Just weighed my mki.

[Jackstand Queen]

A six speed tranny is much lighter than an SC tranny. It uses lighter axles too. A 4agze motor definitely has a sweet spot, a range of RPMs where torgue and horsepower are more plentiful. The larger number of gears helps keep you in that sweet spot. 6th gear is an overdrive to enable cruising with the SC off at highway speeds. A 6 speed would improve an SC's handling and acceleration due to its lightness.

Other than the coolness factor, a N.A. MkI wouldn't gain as much with a 6 speed.

[cccc]

even in a NA a 6 speed is the better thing I've made in my AW11 !

[Raptor13x]

I replaced the stupidly heavy stock lug nuts with 0.6oz ones, and I just ripped out the stupid stock anti-theft alarm, and the under-seat subwoofer. I also located about a metric ton of pocket change from under the seat, and got that out as well. I'm thinking about picking up some racing seats- my stock seats are fugly anyway. The driver's seat weighs 37lbs, and passenger's weighs 34lbs, so there is some definite savings to be had there. Ebay has a few cheap ones that weigh 18lbs + bracket, so that's an easy 25-30lbs I could remove. I wish I had the money for a carbon fiber hood, engine lid, trunk lid, wing, and sunroof, or at least a place where I could make some fiberglass pieces myself.

I'll be taking the car to the dragstrip in the near future and getting an idea of how quick it is. I'm expecting mid 14's.

[328FTW]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

I wish I had the money for a carbon fiber hood, engine lid, trunk lid, wing, and sunroof, or at least a place where I could make some fiberglass pieces myself.

So do I!!!! I actually "own" (an ex mr2 racer I met said I could have them if I can find them) a set of casts for a full front liftoff and fiberglass rear end but I am having trouble tracking them down. I want them soooooo bad, full front liftoff on pins would be badass and light as hell.

[MR JAS]

Originally Posted by 328FTW

So do I!!!! I actually "own" (an ex mr2 racer I met said I could have them if I can find them) a set of casts for a full front liftoff and fiberglass rear end but I am having trouble tracking them down. I want them soooooo bad, full front liftoff on pins would be badass and light as hell.

just make sure you put a metal edge along the back of the bonnet so when it decapitates you it does a clean job

if you find those you will be making many to order
i feel a business venture coming on

[Raptor13x]

Originally Posted by 328FTW

So do I!!!! I actually "own" (an ex mr2 racer I met said I could have them if I can find them) a set of casts for a full front liftoff and fiberglass rear end but I am having trouble tracking them down. I want them soooooo bad, full front liftoff on pins would be badass and light as hell.

Oooooh, I LOVE fiberglass clamshell bodies!

[Jackstand Queen]

Raptor13x:

I found a middle of the road solution to heavy oem seats. Hunsaker made in USA, Synkros. At 25 lbs, they have good padding, materials, and shoulder support. A lot of the EBay made in China seats fall apart pretty quickly.

I'm halfway through a fiberglass T-top replacement project. I've done one side. But what I realized is that the glass I replaced weighed only slightly more than the lockworks of the T-top. The glass itself weighs 7.3 lbs. So when I'm done, I'll knock off only 10 lbs. for all that work and expense. A lighter, simpler hold down mechanism would help. I've asked Mr2parts.net about it. No repsonse.

[te51levin]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

The driver's seat weighs 37lbs, and passenger's weighs 34lbs, so there is some definite savings to be had there.

Wow, they're THAT heavy? I knew they were bad, but didn't realize they were so chunky. Definitely room for improvement there. Thanks for weighing them.

Originally Posted by Jackstand Queen

I've asked Mr2parts.net about it. No repsonse.

Don can get pretty busy too, so I wouldn't read that as dismissal. If there's a way to make something cool and light for an AW11 he will probably want to look into it and get back to you.

[Raptor13x]

Originally Posted by te51levin

Wow, they're THAT heavy? I knew they were bad, but didn't realize they were so chunky. Definitely room for improvement there. Thanks for weighing them.

I found those weights off the other board, so I cannot confirm them. It was mentioned that that is the weight including the sliders, so it's not that surprising. Most "lightweight" aftermarket seats weigh in at 16-25lbs plus the sliders/brackets (usually 5lbs more).

[traintech86]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

I replaced the stupidly heavy stock lug nuts with 0.6oz ones, and I just ripped out the stupid stock anti-theft alarm, and the under-seat subwoofer.

i have been working on my audio so i had to remove some of the dash. i came accross this anti theft alarm thing. can you explain it a lil more? and thanks for all the info on lessinging the weight. if you hadn't done this already, there is a set of black tubing in the aft end trunk of the car.

[Raptor13x]

There's a control box for the alarm under the driver's seat. As far as I can tell, the alarm does absolutely nothing but cause a little red light to blink.


Today, I decided to check my brakes to see why the pedal was a bit spongy and the car was pulling slightly to the right. Turns out one of the pins on the left front caliper was frozen SOLID. I tried to break it free with PB blaster and a large C-clamp, but the clamp actually snapped in half, leaving the caliper unscathed. I went up to Autozone, which, to my surprise, had a brand new caliper for an '86 MR2 in stock. I replaced that, bled the brakes (on 2 of the 4 calipers... the other two had frozen bleed screws that I dare not try to force). Regardless, I removed every caliper, greased each pin, checked the pads, cleaned everything up, and removed all the stupid dust shields that do utterly nothing but look like hell and collect rust. That was 3 or 4lbs more!

I also discovered both my rear lower ball joints are shot. That means that 3 of the 4 rear ball joints on the MR2's I've owned have gone bad. I recommend you all check yours. Unfortunately, nobody on the planet carries rear ball joints. They all have front ball joints- the ones that never ever go bad on MR2's, but the rear ones, with a 75% failure rate for me, are not to be found. I'm gonna check a place specializing in import parts in the morning. With any luck I can just swap them out without ordering them and having to wait.

[Raptor13x]

I just ran out to the truck scale (for a moving company, so it's fairly accurate), and as I was driving over it, the glorious 2400lb number stared me in the face. That's 2400lbs with me in it (190lb) and 1/8 tank of gas. So, the car now weighs 2200lbs empty!

It is *quick* too. It doesn't have that surge of power that my mkii turbo did when the boost hit, but it screams in the top end, where the 3sgte fell on its face. The blacktop has nothing below 4k, and it really doesn't shine until 5.5k or so, but from there to redline, it really puts a smile on your face. I'd like another 40hp or so, but considering it's got a mostly stock 1.6L 4-banger out of a family sedan, the car is impressively quick.

The blacktop's lightweight rotating assembly combined with a 9lb flywheel and a super lightweight underdrive pulley make it rev almost as fast as a crotch rocket.

[328FTW]

I must weigh my porker of a mkI SC and my even fatter mkII T-top I know they weigh a bit simply because they have everything in them. My mk1.5 as well but the weigh station round here is the recycling centre (aka the dump) and normally they are good but there is a fat bi*** that works there every now and again and she refuses "non official" (come on its a fu**ing rubbish tip lol) things and even a fiver won't change her mind. And its hardly used on most weekdays so would it be that hard to give me a weight sheet?

There should be an official weight thread with whats been done to the car somewhere then again it would be full of people saying "Yeah I took out the carpet, haven't weighed it but I think its about 1400lb now"

[Raptor13x]

Originally Posted by 328FTW

I must weigh my porker of a mkI SC and my even fatter mkII T-top I know they weigh a bit simply because they have everything in them. My mk1.5 as well but the weigh station round here is the recycling centre (aka the dump) and normally they are good but there is a fat bi*** that works there every now and again and she refuses "non official" (come on its a fu**ing rubbish tip lol) things and even a fiver won't change her mind. And its hardly used on most weekdays so would it be that hard to give me a weight sheet?

The scale I use is from a place I used to work. You just drive on, any time of the day or night, and it tells you with a big digital readout how much you weigh. It's really kinda nice because it doesn't depend on any people.

Originally Posted by 328FTW

There should be an official weight thread with whats been done to the car somewhere then again it would be full of people saying "Yeah I took out the carpet, haven't weighed it but I think its about 1400lb now"

Yeah, people tend to grossly overestimate how much weight you can remove from a car. I've seen so many "yeah, get some racing seats, you'll save at least 75lbs"... it's amazing. I love how people think replacing a part means the new part weighs zero pounds, and the old one was made out of solid lead.

I remove a few pounds here, a few ounces there, but it all adds up. It ends up being VERY noticeable. I like that my cars always end up way faster than any other car with the same engine mods is.

[te51levin]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

Unfortunately, nobody on the planet carries rear ball joints.

RRRREEEEAAAALLLYYY??

Trade secret: Toyota vehicles are built out of Toyota parts!

I think I stock those. If not, they aren't hard to get. They are probably priced out already in our vendor forum, but I want to say they're well under $40 each. Yes, you will have to wait a few days for them, but they are CORRECT, they will FIT, and they will LAST. It's worth the wait. Besides, since we all inspect for wear before it becomes an ohmygodineedthisrightnowwhatdoidobabyjesushelpme situation, that's no big deal, right? I mean, nobody here takes things apart until they have new parts in hand anyway, right?

Dude, seriously. Just call me. It's easy.

[328FTW]

Originally Posted by te51levin

I mean, nobody here takes things apart until they have new parts in hand anyway, right?

Uhhhhhhh sometimes

[Raptor13x]

Originally Posted by te51levin

RRRREEEEAAAALLLYYY??

Trade secret: Toyota vehicles are built out of Toyota parts!

I think I stock those. If not, they aren't hard to get. They are probably priced out already in our vendor forum, but I want to say they're well under $40 each. Yes, you will have to wait a few days for them, but they are CORRECT, they will FIT, and they will LAST. It's worth the wait. Besides, since we all inspect for wear before it becomes an ohmygodineedthisrightnowwhatdoidobabyjesushelpme situation, that's no big deal, right? I mean, nobody here takes things apart until they have new parts in hand anyway, right?

Dude, seriously. Just call me. It's easy.

Toyota is typically my last resort for parts because they're usually OMFG expensive. A couple years back they tried to charge me $175 for an alternator bracket. A bracket... seriously??.

I've heard good things about your prices though, so I'll keep you in mind for the future. For now, I just got back from picking up a set from Autozone. If I have any issues with them, I'll give ya a call.

[PearlJammzz]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

Toyota is typically my last resort for parts because they're usually OMFG expensive. A couple years back they tried to charge me $175 for an alternator bracket. A bracket... seriously??.

I've heard good things about your prices though, so I'll keep you in mind for the future. For now, I just got back from picking up a set from Autozone. If I have any issues with them, I'll give ya a call.

I've never really had good luck with anything but OEM, usually it's worth the little jump in price. Lots of things aren't even that much more expensive at all while other things are OMFG redonkulous (oil level sensor comes to mind..)

[te51levin]

Originally Posted by Raptor13x

Toyota is typically my last resort for parts because they're usually OMFG expensive.

I understand, but there's a reason they cost more, and that's why we give the MR2 discount. For example, rear ball joints for '85-'86 cars are $37.71 each, and for '87-'89 they are $35.95 each, your cost.

Now for a fun exercise: Close your eyes and imagine what you'd have if the whole car was built out of AutoZone parts...

[Raptor13x]

And the Autozone parts don't fit. Nobody in the damned Midwest has them either. So, now they're on their way from California, thanks to Aaron. No car for a week is teh suck, but $37 each isn't bad at all.