HELP! My car weighs 3620 lbs. Put it on a diet!!!

[wrathchild]

Your talking about your fox body GT hatch weighing as much as a sn95 convertable. I would weigh somewhere else just to be sure it actually weighs that much.

I guess another way to tell the weight would be if you have trap speeds. It would be rough estimate. I would think you should trap in the mid 90's atleast.

 

[astronut1885]

There was alot of sound deadening material in the hatch (6 layers, which makes me think there is more), a half tank of gas, the spare tire, , and all my school books in the car when it was weighed. There was also a very light layer of snow on everything (it had just started to snow, maybe 1/4"). I'm not removing my cd player, I like music in the car (even if it is droned out a bit). Also, I have that total undercoating (thinker- I had the same experience with my subframes), which I'm sure adds alot of weight (it's thick stuff).. Anyway, the exact number doesn't matter, all I know is she's heavy and needs to be leaned. Without spending money, how can I loose weight (IE-removing mats under rug in hatch). Thanks guys!

 

[Black331Stang]

is that undercoating liek a rubbery black goo sorta? i think i got it too

 

[astronut1885]

it looks like tar, and is bumpy. The previous owner (family friend) put it on when he worked at an auto repair shop. It's gooey when heated, but otherwise is more rubbery. It works good though, because there's no rust on the floor of my car save where some nimwit in it's past put a jack through the floor under the clutch pedal. I still have to fix that before it spreads.

 

[Cue-Ball]

What exactly do you want us to tell you?

You keep asking how to lose weight but are unwilling to actually REMOVE anything to do it. You've already said you won't remove the A/C, smog, stereo, power windows, power locks, GT bodywork, etc. You can't shed pounds without removing something - either by removing it entirely or by replacing it with a lighter than stock item.

Remove all of your sound deading material. If it's as much as you claim, you might end up losing a significant amount of weight. Remove the rear end dogbone; there's another 8 lbs. That's about it. If you're not willing to live without some creature comforts, and you're not willing to spend any money, that's about all you can do. <shrug>

 

[astronut1885]

well, honestly, I want to keep it daily driver friendly. I was just surprised by the overly large amount of weight I had. I figured there would be something I could do outside of pulling major components. I can't pull the smog because I have to be street legal and inspected. My mechanic said not to pull the AC because it's not worth it (he's a big fan of AC though...). My stereo is light anyway, maybe 4 pounds. I heard that pulling the dogbone can lead to rearend vibration resulting in damage (it's there for a reason). I've considered changing over to the LX body style, but I don't have the funds for a paintjob (and I'd probably do a Stalker kit first). As far as power locks/windows, I'd have to buy new door panels to do that, and the idea is to not spend money here. This was just a "hey, what can I walk outside and do quick?" kinda thing. The sound deadening material is going very soon, as soon as it stops snowing in fact. I am going back in a week, and I am going to re weigh it without my books and such and without the sound mats. We'll see what happens.

 

[BlackFox5.0]

Rip the thick insulation off the bottom of the carpet in the hatch, that stuff must be at least 10lbs...

 

[1992blkGT]

Basically I think what everyone is saying to you is that there is no way your car weighs over 3600lbs without you in it. Honestly, I don't care if your mechanic is your brother and that the scale was brand new and zeroed right before you got on it, it's impossible. Just go to another scale. Unless the undercoating is 6" thick, your books are made of stone, the previous owner used kevlar vests to insulate the car, or there was a motorcycle on the scale with you, I don't think it's possible. Just my .02 cents. Like Cue-Ball said, if you're not willing to give up some of comforts, or buy some lighter parts, it's kinda hard to save weight. Unless you go to a planet with less gravity...

 

[astronut1885]

How much does a stock GT weigh exactly? Add to that subframes, a strut tower brace, six books and a bag of school supplies, a shatload of insulation, a sprinkle of snow, some small items in the glove box and accenting pieces, my hood scoop. That doesn't give it the extra weight? Honestly, I'm sorry I asked. More people are worried about how much it weighed and trying to discredit me than helping me out. Like I said, numbers aren't as important as how I can take away a little weight that I won't miss. I never said I wanted to strip the car down, I just want to trim it where I won't notice. Thanks to those of you with suggestions, whether or not I use them, and for every one else, stay on topic and stop arguing over something so stupid as a few numbers.

PS- my mechanic is my cousin's ex husband, not my brother, and school books weigh a lot, especially college ones.

 

[1992blkGT]

How much does a stock GT weigh exactly? Add to that subframes, a strut tower brace, six books and a bag of school supplies, a shatload of insulation, a sprinkle of snow, some small items in the glove box and accenting pieces, my hood scoop. That doesn't give it the extra weight? Honestly, I'm sorry I asked. More people are worried about how much it weighed and trying to discredit me than helping me out. Like I said, numbers aren't as important as how I can take away a little weight that I won't miss. I never said I wanted to strip the car down, I just want to trim it where I won't notice. Thanks to those of you with suggestions, whether or not I use them, and for every one else, stay on topic and stop arguing over something so stupid as a few numbers.

PS- my mechanic is my cousin's ex husband, not my brother, and school books weigh a lot, especially college ones.

Yes I know school books weigh a lot, especially college ones (I'm also in college). They don't weigh 100lbs, unless you have a library in your car. I mentioned your mechanic being your brother to illustrate a parallel with trust, but it doesn't really matter anyway, this is getting off topic again.

Here are some ideas pertinent to the topic:

Aluminum heads will save like 50lbs off the front, and add horsepower. You can relocate the battery to the hatch, that won't save weight but it will distribute it better. You can remove the AC and smog (smog is easy to install again if you ever need to pass emissions, might take 15 mins if you keep the hoses intact). You can also remove the back seats, buy racing seats for the front. Get rid of the foglights and foglight supports I've heard saves like 70lbs. The sound deadener will save weight but I don't think it's a good idea for a daily driver. Get rid of subs or any other excessive stereo equipment. Also, take your books out of your car for the weekends or when you are cruising. Those are just about all the easy weight reduction techniques that are good for a daily driver. Will any of those work for you?

 

[85_SS_302_Coupe]

Convert it from a GT to an LX, that's around 50 pounds.QUOTE]


Are you sure the GT pieces only weight 50 pounds? That sounds a little light to me. Just curious though...

 

[1992blkGT]

Convert it from a GT to an LX, that's around 50 pounds.

Are you sure the GT pieces only weight 50 pounds? That sounds a little light to me. Just curious though...

The GT ground effects pieces might be 50lbs, but the foglights and foglight supports are like 70lbs alone, or so I hear.

 

[astronut1885]

I'm thinking about a seat delete for the rear, but I can't afford racing seats up front yet. I just bought a set of GT40P heads, so alums. are out. The AC is staying around, but I think the smog pump is gonna go. As long as everything else stays around, it should be a plugnplay situation to put it back on. I need my foglights, as my headlights suck (less light than fogs). I have nothing for stereo equipment but stock speakers and a kenwood CD player. Some of that sound material os gonna go, my last GT only had one layer, not six. Someone went overkill on that stuff. I'd love to pull my spare tire, but I know right after I do, I'll get stuck with a flat (not that it helps much without a lugwrench in the car...gotta put one in). I guess I am just going to poke around and see if there's anything I can chuck from the car. I'm going to get an alum. D/S to replace my stocker with the bad U joint, so that should help a bit.

 

[1992blkGT]

I'm thinking about a seat delete for the rear, but I can't afford racing seats up front yet. I just bought a set of GT40P heads, so alums. are out. The AC is staying around, but I think the smog pump is gonna go. As long as everything else stays around, it should be a plugnplay situation to put it back on. I need my foglights, as my headlights suck (less light than fogs). I have nothing for stereo equipment but stock speakers and a kenwood CD player. Some of that sound material os gonna go, my last GT only had one layer, not six. Someone went overkill on that stuff. I'd love to pull my spare tire, but I know right after I do, I'll get stuck with a flat (not that it helps much without a lugwrench in the car...gotta put one in). I guess I am just going to poke around and see if there's anything I can chuck from the car. I'm going to get an alum. D/S to replace my stocker with the bad U joint, so that should help a bit.

Don't expect the aluminum driveshaft to save many lbs. I think they weigh like 5lbs less than stock. They are mainly there just to save rotational mass, which is useful, but it's not gonna be noticeable on a scale. But since you need one anyway, go for it!

 

[astronut1885]

Yeah, and I heard they kill some vibrations too, which would be nice.

 

[90lxcoupe]

i would remove the air pump it dosent do much i didnt have one on my car when i got it inspected and i passed with flying colors and my car is far from stock. ive heard the fron for light brackets and assembly is around 150 lbs.

 

[5.0fox]

150 lbs i dun think so. maybe if u take all you can off the front including the heavy steel bumper. i would be suprised if you got 100 of the front from the fog light shiot

 

[StreetStang37]

you got a long way to go to get your weight down to a competetive level. my GT only weighs 3150 w/o me in it. I have no a/c, powersteering, fog lights (I'll need to recheck the 70lbs stuff, I only pulled off like 12lbs from there), aluminum heads, aluminum driveshaft, fiberglass hood, no spare tire crap, and front swaybar. for adding weight, i added like 12lbs. with subframes.

 

[stangbear427]

I'd still yank the smog pump and paraphinalia if I were you- I did. You can't tell me that you get through emmissions with that ProChamber, so when you put your cats on, you put the smog stuff back on too. An hour of work every two years isn't much. That aluminum DS will make a good difference when you do it, but just gutting your interior of everything under the carpets will make a difference- although I don't know how worth the trouble it will seem when you're done. My GT on the four wheel digital racing scales is just under 3500lbs with a full tank and no driver, and I have a stereo for a trunk and some heavy stuff for suspension- and a lot of parts have been changed out for lighter ones to the tune of thousands of dollars to balance it back out. You actually aren't far from the weight on your doortag, so while it may be heavier than Ford made it, it isn't obese unless you're comparing it to the people in here who were willing to spend money to lose weight. Don't expect to be much lighter than the car was designed to be without spending money or sacrificing some comforts like the backseat and AC. The diet isn't free- most parts are there for a reason and if you take them off, you need to replace them with something else... and light parts are expensive. (ie: k-member, A-arms, DS, coilovers, fiberglass hood, aluminum heads, etc.) You'll have to compromise somewhere, can't eat your cake and not get fat with this one. Good luck

 

[maverick0716]

Undercoating doesn't way THAT much. I have it on my car and it only weighs 3030 lbs. without me in it, spare tire included and 1/3 tank of gas.......I know my 85 gt is basically like an LX but STILL......damn your car is heavy