I've changed me mind
Yessir, i've gone and changed me mind. Not only have i stopped disliking my car, i've grown to love it. It took me a while but it sank in. One of the main reasons that i wanted to sell my car was because it wasn't really how i wanted it. I wanted what it had but i really wanted it to be different at the same time (modified more to fit me). It wasn't fast enough, didn't look good enough, etc. I wanted an LS1 badly (and i still do) but i realized- getting an LS1 will be the same thing. Sure i'll have the show and the go but it still won't be "mine". I'll be back to square one. I've decided to go with bolt ons, reasonable weight reduction and cosmetic mods to make the car what i want. First, i heard people talking about how mere bolt ons took them to the low 13's. Joe was really the biggest influence with that 13.031 1/4 mile with bolt ons. I started thinking- if someone can do that with bolt ons, if i do the same bolt ons and weight reduction, i'd be in the twelves with a car that goes faster, handles better and gets better gas mileage than stock.
Ideas
Go mods- I already have a great CAI so my first step to putting more pep in Firebreath's step would be some gears. I figure some 4.10's are reasonable. Great for the SOTP (seat of the pants) meter and i'll still return excellent gas mileage due to sixth gear. As Wolfman has said before "4.10's make sixth gear more friendly". A throttle body coolant bypass would actually come before this but i've heard that once the engine gets to operating temperature, all gains from this mod dissappear. I'm not one to "start it cold and drive it hard" either so this is pretty much just to say i have it done (I'd appreciate it if someone could tell me how cold is too cold to be running an engine. I don't want to drive my car at 160 degrees or even less; it doesn't seem like it would be good for the car). After that i think i'd consider a better flowing cat back and some headers. According to this website- http://www.ws6.com/mod-7.htm an adjustable fuel pressure regulator is a great mod. Then again he points out that his altitude (5,000ft) could be the reason for such impressive gains. Somewhere in all this i'd swap to a better MAF.
Show- A ram air hood would not only make my car look 10 times better, if i used one with heat extractors then the temperature under the hood would drop. Perhaps 98+ tail lights, some nice exhaust tips, nice wheels, a fresh coat of paint and some Zaino would make my car look much better.
Lightening the load- Using numbers from fastTA's list (or similar numbers), seen here- http://f-body.com/forum/showthread.p...ight+reduction
I've managed to ponder up a list of reasonable things to shed quite a bit of weight off of my car. Here goes-
Back seat= -20lbs
Spare tire and jack= -30lbs
Aluminum or carbon fiber driveshaft= -8-12lbs of rotational weight
Racing seats= -50lbs (i figure if fastTA saw a 32lb difference between his stock seat and a racing seat than switching bothfront seats out should be good for at least 50lbs)
Fiberglass hood= -10-15lbs
Tubular or chromoly K-member= -40-60lbs but i'm not sure if a chromoly K-member would affect drivablility.
Dry cell battery= -15lbs + better traction as i'd relocate it over my rear tires.
A/C unit= 50lbs Every time i get it fixed it breaks 5 hours later so why the heck not? I think it's been fixed 3 times. I'm not going for a 4th.
Light weight wheels and tires= -35-50lbs If alumastars and slicks dropped 80lbs, i don't see any reason why i can't drop at least 35lbs by switching to lighter rims that would still be just as streetable as stock.
Plexiglass rear/hatch window= No idea what kind of weight. I think this is something that i really need to look into further. It will drop weight off the back which will reduce traction, i'm not sure how safe it is and i'm not sure what the cost will be. This is in the "maybe" pile.
Lightweight carpeting and sound deadening material= -30lbs (a "maybe")
Going with the lowest numbers that's about 260lbs. I figure i'm under rating too. With Fast's numbers i'm probably well into the 300lb range. It might only be worth .3- .5 in the quarter but that's awesome in my opinion. I'm not really losing anything, my clutch will probably last longer, less strain from not having to turn a heavy steel driveshaft, less strain on the motor and tranny overall, better handling from less weight slopping around and improved fuel economy. I might even go with an aluminum flywheel. Either Joe or Injuneer said that a steel flywheel is better for drag racing than an aluminum one but i don't do much off the line racing (or any kind of racing for that matter) and when i do, the other mods should make up for it. It's another 12 or 13lbs of rotational weight which is even better
Suspension- Can't scrimp on the suspension. First up are either SLP subframe connectors ( http://www.slponline.com/view_product.asp?P=70802 or Kenny Brown double diamonds. I know that people say double diamonds are overkill and might even add more weight but it's a risk i'm willing to take. I want bigger sway bars and a strut tower brace next. I'm not sure whether SFC's or sway bars improve cornering and handling capabilities more but i think i'd prefer the stability that SFC's offer, so they're first. Next LCA's and a panhard bar. I'm thinking about lowering springs but they might ruin my launching ability so those might not come into play.
Well, sorry for the enormous post but i'm ecstatic about my new found love of my car. I can't wait to start accumulating money. First things first, i need a good tune up. I'll be coughing up another $300 for the tattoo i'm getting hopefully either friday or saturday. School ends May 18th and i'll be able to work a lot of hours and save up a decent amount of money.
BTW- As always, i'd really appreciate input and opinions. I wrote this up last night at 3AM but due to computer problems i couldn't post it. I have a tendency to pipe dream too so i like it when you guys drag me back into reality. Thanks a lot
Ideas
Go mods- I already have a great CAI so my first step to putting more pep in Firebreath's step would be some gears. I figure some 4.10's are reasonable. Great for the SOTP (seat of the pants) meter and i'll still return excellent gas mileage due to sixth gear. As Wolfman has said before "4.10's make sixth gear more friendly". A throttle body coolant bypass would actually come before this but i've heard that once the engine gets to operating temperature, all gains from this mod dissappear. I'm not one to "start it cold and drive it hard" either so this is pretty much just to say i have it done (I'd appreciate it if someone could tell me how cold is too cold to be running an engine. I don't want to drive my car at 160 degrees or even less; it doesn't seem like it would be good for the car). After that i think i'd consider a better flowing cat back and some headers. According to this website- http://www.ws6.com/mod-7.htm an adjustable fuel pressure regulator is a great mod. Then again he points out that his altitude (5,000ft) could be the reason for such impressive gains. Somewhere in all this i'd swap to a better MAF.
Show- A ram air hood would not only make my car look 10 times better, if i used one with heat extractors then the temperature under the hood would drop. Perhaps 98+ tail lights, some nice exhaust tips, nice wheels, a fresh coat of paint and some Zaino would make my car look much better.
Lightening the load- Using numbers from fastTA's list (or similar numbers), seen here- http://f-body.com/forum/showthread.p...ight+reduction
I've managed to ponder up a list of reasonable things to shed quite a bit of weight off of my car. Here goes-
Back seat= -20lbs
Spare tire and jack= -30lbs
Aluminum or carbon fiber driveshaft= -8-12lbs of rotational weight
Racing seats= -50lbs (i figure if fastTA saw a 32lb difference between his stock seat and a racing seat than switching bothfront seats out should be good for at least 50lbs)
Fiberglass hood= -10-15lbs
Tubular or chromoly K-member= -40-60lbs but i'm not sure if a chromoly K-member would affect drivablility.
Dry cell battery= -15lbs + better traction as i'd relocate it over my rear tires.
A/C unit= 50lbs Every time i get it fixed it breaks 5 hours later so why the heck not? I think it's been fixed 3 times. I'm not going for a 4th.
Light weight wheels and tires= -35-50lbs If alumastars and slicks dropped 80lbs, i don't see any reason why i can't drop at least 35lbs by switching to lighter rims that would still be just as streetable as stock.
Plexiglass rear/hatch window= No idea what kind of weight. I think this is something that i really need to look into further. It will drop weight off the back which will reduce traction, i'm not sure how safe it is and i'm not sure what the cost will be. This is in the "maybe" pile.
Lightweight carpeting and sound deadening material= -30lbs (a "maybe")
Going with the lowest numbers that's about 260lbs. I figure i'm under rating too. With Fast's numbers i'm probably well into the 300lb range. It might only be worth .3- .5 in the quarter but that's awesome in my opinion. I'm not really losing anything, my clutch will probably last longer, less strain from not having to turn a heavy steel driveshaft, less strain on the motor and tranny overall, better handling from less weight slopping around and improved fuel economy. I might even go with an aluminum flywheel. Either Joe or Injuneer said that a steel flywheel is better for drag racing than an aluminum one but i don't do much off the line racing (or any kind of racing for that matter) and when i do, the other mods should make up for it. It's another 12 or 13lbs of rotational weight which is even better
Suspension- Can't scrimp on the suspension. First up are either SLP subframe connectors ( http://www.slponline.com/view_product.asp?P=70802 or Kenny Brown double diamonds. I know that people say double diamonds are overkill and might even add more weight but it's a risk i'm willing to take. I want bigger sway bars and a strut tower brace next. I'm not sure whether SFC's or sway bars improve cornering and handling capabilities more but i think i'd prefer the stability that SFC's offer, so they're first. Next LCA's and a panhard bar. I'm thinking about lowering springs but they might ruin my launching ability so those might not come into play.
Well, sorry for the enormous post but i'm ecstatic about my new found love of my car. I can't wait to start accumulating money. First things first, i need a good tune up. I'll be coughing up another $300 for the tattoo i'm getting hopefully either friday or saturday. School ends May 18th and i'll be able to work a lot of hours and save up a decent amount of money.
BTW- As always, i'd really appreciate input and opinions. I wrote this up last night at 3AM but due to computer problems i couldn't post it. I have a tendency to pipe dream too so i like it when you guys drag me back into reality. Thanks a lot
That's probably about 14 years). If you guys want me gone, just give the word. PM me and tell me if you want me gone.
My wife has kept me from getting another one until just recently she said she would be ok with it. But they are addictive. Also, I would make sure to get it on a part of you body that is easily covered with regular clothes. That makes it easier to get a job. 
Anyway, glad to hear you are sticking around. 
This kid in my weight training class last semster who weighed the same as i do and didn't look particularly large was able to put up 250+ 10 times for a few sets. Oh how i envy him 
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