Car weight advice

This might seem like a completly random post but I need some advice as to where we can lose some weight from our car.



It tips the scales at just over 2200lbs...

This is a Steve Plueger funny car chassis, topolino body, rear wing, Donovan solid block, Morgan billet heads, Kobelco 14/71 blower, Browell can (main items of weight)

How and where can we reduce the weight of this car?

Answers might well be obvious but I want to get every lb I can off of the car

Any advice would be great.

 

Carbon, Magnesium and Ti wherever ya can afford it! Kool looking ride though. Is that 2200 with or w/o driver? I can get my FC over the scales at 2200 w/driver.

 

Thats the plan, really want as much weight gone as we can. Thanks for comments too! Thats just over 2200 with driver. he has lost some lbs too

 

we just put our car on a diet last year....it now weighs 1785 ready to race with no driver. do you have onboard batteries? if so, you can lose a bunch there. we took ours out and plug in to start....i use a small gel battery for the shift lite and tach. a titanium can will drop a few pounds. a 3 speed B&J is a little lighter than a Lenco i think. you run the f/c front wheels/tires....the 17" dragster wheels/tires will save a few pounds. not sure if you have front brakes or not. i saved 15 pounds on making myself a new set of headers. a carbon body would help too. mag idler, and pullies, manifold, injector hat, etc. it's difficult to lose weight in big chunks. i just looked at every piece of the car and tried to see if i could change it and lose a pound here and there. another thing is wheels and tires. beadlocks will be lighter than liners and tubes. there are a few pounds difference in brands of tires too. just go over everything with a fine tooth comb....you might surprise yourself.
Darren

 

Darren
Thanks for the great reply, no we use rcd starter, do have very small gel battery for the tach/light but thats it.
Can is one place we looked at, I know we can definetly trim some excess material off of it which will save some weight.
Do have a 3 speed lenco but thats fairly new so dont wanna change that really, want to keep front wheels too as were thinking of buying a funny car body too. Think were just going to pull the car to pieces and like you say look at every part, cut every bolt down to what it needs to be etc.
Already got beadlocks too, we made the hat ourselves too so dont wanna change that in a hurry but I think idlers is somewhere we could look at losing some weight, might even make a new one.
Thanks again

 

When building or fabricating pieces for the race car you need to be in a constant state of mind in regards to weight. It's almost an obsession, every bolt only needs to be as long as it needs to be, extra cut it off. Brackets only need to serve there function, no frills.
Look at everything on the car, and be creative and honest about it's function and how can you make it the irreducible minimum and still be safe and legal.

(Here is the battery, some Pro Mod Teams are using them.)
Star Racing makes a 18 volt (like drill battery) for race cars. Recharge and clip it in for next round to run your misc.
MILWAUKEE 18V BATTERIES, 2 PK, 2.4 AMP MILWAUKEE 18V BATTERIES, 2 PK, 2.4 AMP
MILWAUKEE 18V BATTERIES, 2 PK, 2.4 AMP. PRICED PER PACK OF 2.
PRICE: $157.50

MILWAUKEE BATTERY BRACKET/HOLDER, 18 VOLT MILWAUKEE BATTERY BRACKET/HOLDER, 18 VOLT
MILWAUKEE 18 VOLT BATTERY BRACKET/HOLDER. SOLD EACH.
PRICE: $209.00

Blessings.........Ron Clevenger.

 

yea Tim but you only weigh a buck 49 lbs
not like the rest of us 200+ guys
but if you can change as much as you can to Ti or mag
i took almost 12 lbs out just making Ti studs and brackets
consider alum outers on your headers -8 lbs right there if you can find them

 

also....if you run a T/F tire you can save a bunch right there. that is alot of tire for that car...just something else to consider.

 

OK, you got my attention with that one. What are we talking about? Double wall headers?

-Scouder

 

after putting a new fiat body on my car i can tell you that my 07 mustang body complete was alot heavier than what the fiat is complete and i felt like my mustang body was light

 

I wish 149! That reminds me though, I built some special light weight headers that were 18# less that anyones but ya better have a welder at the track!

 

Many thanks for all the replies. Whilst weight saving is an obvious thing I wanted to cover EVERYTHING.

I have already made enquiries about getting all of our chassis panels/seat/belly pan made in carbon fibre, this will save a few pounds

We will be trimming all we can off of the can (steel) wish we had the funds for Ti but we dont at present. (how much can these be picked up for used?)

One place I want to look at is our shifter bottle, we can use a smaller one for sure.

Then we are going to look at EVERY part on the car and if safe lose weight from it wether it be by drilling/lathe/mill OR remake it lighter and of new design/material

Were pretty handy on lathes/mills and have 4 so we can knock up most things which helps.

In the process were going to fit a new Strange steering box and sfi quick release hub, not for weight but for safety.

Little things like drilling out dzus brackets too

Please keep ideas coming like I said I dont wanna to miss anything obvious.

Thanks again.

 

The difference between my hays steel can and my Tit bellhousing was 35 pounds all by itself. Also the fuel line thing- startline hose weighs half of what braided stainless steel hose weighs. A bunch of weight there to be saved. Don't be afraid to put the squeeze on the driver. I lost 50 pounds last year and that was the cheapest of the weight savings- just don't eat so much. Dave Germain

 

Depending on the rules Trick now makes Alum cans. They're substantially lighter than Ti and WAY cheaper. Check out www.tricktitanium.com for the pertinents. As far as a used Ti can price....if it's out of cert, probably around $1750-ish....maybe a bit more. I sent you a PM on some ideas for weight savings.

Regards,
Brandon Booher
NHRA TAD #44

 

I was visiting the shop of a friend of mine who races snowmobiles. He had already put aluminum and titanium bolts everywhere he could, so he was going back through and dishing the bolt heads, and hollow drilling bolts.

-Scouder

 

Can is top of the list for buying, if anyone knows of any.

Understand about carbon but were lucky to have a sponsor that will make them for us, he is very good, made a complete carbon injector (hopefully can bring further news about that this year)

Just the panels must be a few pounds.

Also Goodridge are a sponsor of ours so I am going to see about lighter hoses, like you say its an easy way to lose weight.

Headers were going to keep as we made them and they will work with a funny car (once we add second skin)

 

Thanks again for all the replies.

We have set a target to lose 200lbs from the car (race ready)

Lots to do!

 

On the battery deal will the small batterys run a data logger as well as a tach andshift light ? Does someone have a number of somewhere toget the small batterys mentioned earlier ?