S2000 weight savings.
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From: Melbourne!
Originally posted by alexf20c
Do you always have 7 liters of windshield washer fluid handy?
Do you always have 7 liters of windshield washer fluid handy?
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From: Santa Cruz, CA, US
hey mike, what about the passager and driver windows? They are easy to remove, especially with your door panels off.
They've got to be 15+ lbs each and you run on the track w/ the windows down.
I might have missed it, but did you remove all the carpet in the trunk? Theres also a fair amount of Dynamat like material below the top and in the trunk. I bet theres more weight to be saved if you remove that.
They've got to be 15+ lbs each and you run on the track w/ the windows down.
I might have missed it, but did you remove all the carpet in the trunk? Theres also a fair amount of Dynamat like material below the top and in the trunk. I bet theres more weight to be saved if you remove that.
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From: SoCal
Originally posted by Mike Schuster
One or both of the AC/radiator fans could go, at least 9 months of the year.
One or both of the AC/radiator fans could go, at least 9 months of the year.
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From: CA
krazik, I did remove the trunk trim (5lbs), but not that stuff glued to the sheet metal. I agree about the windows - door and trunk lock motors and misc hardware too.
Prolene, you are probably right. I had figured that the fan turns on so rarely on my car that a little better cool down on my part in those cases would suffice.
Prolene, you are probably right. I had figured that the fan turns on so rarely on my car that a little better cool down on my part in those cases would suffice.
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From: Santa Cruz, CA, US
also you can alway but the fan(s) back in if you plan to run in august at willow springs 
. But a cool down lap or two should be plenty. Just be sure not to idle too much. If you are not moving, turn the engine off.
They enforced that alot on the formula cars.
. But a cool down lap or two should be plenty. Just be sure not to idle too much. If you are not moving, turn the engine off.They enforced that alot on the formula cars.
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From: SoCal
It's beginning to remind me of the out and out racer Porsche 944 I saw at West End Alignment. Lexan windows, fuel cell, the works.
Have you considered pulling the wiper blade holders and even removing the wiper blade motors? RainX could help and if you don't think you'll see much rain at the track....
I took the wipers off to see how things look, and it seems to change the look significantly. A very clean look.
I noticed Lexan windowshields are available for Porsche (Performance Products in Van Nuys, CA). I would like to see such an option for the S2000.
Have you considered pulling the wiper blade holders and even removing the wiper blade motors? RainX could help and if you don't think you'll see much rain at the track....
I took the wipers off to see how things look, and it seems to change the look significantly. A very clean look.
I noticed Lexan windowshields are available for Porsche (Performance Products in Van Nuys, CA). I would like to see such an option for the S2000.
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From: CA
OK, here is a report on my car. I just got home from two days at Sears Point plus a couple of hundred miles of street driving.
First the good news:
There is an obvious improvement in acceleration performance. The subjective sense of this, the difference in the way the car feels under acceleration with a 10% weight loss, is larger that I was expecting.
The car acts as if throttle response has been improved. I had not expected this at all. I found that I needed to be smoother with throttle movements to avoid jerks, in first and second gears especially.
The car feels good under braking. One and a half days of my time at Sears Point was in the wet, so I don't know if brake overheating has been reduced.
Now the bad news:
The car is loud inside. When I first cut the exhaust, interior noise was not too loud in my opinion. But now with all of the sound insulation removed, it is too loud. Cruising at 70mph in sixth gear I measured 100db +/- 2 in right in front of my head. In VTEC it is much louder. For long distance street driving it is too much. Earplugs are needed.
Outside the car it is not too loud. No louder that most of the other cars at the track.
In the wet at Sears Point, handling was fine. The car was predictable and lap times were as good or better than most other cars. However, I raced at SP forty days last year so I know the track well.
In the dry frankly the car has some issues. I believe that my weight lost is biased toward the back of the car. This change in front/rear weight distribution may be causing problems. Straight acceleration is great but cornering speed is reduced. There are two issues.
First, at low speed I experienced extremely bad wheel spin in some corners. In the 180 degree turn 7, the inside wheel is off the ground from about half way through the turn all the way past the second apex and past the trackout point. To avoid being in the rev limiter through this section I have to feather the throttle. It is silly. I can't get into the Esses with decent speed. Same thing in turn 11, another hairpin leading onto the front straight. Note that is problem could be partially due to a corner balancing problem. More weight came off the right side of the car but I did not redo the corner balance yet.
The second problem appears to be worse bump steer. In some of the high speed corners, like 10, there are some bumps near the apexes. The car steps out in these bumps. Although predictable because it happens every lap, it does not inspire confidence, especially with all the walls at Sears Point. My cornering speeds were significantly reduced because I just did not have the confidence to drive near the limit.
So all in all in the dry even with the better acceleration my lap times were reduced. And this was even after I had spent a day and a half in the wet sliding the car around. Usually after such a stint I do well in the dry. But not this time.
Two more comments. Throughout the two days I had another very experienced driver test the car. We tried various ride height and damper adjustments. He was faster than me in the dry, but shares my feelings.
Finally, the rear Ohlins do not have much suspension travel available before hitting the bump stops. So stiffer springs than Ohlins' standard recommendation are needed for bumpy tracks if you want to lower the car much.
First the good news:
There is an obvious improvement in acceleration performance. The subjective sense of this, the difference in the way the car feels under acceleration with a 10% weight loss, is larger that I was expecting.
The car acts as if throttle response has been improved. I had not expected this at all. I found that I needed to be smoother with throttle movements to avoid jerks, in first and second gears especially.
The car feels good under braking. One and a half days of my time at Sears Point was in the wet, so I don't know if brake overheating has been reduced.
Now the bad news:
The car is loud inside. When I first cut the exhaust, interior noise was not too loud in my opinion. But now with all of the sound insulation removed, it is too loud. Cruising at 70mph in sixth gear I measured 100db +/- 2 in right in front of my head. In VTEC it is much louder. For long distance street driving it is too much. Earplugs are needed.
Outside the car it is not too loud. No louder that most of the other cars at the track.
In the wet at Sears Point, handling was fine. The car was predictable and lap times were as good or better than most other cars. However, I raced at SP forty days last year so I know the track well.
In the dry frankly the car has some issues. I believe that my weight lost is biased toward the back of the car. This change in front/rear weight distribution may be causing problems. Straight acceleration is great but cornering speed is reduced. There are two issues.
First, at low speed I experienced extremely bad wheel spin in some corners. In the 180 degree turn 7, the inside wheel is off the ground from about half way through the turn all the way past the second apex and past the trackout point. To avoid being in the rev limiter through this section I have to feather the throttle. It is silly. I can't get into the Esses with decent speed. Same thing in turn 11, another hairpin leading onto the front straight. Note that is problem could be partially due to a corner balancing problem. More weight came off the right side of the car but I did not redo the corner balance yet.
The second problem appears to be worse bump steer. In some of the high speed corners, like 10, there are some bumps near the apexes. The car steps out in these bumps. Although predictable because it happens every lap, it does not inspire confidence, especially with all the walls at Sears Point. My cornering speeds were significantly reduced because I just did not have the confidence to drive near the limit.
So all in all in the dry even with the better acceleration my lap times were reduced. And this was even after I had spent a day and a half in the wet sliding the car around. Usually after such a stint I do well in the dry. But not this time.
Two more comments. Throughout the two days I had another very experienced driver test the car. We tried various ride height and damper adjustments. He was faster than me in the dry, but shares my feelings.
Finally, the rear Ohlins do not have much suspension travel available before hitting the bump stops. So stiffer springs than Ohlins' standard recommendation are needed for bumpy tracks if you want to lower the car much.