Striping the car out deffo makes a large improvement, but probably more so when coming back on to power maybe? Less momentum to transfer hence quicker pickup. Makes the car feel torquier (not a real word?). At very high speeds it probably doesnt help as much due to drag and wind resistance etc.
next time you go out with a apssenger do a few laps, stop, boot him out and do a few more laps. very unscientific as weight distribution and location for trim is different, but may give you an overall net effect. tt
i would think i would make the car feel torquier (there i that word again lol) I think the low speed performace would be improved. I can remember the topgear test (some white car wasnt it?) but i think you had to goto the extreme to make the time count. But i think some people just like the 'racier' feel/sound
i seem to remember seeing a vid of some yanks quarter miling a car in varios different levels of trim. starting with the standard car then gradually stipping it would show the difference in 1/4 times. no good for lap times i spose,more comedy value than science
top gear did it ages ago with a jag. i think they knocked about a second off the 1/4 mile time. this thread might give you some idea of how much weight you can loss. http://www.edition38.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=21431
Speaking from experience from the Mini, where I have stripped everything possible from it to make it as light as possible except for replacing metal with composites, the tangiable difference to me was the centre of gravity being lower. Removal of all the door inards, replacing glass with perspex, and getting rid of the headling etc has put the weight down near the floorpan of the car. I would say that the difference will be noticed, but will also be in your head, you think its lighter...... Personally with my MK2, I have made it lighter, but have added a cage etc..... so I dont think the weights will be significantly different, so I may just have to up the power of the motor instead.....
Going back to Chris's post about Joe and the Bora, would that have something to do with the power to weight regs in the VW cup? My car definately 'felt' quicker when i went to the plastic windows, but not as much as when i went 2L, but that was 2L, head and lower FD so not the same comparison as Duncan in his mk1 which was a straight 1.8->2.0 swap. As for you lizardboy, yep no doubt you were as quick at Cadwell, thou i did have a pax and you had exceptionally large testicles! But TBH hands-up on that day i think my car could have gone quicker than me. [:^(] There is of course the small matter of the nurburgring, where i should hasten to add on my first visit, i think i was approximately 1.467 lightyears quicker than you! (well 30 sec's but that is a lifetime in motorsport )
my driver feels quicker without the rear bench, but i've been going around with just a dash and the drivers seat this week no carpet no centre console, even all but the drivers seatbelt is out no spare wheel either its definately quicker, alot uglier, totally impractical and with the crazy-volume exhaust that i always mention, you can hear every little pop n burble all the way along the car which is fun! but this is just so i can fit the black carpet i bought off richard B interesting thing i read about certain japanese racing events and the Initial D series... the cars have to still have their interior comforts for everyday its like a rule or something and you can also use it as an excuse .. welll i wudda beaten ure Radical but I still have my full interior holding me back!
30-60 i reckon, as you have less weight to get moving. but once its going its not gonna make as much of a difference. is there anyone planning to strip their car for trackdays? maybe if you have someone who can bring a van you coudl do the morning with interior, then strip it in the lunch break Edited by: acf8181
At the Mallory track day the other week, with my passenger in (90kg ish), I was changing into fifth just as I got straight after Gerrards. With me only I was getting fifth maybe 50 yards before the end of the corner. That was on tyres that had deteriorated as well. Nowt to do with acceleration or braking, just added corner speed from not having another 90 kilos trying to push the car in the opposite direction to the corner. Best lap with passenger was a high 58, 58 dead with me only.
Do agree with the fact that a passenger does slow you down Nick, I'm just pondering if it's worth me stripping the car out more, making it more road unfriendly will be worth the hassle and if it will make it a lot quicker on track? If it's only going to be a second quicker, I'll leave it as it is. If I had another car for road use which I don't.. it would be a no brainer, rip everything that is not needed out! Edited by: GVK
Weight does have a massive effect on acceleration. This will make you lot chuckle but it's a good example. My Dad has a variety of old air-cooled camper vans, mostly with standard 1600cc (50bhp!) engines and needless to say they are very slow. Anyway, I drove one without any camper interior in, just two front seats so essentially a panel van with windows. I used it when moving house to get all of my stuff shifted and it accelerated, braked and handled considerably better than a few months later when it was fitted with the interior again. Admittedly, by interior I mean cupboard, folding bed, fridge, cooker etc but you get the idea! As for my Golf, I increased the engine size rather than lose any of my beloved creature comforts!
Err, yes, bit of an oversight. That just leaves the cornering difference then, where the C of G was higher by keeping the glass, as opposed to having perspex, with a little lead bolted to the floor to bring it back up to weight.
I'd like to know how you can loose 100kg from stripping a Mk2!?! The later estimate of around 40kg sounds more like it, although I'm sure you can get more. You must have to start cutting metal to get 70kg plus.
If you just use the car for work and the odd run around the doors, a stripped car is ok, but like you say, is it really worth being a second quicker round Donny, then freezing your knackers off in the winter cos' you took the heater out!
Doesn't sound like balls to me, not on a race car anyway. Do you remember when BAR and Button got into trouble for having a secret fuel cell in F1? Well it was reconded that the fuel cell was saving them 5kg, which apparently worked out as 0.25 or 0.5 (can't remember exact figure) seconds quicker a lap. For the 0.5 sec a lap or so your saving Gary I wouldn't bother, especially if you have to put everything back in at the end of the day. Sean
Can't quntify the difference in terms of time, but i totally stripped my old 8v and it was noticeably quicker and keener in the bends. I didn't find running a stripped car a problem on the road, sure it was a bit noisier etc but the extra 'sharpness' of the car was more than worth it. Girlfriend moaned like f**k though when i took out the passenger seat and she had to sit on the floor
