Hi all:

If I will not accept losing any functionality, luxury, or amenity my stock RX8 comes with...

BUT if I do want to as much weight as possible... and am willing to "lose" any amount of $$$, what high-performance lighter parts should I look at?

I already bought 4 Enkei wheels which weigh 4-5 lbs less than stock per wheel.

What's next??

cheers
DO

 

Catback (possibly single, titanium would help too), catless midpipe, lighter tires, smaller/lighter battery, a lighter flywheel would lose weight and help with performance, etc...

You can chip away a little in a lot of places, but it's not the easiest thing in the world to do. Lots of the stock stuff on the rx8 isn't all that heavy.

 

At first when I saw the title, I thought this was spam.

I would say the battery is the next easy spot to reduce weight. If you live in a climate that is above freezing year around, you could try something like a motorcycle battery to start the car.
I have the Corksport Catback exhaust that is suppose to weigh 26 lbs lighter that stock. Titanium ones are even lighter. The engine and trunk hoods are all ready aluminum so don't plan on loosing anything their.
I think it's Team RX8, that races autocross, that has put his car on a diet and has lost a couple hundred pounds. Search on his posts and see what you can learn.

 

TeamRX8 has also removed stuff, though. The thread starter wants to keep all luxuries and lose weight other places. This is where it becomes somewhat difficult.

 

Does your care have leather seats? Would going to cloth seats count as loosing an ammenity? Otherwise, that's an option.

Not sure if RX-8 aftermarket headers are lighter, but that's another exhaust-weight-savings option.

 

My girlfriend got fat. So I got rid of her and got a new one. saved me about 40-45 pounds. But this one is more expensive, so as long as you dont care about the $$$.........

So what model do you drive? Removing weight is not too easy, but if you have a bunch of plastic on your car . . . you can remove that to save a few pounds.

 

brake rotors and calipers. stock sized. RacingBrake? I believe had all 4 rotors and calipers at ~25-35lbs less than stock.

 

I think at most you can remove is around 50lbs replacing stock parts with lighter parts. And for A LOT of money, like mag wheels, lighter brake rotors and calipers... Ti exhaust is expensive too! Since you want to keep all functionality, you can only remove stuff under the car, in the trunk and in the engine bay, and wheels/brakes. IMO its not worth it.
________
redheaded Cams

 

200lbs is big deal but with funtionality in mind, maybe you could drop 100 if you really started digging in the weeds.

Wheels. You got that covered.
Battery. Worth looking into.
Engine cover serves no purpose.
Shift **** is quite heavy but it reduces vibration.
Washer fluid full is 14lbs. Just leave a litte in there.
Spare, jack, flat kit. I haven't had a flat in 10 years. I do keep an electric pump.
AC in the winter? 18lbs i believe.
Racing seats.
lighter exhaust system

That should be 100lbs+ without losing funtionality if you rationalize.

 

you should have bought a magnesium wheels.

 

I think you have to look at it from a total performance gain standpoint.

Some gains are obtained through weight loss, some by more power, some by better handling, etc. If in the end what you are seeking is better overall performance, then you have to look at all the modifications that will help you achieve those overall results.

 

Helium in the tires?

More easy stuff: no floor mats, no rear wing,

 

If you're lightening it for the track, you don't want to remove the wing if it's an MS wing - you'll need the downforce.

 

you might as well sell it and buy something else

but if you insist:

JIC Ti exhaust - light and quiet; 22# drop
Racing Brake front BBK and rear rotors; 28# drop
Lightweight battery; 10 - 20# drop

the wheel weight savings will mostly be lost once you install larger tires on them

due to your original limitation you're pretty much done, you might find a few # here or there, but any significant savings beyond this will cross the line you drew in the sand

 

Drive it hard with a couple of gallons in it then do the same thing with a full tank. It's not the same kind of weight loss as rims, tires etc.... but should give you an idea of what it would feel like. It's marginally noticeable. I thought about going all out with the same idea but it's not worth it IMO.

 

1/2 gallon of washer fluid equals 14 lbs????? Are you using the new lead mix fluid?

 

I think it holds more than half a gallon Raptor75 doesn't it?

But I don't think it is more than a gallon. Water weighs 8lbs per gallon... just to get an idea.

The leather powered seat weighs more than a person would think with the motors and such. Think it is close to 75lbs. Leather passenger seat is easily 25lbs lighter.

 

It does seem high, unless i'm reading this wrong.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...ight+rx8+parts

 

Maybe that 14 pounds means fluid, tank and pump combined?

 

The power leather seats make a big difference too at 55 lbs. Light(er)weight racing seats would help.

 

racecars actually use nitrogen i believe

 

Wasn't someone working on a Titanium powerplant frame (PPF)?

 

I believe that got dropped due to not enough savings for the cost and titanium isn't as rigid as most people think. It is resilient meaning it almost always returns to its previous point.

It is more springy.

Not sure if it would be a good idea for the PPF. That is what alligns the transmission and rear diff. If not alligned correctly there will be premature failure of the drivetrain.

 

Rotary God said there are aftermarket power plant frames available.

Charles H. Hill mentioned building a lighter PPF.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...ght=ppf+weight

 

...cf hood (won't shave a lot but it will still contribute), cf trunk (trunk is not aluminum), cf doors, cf front & rear bumpers, braille auto/kinetik/odyssey/genesis lightweight battery, if you have HID's; ditch 'em for halogen versions, lexan rear side windows, lightweight flywheel, remove rear seats, titanium exhaust, cf seats (if you wana maintain the reclineble feature, look into status/cobra/bride), get rid of your fat wallet and go on a diet... it's not gon abe easy reducing weight while maintaining the luxuries on your car 'cause most of those are the heavy pieces.