There you go bringing reality into this! Go sit in a corner and think about what you've done

More ideas:
Weld the doors shut and take out the latch and door handle parts,
Remove that big chrome gas cap
Run with only three lug bolts (weld the wheels to the hubs maybe?)
Remove the tire valve stem caps!

 

whoops

 

As is going over the speed limit. So arrest him!

 

MSFIT,

You really are considering what I typed back there
Come on, admit it.. you are taking this thread seriously

 

Have you guys seen what Rye's been up to?
http://michiganmini.com/modules.php?...=1061&start=60

 

No kidding. I plan to lose 20 lbs. by Xmas and it isn't costing me anything!

I saw someone mention carbon fiber bonnet and hatch. Can those be painted to match the original body colors? I like the idea of lightweight, but I don't like the black color of the carbon fiber. Makes my car look like a rice rocket.

 

$75K for my left dingleball? That's two MCSs with cash (and the right dingleball) left over. Do you have a phone number?

 

The Carbon fiber can be painted.

 

Supposivley...I don't know the specifics of it...Google it or something..its a rumor I heard when going to UTI

 

UTI?? Uni-******** Institute?? :smile:

Is that one of those REALLY dedicated driving schools? :smile:

 

UTI is actually Universal Technical Institute...its a auto tech school thing

 

Tuna terms for the MINI would be Euro Trash. If it were a BMW 1 series I'd call it Sauer Kraut

 

I am only 55kg but I have a moonroof that makes my car fat : ) No back seats, lightweight wheels.. I'll take out most of the internal components at summer ; )

 

Drive around with three or less gallons of gas and save about 60 pounds.
Throw the jack and lug wrench away.

Very similar threads were always floating around on Miarta.net.
Most ideas, if taken seriously, will yield a miserable car to drive.

I had a bare bones '77 Rabbit that weighed less than 2000 pounds off the showroom floor. It also only had about 76 HP. The 700 or so extra pounds of "MINI" are welcome.

Now if that Rabbit would have had 168 HP....

 

That kidney would only save about 125 gm, or roughly 1/4 lb. Keep the kidney and get rid of the rear seats --- 49 lb weight saving .

 

What is the ultimite goal for the car? Is it a track car, a street car, or a combonation of the two?

 

How about if you threw out the gull bladder, tonsils and your appendix?






Or maybe just remove the back seats---------Your probably right.... It would certainly hurt less.

 

You do not use all of your teeth to chew, do you. Clean your ears in the morning. Keep your fingernails clean. Keep your head clear of any big ideas....

Bomboasy

 

Correct, although doing a quality paint job without orange peel or ripple is very difficult without extra attention paid to prep work.

You want a diet for the MCS?

Start with unsprung weight (weight not supported by the suspension), and upgrade these parts to lightweight versions. Unsprung weight is generally considered worth four times its weight in sprung weight, meaning dropping 25lbs of unsprung is the equivalent of removing 100lbs of sprung.

Wheels
Tires
Lugnuts
Brake rotors (HUGE gains to be made here going from iron to aluminum or carbon composite)
Calipers
Suspension pieces

Now move to the sprung weight. If weight is a priority, ensure that you ordered your car with minimal options - no HK stereo, Xenon lights, etc.

Start with low cost, and remove the air conditioner condensor, compressor, and control circuitry. Next, the power steering assembly. That should remove 20-30lbs easily, as well as increase power and mileage. The stereo can go, including any amps, speakers, and wiring. Remove the power window assemblies and install manual cranks (will require modification). Actually, all power assemblies not essential to operation of the vehicle can go - antennas, windows, locks, seats, etc.

Next, move to the interior. The entire interior can be removed, depending on your desired result. Carpet, insulation (except at the firewall, trust me), front passenger seat, rear seats, interior trim, dash, and electronics. Replace all your guages with a single digital cluster. Replace your drivers seat with a Sparco carbon bucket (or similar). Remember to go get the seat fitted by the factory before ordering, or you'll regret it.

Now, the final and most expensive options. Replace all body panels with carbon fiber or carbon composite. Composite is stronger and cheaper, but heavier. Replace all glass with Lexan panels. Strip car to frame, strip, acid dip, and powdercoat all chassis components.


If you do all that, you should curb in under 1500lbs.

 

Very thorough indeed. We've been talking about this in a couple of current threads in the new Road Race forum here, and seeing 2,000 lbs is starting to look unlikely, or at least very difficult. 1,500?!

Nuzzo's MINI's are about as stripped as a MINI can get, and we believe they are at 2,200 or so:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=42340

 

Majority of the remaining weight is in the motor, frame, and body panels. He could stand to lose the dash (though this would probably disqualify him from his class), and replace body panels with carbon. Doubt the frame has been acid-dipped or re-engineered, which is possible, but extremely expensive.

You're probably right about 1,500, but I see 2,000 as acheivable.

 

You must be kidding! Acid dip a MINI? It would turn out like rubber and lose a significant amount of its rigidity. I don't think anyone who is intending to do much besides race it in a straight line down the drags should even consider this! Acid dip = bad, especially if you hope it to remain safe on the road and without extra roll bars and such.

 

You go acid dip a unibody car held together more with seam sealer than spot welds and let me know how that works out for you... Still no way you're getting anywhere near $1500 lbs.

 

Great thread guy's....

As for loosing weight on the MINI I'l gone thru it all, and beleive me 2300lbs
is incredibly hard to accheive. My car had every conceivable part removed
and light weight parts added, they included Titanium ceramic brakes, carbon hood and super light weight front control arms, carbon fiber seats etc....

We just built an SCCA racer (ssc class) and the minimum weight was an incredibly porky 3075lbs with driver and almost empty tank imagine that.
To reach this mandated weight limit, a bunch of free weights had to be bolted to the floor....

Peter
Team M7
562-608-8123

 

Just to add a bit more detail to what Peter said as I recall these were some of the things we did to get his car as light as possible .

All air bag assemblies removed.
Front aluminum Bumper.
Hood switched to CF.
Steering wheel switched to lightweight race wheel.
Cf race buckets.
Sunroof removed and replaced with CF plate.
Entire interior removed.
Exhaust system changed to straight pipe with one super trap muffler.
Battery box removed.
Lightweight motor cycle battery used.
Rear windshield wiper assembly removed.
12.5 lb wheels + light Toyo ra1 205/40 / 17 tires
Front lower control arms VERY light .
Headliner and all plastic interior pieces removed.
Front headlight assemblies removed .
Titanium ceramic brakes .
Rear lower valence removed.

Well off the top of my head these are the major items I can remember . This got us down to 2325 .