PIKE2244

B/c it is my intention that being made for Racing Applications and being made for DD / performance use are two different things... IMO the harshness of Daily Driving is consistently more harsh then trailering a car to the track running it and then trailering it home.

So, I don't want to put it on and have issues later... I mean please educate me; I am always open to differing opinions and being educated!

LEO_06GT

Think about it this way. That support bar is there for two things 1) to support the radiator 2) to hold the swaybar. With that being said when will there be more abuse on the bar? When your road racing and taking turns at speeds in which the car is subjected to more lateral g's than anything you'd ever do on the street or when your making a left hand turn into your driveway at 5mph? If it holds up on a road course it's going to hold up to anything you can throw at it on the street.

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All BS aside what's your goal with this car? Are you planning on doing other weight saving mods? If so do those other weight savings total over 100lbs? If not then I recommend you just save your money and not even consider this mod. Don't see the point on wasting $200 to save 10lbs if your not going to all out. I'm all for shedding weight but if your not going to go all out It's pretty pointless. JMO.

PIKE2244

Well lets see; I have been trying to answer that question for a while now.... I would LOVE to take off as much weight as possible (but let me preface that w/ my wife still rides in the car so some amount of civility needs to remain unfortunately).... So if you have some recommendations for weight saving I am all ears.

I know what I am saying is in essences a give and take --> and I am in completely ok w/ giving up some creature comforts in order to squeeze out more performance... But as I am sure MANY of you guys know that when a wife rides in the car there has to be comfort...

I use my car mostly for DD and shows w/ going to the track about 2 -3 times a month...

LEO_06GT

If that's what your car is used for then I say save your money. Your not going to notice those 10lbs in your DD or at the track. Weight savings and comfort are total opposites and should be left to the dedicated track cars.

Perfect example for you....I've run my car at the track with swaybar on and with the GMS swaybar delete and have netted the exact same ET's. Point being the 20lbs off the front end made no difference in my launch or ET's. If you want to shed time off your ET's by shedding weight your going to have take drastic measures that at the end of the day aren't worth it when it's your daily driver.

PIKE2244

Thank you so much.... See I was hoping that a little here and there would help but I can understand what you are saying. I mean I was thinking about doing a back seat delete & if I did that it would help to replace the Radiator support and K-member.

What do you think?

LEO_06GT

8lbs for the rad support ($179)
20lbs for the k-member ($450)
30lbs rear seat delete ($150)

After all that you'll still be way under a 100lbs and will have added alot of NVH to your car. You'll be surprised how much more noisy the car is if you take off the rear seat. So ask yourself is $779 (not including labor assuming your not doing it yourself.) worth 58lbs of weight savings and NVH??? There's ton's of better performance options you can get for the car with that money IMO. Just for fun let's forget the car all together and think of what $779 can go towards. A car payment, cc payment, mortgage, hookers and blow. Heck just about anything you spend that money on would be be better than spending it to save 58lbs off the car.

With all that said if you wish to continue down this route here's a whole host of weight savings stuff you can do.
http://s197forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13162

PIKE2244

Yep I was just hoping for more.... But for what its worth I would be doing the work myself but $779 is a good chunk of change. So I feel I've come full circle w/ everything and I will just replace the motor mounts...

EagleStroker

Not to confuse you even more, the really nice thing about a tubular K-member is how roomy it makes it under the car. Everything is just easier to get to and there is a lot more clearance. That being said, only you know how to spend your money

Import-Slaya

Yeah, those **** pesky stock arms!

There's definitely front end weight to be lost, though. The Steeda piece is nice and there are quite a few road racer types running it without problems. Also, a K-member from Agent47 is on the wish list. Swap in a light weight battery and mount it under the passenger seat or in the trunk and you are set. Total of probably 40-50 lbs off the front end with those 3 mods.

CO_VaporGT_09

Good to hear it holds up on the track, I might think about getting one down the road...

What battery would fit under the front seat??

EagleStroker

There is a huge thread on the S197 forum about lightweight batterys, most use a C-tek which is a more affordable Braille battery.

PIKE2244

I have a question? How hard is it to relocate the battery to the Rear??? Well considering previous statements; what is your opinion on whether 50-60 lbs. would make a difference??? I'm all ears.

EagleStroker

Honesty I do it as a form off offsetting weight I will add down the road AND I'm getting a stronger part IMO. I plan to just put a lightweight battery and a smaller box to hold it in a location close to stock. Relocating to the rear is beneficial for weight but you have to have a certified box to act as a firewall if you plan to race AND you have to have a cut off switch that is easily accessible. That and one could argue that the weight of the wire needed would offset what's lost from the lightweight battery (but its putting the weight in a better area for transfer). There are a lot of ways to look at it but if you can take say 200lbs out of a car everything works better, and it doesn't work as hard. The rule of thumb is 100 pounds is a tenth in the quarter.

PIKE2244

Yeah to be honest I really wasn't looking at relocating the battery I just wanted to see what it would take.... The smaller battery is a logistical possibility; one you would recommend????

NastyStang113

Agreed completely. I was really hell bent on relocating mine to the back but decided it's just not worth it especially having to have the switch mounted some place in plain sight. The factory battery location isn't bad either since it's behind the front wheels.

Doogie

Good point Robert about offsetting weight... for those of us superchargers, loosing 40 or 50 lbs up front would help offset that added weight.

PIKE2244

Understand, but what is the thought regarding what someone else on here said about 50-60lbs not making a bit of difference.... I understand thinning out the front to offset the added weight of a FI sys, but what about prior to this??? Does it make since????

EagleStroker

Does modding a car at all "make sense?" You my friend are the only one that can justify it or deny it. To me it is, to him obviously not. Losing weight is the same as gaining power honestly and that's why you pay the price.

PIKE2244

I can understand where you are coming from, and I wish my wife would understand me when I say that modding is just a way of life and that it is necessary just like um lets say breathing... Hahaha. In all seriousness though I guess it comes down to how far am I gonna take my mods I guess??? I mean I plan to eventually get a SC but considering the restraints of the stock block 425rwhp in my mind isn't competitive enough to deserve the mild weight reduction...

I don't know.... I am so torn. --> I mean if I was gonna do things right I want to get a different motor in order to create a good foundation to start w/ but that is a WHOLE new ball of wax

EagleStroker

Welcome to my world! First a long block no big deal, the a decent suspension set up. Then when funds for f/i come into the picture you realize your fuel system and tranny won't support what you stick the car at st that point so there's another 4-5 grand. Pick your poison and stick to it, sounds like you need to decide what you want from the car first!