what are some ways to drop weight from the car with out altering the interior to much? I already have a saleen wing which is lighter and a fiberglass cobra r hood, took out all the sound stuff in the hatch. what else
remove a/c, fog light brackets(i bought APC foglights and bolted them into my bumper reinforcement) remove smog pump, take out spare tire and jack, lets all i can think of off the top of my head
1. get rid of the smog set up and all the associated hard ware.
2. take the "dogbone" off the rear end.
3. if you want to you can ditch the foglights and the associated bracketry. When I did that I put my transcooler behind one of the holes and am gonna duct it in. I plan on putting and oil cooler on the other side
4. This isn't so much weight reduction as distribution, you can relocate the battery to the rear hatch area. From what I understand not NHRA legal or somethin but it will help with weight distribution. You will need a battery box and a relocation kit.
5. You can remove the underlayment and padding from the carpet. I know you said you didn't want to mess with the interior but I figured I would throw it out there. You will still have carpet just no underlayment or padding. It will make it louder in the passenger compartment.
I am sure there is more stuff but that is all I can think of off the top of my head. Others will have more suggestions.
The DOG BONE is the big chunk of metal, shaped almost like a dog bone, that is bolted to the rear end. Do not remove this if you have STOCK rear gears, because it eliminates vibrations.. if you have swapped your gears for an aftermarket gear (say 3:55 or 3:73 etc), then the dogbone is useless and you should remove it.
If you do a battery relocation, and you have a hatch, the best bet is the Taylor Battery Relocation Box, I have it, it includes cables, the box, hold down, vent tube, and it is sealed. I was going to make my own, but didn't feel the trouble was worth it, plus when a track tech see's something home-made, it raises a rad flag so to speak and they will comb every bit of it, they see what i have and don't go much further. You will also need a disconnect swich mounted outside the car.
Weight is a big deal in racing, because when it comes down to it, its the wieght to power ratio that wins races, especailly off the line. One reason why notch lx's are so popular. I've scene them below 2600lbs and not even gutted. The maind thing is getting wieght off the front end. I've taken so much off the front my car looks like it is in a perment launch. Coil overs will end up taking up that problem, when I get the money.
That was a good site, www.carbdford.com not 100%, but definatly worth looking. So many places you can deduce weight. Not to mention the newer fiberglass doors will take off over 100lbs off the car. The front sway bar is 20+lbs, fog light support is pretty heavy, I am about to delete P/S, which with the aluminun rack will delete 30lbs.