Threaded Mode | Linear Mode

zps2004 · (This post was last modified: 10-27-2011 08:58 PM by zps2004.)

So a lot of people think I don't tell them the truth about how light the 2 is. So I figured I would finally weigh the car today. This is a top of the line model, and it has about 5 gallons of gas in it. This was done only to check the weight. I didn't want to go through making sure all of the scales were level.

[Image: 320819_10100176740627288_12701044_461501...1482_n.jpg]

[Image: 320819_10100176740627288_12701044_461501...1482_n.jpg]

[Image: 313002_10100176740687168_12701044_461501...1712_n.jpg]

My Miata with the same amount of gas without the power steering, AC, cruise, interior. Is only 100lbs less.

**Mr.Rauq** · 10-27-2011, 10:22 PM

About the only thing that isn't helped by making a car lighter is top speed, and sometimes traction. EVERYTHING else is helped out with lightness. Cool stuff, I was definitely surprised.

zps2004 · 10-28-2011, 05:59 AM

Top speed has nothing to do with weight. It is only drag VS power. Care to explain those sometime traction items? I can't think of any.

Chill2008 · 10-28-2011, 07:09 AM

(10-28-2011 05:59 AM)zps2004 Wrote: Top speed has nothing to do with weight. It is only drag VS power.

That's basically what he said...

Mr.Rauq Wrote:About the only thing that isn't helped...is top speed

(10-28-2011 05:59 AM)zps2004 Wrote: Care to explain those sometime traction items? I can't think of any.

I assume he's going for less weight = less downforce?

zps2004 · 10-28-2011, 07:46 AM

Yea I did misread that first part.

***jedimario*** · (This post was last modified: 10-28-2011 07:59 AM by jedimario.)

Well, you've got to have enough weight/downforce on the wheels to have a meaningful contact patch right? Pickups won't launch as easily as something more evenly distributed. But I think pretty much any factory car is going to be heavy enough to provide ample traction. I actually learned this the hard way playing Need for Speed of all things. The cars' attributes were saved as plain text files on Hot Pursuit 2, and boy did I get a nice surprise setting all their weights to about 10 pounds Lol

I'm surprised that game's physics model picked that up.

HKYStormFront · 10-28-2011, 08:50 AM

so it's an ariel atom with 4 doors?

dave99rt · 10-28-2011, 09:21 AM

the neon weighed 2305 last Friday at the dragstrip with about 4 gallons of gas in it.
full interior, no spare & jack, no a/c.

**300zmankellan** · 10-28-2011, 12:32 PM

traction becomes an issue when you lighten it too much and don't adjust the suspension. Think of the chopped C4 corvette thing HotRod did a while ago. They got slower after a while because the car didn't weigh enough to squat on the springs which resulted in the development of positive camber.

HKYStormFront · 10-28-2011, 01:08 PM

yea i remember that^ that article was really interesting. it was funny how they had stripped it down to just the shell, powertrain and electronics lol

**Mr.Rauq** · 10-28-2011, 04:23 PM

I launch better with more gas in the tank. My tank is directly behind the rear seats, or at the front of the trunk, depending on how you look at it. I guess that's a combination of weight and weight distribution, but still. Haven't gotten the chance to mess with lateral traction vs gas but I'd imagine there's an impact there as well.