Taking off weight

How about some ideas on how to take off weight legally. Seems like it's a concern to some folks here.

Some ideas:
- Header & Exhaust. Keep it short. Use thin walled stainless (if you can affort it) tubing
- Don't go nuts with your cage. Safety doesn't mean 100 tubes.
- Window glass and mechanism is heavy.
- Cheap, I mean REALLY cheap replacement hoods and fenders are significantly thinner and lighter.
- Wheels and tires. Toyos and Kumhos are heavy. Wheels, no brainer here. Some are 25# each, some are #10.
- ALL Sound proofing, Body deadener. This stuff adds up to ~50# on most VWs I've built. Chassis should be stripped bare.
- If you don't need a fuel cell, don't. VW tanks are safe and light.

There are more, but these are a few thing off the top of my head. Anyone have more ideas?


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Bill Sulouff - Bildon Motorsport
Volkswagen Racing Equipment
## 2003 ITB NYSRRC Champs ##

Keep a critical eye on stuff you put in, that you can control. If gauges/panels, seat mounts, mirrors, and a dozen other little things are each 20% lighter than other options, it adds up.

K

Don't forget sunroof mechanisms. 30+#, and it's up high.

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MARRS #25 ITB Rabbit GTI (sold) | MARRS #25 HProd Rabbit
SCCA 279608

Let's see,...

1) delete radiator shroud and add lightweight fan

2) use cheap aftermarket windshield

3) pick and choose between different year (same ITCS line) equipment (especially brakes for VW)

4) if bumpers are non-galvanized steel, select a *nice* used pair from the salt belt

5) boring .040 over must save some iron http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/smile.gif

6) consider weight effects of springs & swaybars, and make compromises where necessary (e.g., stiffer rear springs weigh less than softer rear springs plus swaybar(s)).

AC Stuff, spare tire, passenger seat

Raymond

How about titanium springs for the struts?

Seriously, a big part of the weight battle on a VW has got to be the schutz and sound deadener crap. I don't think that cheap aftermarket fenders mean as much as new (not previously schutzed) sheet metal.

I have no idea why the Germans use such stuff.

Cheers.

I built my last GTI without doing anything extreme and it was 100 lb underweight with the tank close to empty. Cage was built with 1.75 DOM 0.90 wall to keep me feeling warm and fuzzy about my safety and it was well triangulated. I used a non-sunroof shell with NASCAR bar and no driver's window glass. I took all the sound deadener from the inside , but didn't scrape anything from the underside. The exhaust went all the way to the back bumper and I used a Flowmaster 42042 muffler (heavy) because we have to run to 75 dB at Waterford.The point is ,I was able to get below legal weight without trying. I ran the tank half full, used a small spare tire and 25 lb weight bolted to the floor.

You won' thave this luxury with an ITS VW but if you did....puttign the weight back on in the right places is the goal.. So you should take it all out to start with.

eg: How heavy is your fuel line protection?

Nice heavy guage sheet steel under the car and towards the back does nicely. http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/biggrin.gif

Driver - 10-15lbs, but probably the hardest weight to lose http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/smile.gif

My new excuse of gaining weight... The Audi's have the same problem of meeting minumum weight...


Its just balast!!!

Raymond

Yea, but you DO run at Lime Rock (weight on wrong side of car) http://Forums.ImprovedTouring.com/it/wink.gif