Moe87

---UPDATE---

Firebird has become the weekend warrior/project fun car

I've purchased a 94 volvo 940 turbo as my new DD

got an 89 GTA as a daily driver. 350 TPI. WS6 package and 9 bolt borgwarner posi. Looking to shave as much weight as possible while still retaining as much DD functionality and look to the car as possible. primary reason is when i add struts tower brace, anti-swaybars, subframe connectors, etc, i am not adding weight just swapping it. Secondary reason is to equalize the weight distribution closer to 50/50.

So far:

i run lexan tops over glass
aluminum driveshaft
removed windshield washer tank
removed entire a/c system (except wiring harness hookups) even blower for now.
removed trunk cover (the roll up jigadoo)
replaced old sound system with new slightly lighter setup, no sub/amps
roll around with half a tank or less constant
Aluminum GTA wheels (believe these are lighter than the other wheel types).

what i am thinking:

removing foam insulation under carpet and replacing with a thinner, lighter material.
air/smog and charcoal canister delete
hooker 2055 to replace stock manifolds to be put in (after broken stud is replaced :[ )
shaving down front bumper support (if possible)
removing spare tire + jack
replacing stock spoiler (the really crappy plastic one) with the other model (the dukes of hazard looking one)
gutting front seat motorized parts and j/b welding lumbar/love-handle supports in place
possibly removing rear seats.
plastic gastank from fourthgen scrapyard?
relocate battery to trunk (where spare was maybe)?

---UPDATE---

Firebird has become the weekend warrior/project fun car

I've purchased a 94 volvo 940 turbo as my new DD

dirtrides2009

Shaving the bumper is a bad idea... It will hurt the handling and could hurt you in a crash. You could look into a custom one though, if you do a search Im pretty sure theirs some people who made their own light-weight tubular ones.

Battery difference will be negligible especially with the extra cable's weight, and instead of hacking the power seats It would be way easier and more comfortable to install 4th gen or "racing" seats, but the rest of the stuff makes sense.

Clicky ---> https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...on-thread.html

hardon85

My only suggestion is do not hack up your nice seats just get some non power ones that will save a lot of weight right there and there is a pretty big market for those seats. But you say this car is a daily driver so is this your only car? If you have already taken the A/C out this car can't be much fun to drive in the hot summer months. I would evaluate what you really want to do before turning a nice car into a race car since race cars don't make very nice daily drivers.

Moe87

its not a racecar, its not for racing. its a DD firebird that looks good and i want it to handle better than factory.

Dartht33bagger

Honestly for a daily driver, your wasting your time.

mightymaro94

if you dont haul ppl in the rear... how bout a rear seat delete... if you want it to handle ... how bout finding an after market brake kit... lighter rotors and calipers (unsprung weight reduction is better for handling)

and see this thread : https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...on-thread.html

blue85305

my back seats don't feel like they weighed enough to really make a difference to be honest. try a fiberglass hood if you have the bank for one.

Moe87

i have been browsing the sale section here for lighter parts for a couple months now. Hopefully ill find a lighter hood thats not a cowl (want it to look stock and no need for a cowl). Pin on hoods are not ideal since its a DD and the last thing i need is cops looking at my car any more than they already do

rear seat delete would give me more space to carry computers to and from my shop without ruining the nice leather...

I will be changing the front rotors and calipers sometime in the future for more stopping power. Will most likely drop a few lbs from that as well.

What about the plastic gas tank from a 4thgen? The current one is really heavy if im not mistaken. Aluminum radiator as well?

iroc-z_23

iTrader: (1)

The stuff your doing is not even going to make enough of a difference to tell. If your wanting weight reduction your taking away from DD. I mean. If your looking to make your car faster for a DD then look towards "go fast" parts.

Moe87

Ive got new headers to be put on, definitely lighter than stock and will improve performance, and also getting a mandrel bent 3" cat-back with better muffler.

Ive already replaced the stock intake with a conical K&N and once spring rolls around, i'll be porting the plenum. Once i understand prom burning and the math behind it, i'll be burning a custom chip to make use of the mods.

Every bit counts though, and that is what im looking for.

iroc-z_23

iTrader: (1)

Do you care much about your MPG? maybe a little lower gearing

hardon85

I couldn't have said it better myself. From what I gather this is only a daily driver that never goes to the race track. First off you are right every bit of weight savings will help but how are you gonna gauge it? Before you go through all of this stuff try this throw 200 pounds of stuff in your car then drive it around for a while and see if you can tell a difference at all. Now if you took it to a racetrack you would see the difference in your times. But do you even drag race your friends at stoplights? Not trying to talk you out of anything but I think you will be much happier buying go fast parts since you will be able to feel those mods.

hardon85

I couldn't have said it better myself. From what I gather this is only a daily driver that never goes to the race track. First off you are right every bit of weight savings will help but how are you gonna gauge it? Before you go through all of this stuff try this throw 200 pounds of stuff in your car then drive it around for a while and see if you can tell a difference at all. Now if you took it to a racetrack you would see the difference in your times. But do you even drag race your friends at stoplights? Not trying to talk you out of anything but I think you will be much happier buying go fast parts since you will be able to feel those mods.

iroc-z_23

iTrader: (1)

If you do decide to go this route, you need to weigh it before you did all this stuff. I wouldn't do it unless it seen a drag strip or street racing myself, like hardon said..
But For every 100 pounds, it's a tenth of a second.

stackofire

That's not gonna help to achieve 50/50.

Actually, if you keep your tank full all the time then the petrol won't be moving about on the bends ruining your weight distribution


Honestly, how much weight you gonna save doing that? There was hardly any insulation under my carpet when I took it out so I can't see the point...

BTW after I removed my A/C and SMOG I never noticed one bit of difference in performance. Invest in better springs/shocks, tyres, wheels, suspension components if you really want better handling

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Only two Id consider are upgrading the original heavy rubber backed carpet for a new set of aftermarket. First, its not stained/torn/faded and looks 100x better, second it drops about 60lbs of rubber weight. The insulation isnt heavy, its the rubber back thats killer. Second are headers over manifolds, only because manifolds suck so badly

Id consider those beneficial mods that just happen to weigh less in the end. For a DD I wouldnt bother removing stuff put in there to make your life easier IE spare tire

85Z28NOS

iTrader: (2)

I recieved alot of flack for cutting my front bumper and have since bought aluminum square tubing and made my own (saved 15lbs). I replaced the water pump with an aluminum unit (saved 8lbs). I also ordered a lightweight mini starter but havent installed it yet (should save 10lbs?). I am running a fiberglass bolt on hood, ditched all the smog equipment including the charcoal canister, removed all the air conditioning equipment but saved in case I want to reinstall later. Dont let everyone discourage you, do what YOU WANT TO YOUR CAR, I have managed to loose 50lbs off the front alone and can tell the difference!

jensen73110

iTrader: (4)

T-5. You'll cut nearly 100 lbs.

Mathius

I never cease to shake my head when I hear people say they're getting rid of their charcoal canister. It weighs almost nothing, it doesn't rob horsepower, it takes up very little space and it helps deal with engine vapors, which is a good thing. A more useful mod would be trying to find a way to change the filter since at 28-29 years since the first f-body rolled off the line those filters are probably pretty much clogged and useless by now.

Mathius

hardon85

I'm not trying to start an argument with you but I really doubt you can feel the difference of 50 lbs. I used to race go-karts and when I would race in a heavier class I would have to add 50 lbs to make weight and I could not tell the difference driving the kart and my normal weight was 300 lbs. and if you add 50 that's a 16% difference and if you take 50 lbs. off of 3500 lbs that's only about a 2% difference, also we only had about 12 HP so I think if you would notice the weight difference it would have been in my go-kart but I could not. Now everybody knows a lighter car is faster the only reason all of us are telling him to shy away from these is it is his daily driver that never goes to the track and his money would be better spent buying go fast goodies (exhaust, cam etc). Yes it is his car but with not much advantage why spend all that money?

stackofire

No, you cannot...

The difference in what?

Don't eat too much over Christmas then, because you'll waste all that time and money making your car lighter


PS
Sorry, I don't wanna be nasty, but your claims are shocking. It was probably just "plecebo" effect.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

Only way he'd feel an immediate difference is if he took something necessary off

//<86TA>\\

iTrader: (14)

real weight loss? light weight fiberglass hood, aluminum front bumper, aluminum heads and aluminum water pump would be a good start on the front, could loose well over a hundred pounds right there. Rear seatbelts weight a few pounds, the seat backs weight a bit too, the bottoms weight nothing.

but for a DD, and for no other reason that to loose weight, its not worth it.

stackofire

My point exactly

85Z28NOS

iTrader: (2)

I guess this depends on the persons idea of daily driver and its other uses. If you are only driving around miss daisy then go buy a light weight, slow, V-6 camaro and just look fast. I want my car to be a street legal race car of sorts and am always looking for some way to improve even the slightest amount. As for the weight, I have had to change out my 1" (with a coil cut out)lowering springs to 1.8" because the front end went back up after loosing all the weight. I can tell the difference only when I autocrossed the car, NOT while driving around town! Again it all depends on what you do with your car and what you call DD.

If you only drive it as a DD car then just enjoy it and dont spend money that wont make a difference, I am not disputing that, the guy asked for suggestions, not opinion, and wasnt specific why he even wanted to loose the weight to begin with

jensen73110

iTrader: (4)

Titanium lug nuts.

Moe87

---UPDATE---

Firebird has become the weekend warrior/project fun car

I've purchased a 94 volvo 940 turbo as my new DD

firechicken76

iTrader: (3)

how much weight did the lexan ttops shave off?