubricated by the power steering fluid itself. If so, couldn't removing the power steering altogether present some problems. I would think there would be seriously increased wear on the internals as well as the danger of lock-up.

A20A1
09-21-2005, 09:21 PM
When you remove the PS pump you loop the fluid lines on the steering rack so that fluid remains in the system.

cody509
09-27-2005, 03:51 PM
has anyone found any tutorials dealing with lexan and replacing windows? i searched but to no avail. i imagine it wouldnt be too hard, would i just silicone it in with some new weather stripping?

would you need high temp if its not near the engine bay? i imagine it could with stand 100 degrees right?

i was thinking just replacing the rear door windows with it and then removing the motors on both sides, the motor on one sides broke anyways.

i dont want to replace the back because then i would need roof support, plus i like having the defroster.






When you remove the PS pump you loop the fluid lines on the steering rack so that fluid remains in the system.

do you have a picture of which lines loop to where?

lilneedle
11-26-2005, 10:25 AM
I have an 88 2 door carby...and heres my reductions:
1.All emissions and uneeded vaccum(i just have vuccum advance and the brakes.)
2.Power steering everything.
3.Complete A/C system:compressor,condensor,blower motor,ect.
4.A/C idle crap.
5.Vaccum secondaries(converted to mechanical.)
6.A/C power steering bracket.
7.Tow hooks.
8.spare tire.
9.Center console.
10.Shifter console and knob(5 speed swap comming soon...)
11.Glove box.
12.ECU cover ander driver seat.
13.Heater core.
14.CAT heat shield
15.Exaust manifold cover.
16.Timing belt cover.
17.Windshield washer system .complete
18.Trunk cardboard.
19.Jack.
20.Hubcaps lolol. getting rims.
21.Seat belt light assembly.
22.Sun visors.
23.roof handles.
24.heater and a/c switches.
25.Carpet.
26.sound deadening under carpet and dash.
27.Back seat supports.
28.3rd brakelight.
29.Back seatbelts.
30.Ash trays.
31.EGR system.
32.Choke system.
33.A/C idle.
34.Secondary cooling fan.
35.ECT,ECT,ECT.... LOL
MESSAGE ME FOR HELP ...IM REALLY WANTING TO JOIN THE CLUB...:bowrofl:

gfrg88
11-26-2005, 11:25 AM
.

Justin86
11-26-2005, 05:02 PM
nice little list, have you weight it since?

A20A1
11-26-2005, 05:04 PM
Still can't be sure your speedometer gearing on the trans will work for very long without lubrication. Mine died because I removed the PS lines.

davke
11-28-2005, 11:06 AM
don't forget go to the toilet before runing car ! :)

Aer0deck
12-15-2005, 01:34 PM
i'm also thinking about fiberglass, i want to do my hood and fenders front/back.i stillgot to do some work on my engine (a20a2), and i don't know were to begin from :)

Kabuki
12-15-2005, 02:58 PM
Still can't be sure your speedometer gearing on the trans will work for very long without lubrication. Mine died because I removed the PS lines.


Eh? That's a new one... Just use the unit from a Civic that has no power steering. Same bore, same end clip on the Speedo cable, but no unneeded PS pipes.

Sporno
01-24-2006, 07:49 PM
how do u remove the cam gear cover?

Sporno
03-15-2006, 07:25 AM
well ive taken off the cam gear cover,the 4 clips for the injectors on the fuel rail , the oem braket for the stock intake , removed stock intake parts, misc. clips , brackets and such

and for the pretty much non-effective weight reduction, it removes less than the stick on carbonfiber adds.

polised valve cover
polished hood prop -up
polished battery tie dwon
polished raditer cap

Sporno
03-15-2006, 12:45 PM
i didnt do it to drop the weight

gfrg88
03-15-2006, 12:50 PM
:stupid: so why did you post that crap on here????