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Experieces in Racing an Europa

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benbeames:
I use one of these 1.3lbs batteries in my car though that wouldn't be period at all:
http://www.kronospark.com/index.php/products-page/

Again I don't know what's legal in your racing.  I've got an iron block toyota engine in my car and have its weight down to 600 kg in race trim (with a half tank of fuel) and I still have the carpets in it for some reason. . . .  But I don't have a roll cage so I'm saving a lot of weight there.

Things I did:
Door and rear windows have been replaced with lexan
Heater core, heater fan and ducting removed
power window motors removed
battery replaced with 1.3 lbs battery
aluminum wheels
trunk removed
spare wheel removed
horn removed
seats replaced with fiberglass seats

That's about it.  I haven't replaced the windshield with a lighter one, nor have I removed the carpets and door trim just because I like how nice it is in there when I'm not racing. 

Exhaust could certainly save some.

Mecky:
With a heavier engine under 600 kg. That's nice. I think our cage has about 40 kg. Even if we had no cage, we would have 40 kg more than you. Maybe our body is a bit heavier than your (enlarged wheel arches), but that's only a few kg.

A lighter alternator would help. With this and another exhaust and water-container we could win around 12 kg. Unfortunately a new exhaust would be quiet expensive. An Aluminium fly wheel would also bring a few kg. All in all about 15 kg, I think. That would make a difference. But 665 kg would be still 65 kg more than your car's weight. Even without cage a difference of about 25 kg.

I cannot understand, why our car is comparatively that heavy. The standard weight in the car's papers is 660 kg. Without the cage, our race car would be only 20 kg lighter than that...

We also did most things you did. Unless a standard lead-battery to get a bit weight on the front. We also installed Aluminium water pipes. Magnesium rims would be even lighter than Alu, but we just bought two sets of Alu Minilites a few months ago.

@Ben: I would like you to post pictures of your car. Maybe I can learn something from your configuration.

benbeames:
I forgot!  I have an aluminum flywheel.  But its only a few kg lighter.  The pressure plate weighs almost as much as it but I don't know of a lighter one of those.

I did weld some 16 guage steel sheet metal in on the "Y" part of the frame from the engine mounts back to "box" the frame, but I weighed the metal before I put it in and it was only adding about 1 kg.  My brake master cylinder is from a Nissan and is lighter than the original unit but not by a lot.

Below are some pictures, they're not great, just what I could find left in old emails.  The seat weighs 12 lbs as opposed to the stock 26 pound seat, but I'm currently making a creafoam bead seat which right now weighs only 8 lbs. Oh and the engine bay shows a heavier 15 lbs battery instead of 1.3 lbs battery.  I've also used a Braille 11lbs battery to good effect.

I did run with the battery in the front for a while but actually wanted more of a rearward weight balance.  I'm currently 43% of my weight in the front (with driver) and 57% in the rear. 

There are other auto cross guys out there with Europas that are down to the class limit here which is just under 1200lbs (mine is just over 1300 lbs).  So there's more that can be done, but I either don't know what it is, or I haven't decided that I'm ready to give it up yet.

benbeames:
I've been looking at your website and the only differences I can see, as far as tings on yours that would add weight to mine are:

Oil cooler (plus the extra amount of oil to fill it)
Extra supports on the transmission (I've been thinking about trying something similar but am just trying a solid rear mount right now)
a fire extinguishing system
and the roll cage.

I think that could add up to around 50kg.  The roll cage being half of it.   I wouldn't give up any of those things for a bit less weight.

Mecky:
Next weekend we are going to race on the former Formula 1 circuit Zolder (Belgium).

I hope they have a weighing machine at scrutineering.

Our aim is to go as fast as the best of the other 1600 cc cars and to reach a laptime around 2:05.

I will report what happened and if we had succes  :trophy:

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