Cabracer

Been busy in the lockdown but did some maintenance.

Replaced front lower control arms due to squeaking ball joint, and MAN these are the best $150 bucks I ever spent.

That annoying sound over every speed bump and curb entrance is GONE! Quiet suspension, thank God!!!

My car only has 70k miles, but being a 2000, the tired joints are 20 years old.

What’s weird is once i removed the LCA, and moved around the ball joint, it made NO noise. So I guess they can make noise under weight but not once removed.

TexSquirrel

I’ve also noticed that they are quiet when removed.
I’d suggest replacing the control arm links too.
They’re likely worn out too.
My car handled so much better when I replaced mine at 75,000 miles.

barbancourt

Which links are you referring to?

TexSquirrel

These:

geetee

I'm curious what you're actual weight is but if I had to guess, I'd say it's closer to 3250 being a C2/cab
The window switch can be moved up to the horseshoe and you can eliminate the ash tray.

geetee

The first 250/300lbs(awd) is somewhat easy...then it gets tricky.
Some additional ideas...stock.battery is around 55lbs. You can find 5-20lb batteries.
Lightweight seats mounted directly to floor/ remove all rear seats/carpet/belts. Remove passenger seats.
Airbags x4. rear/door speakers.
Remove front/rear crash bar or switch to euro lightweight ones. lightweight impact resorb bar x4. delete rear bumperettes.
lightweight wheels/lighter tires
lighter exhaust

barbancourt

Ah ok, I was thinking you were talking about these, but wasn't sure. How much of a difference did it make? What were you experiencing before you changed it that improved after? The ones in the link seem to have polyurethane bushings... did you upgrade all your bushings to poly, or just these?

Ratchet1025

The arms shown have a poly bushing that replaces the factory metal type ball bushing. I would not recommend the poly type at this spot (since you are constricting something that was not designed for that). Some members here have reported these arms breaking due to this. However...prior to learning this, I have had the EPS set on my car for about 2 years with heavy track use and have had no issues. I recently switched them over to my 996.2. And yes, they do make a significant difference. I plan to upgrade to these when finances allow...
https://www.tarett.com/items/996-997...010-detail.htm

fpena944

Really surprised tracks out west don't require the rollbar on a cabrio. I've tracked mine quite a bit but was limited to tracks that had little elevation changes and sufficient runoff. It bummed me out because if I would have known I probably would have made it a point to buy a coupe.

Even with track requirements aside what I noticed too is on hard cornering the stock seat belts just don't cut it. So you're going to need a harness bar if you really want to progress to faster run groups and if you're going to do that you might as well go for the rollover bar that includes that extra element of safety.

Good luck on the project, can't wait to see the end result!

Cabracer

Most of these are done! Rear is all out. Will post updates pics soon.

I'm waiting for the battery to die so I don't just waste our ecosystem haha. Can't wait to do this though, easy 40 pounds at a very high point in the car.

I will be keeping all airbags as I do carve canyons on weekends.

Cabracer

Good idea on the window switches. I was hesitant to remove the center console since it weighs so little but looks so much better with than without.

A base coupe is ~2910 with no options. (See first post). My car is a very early 2000 build, with almost 0 options so you can see how I came to the calculations. Also, note people measure in dry and wet, so it’s always + or - 100 pounds depending on fuel. My numbers are likely closer to dry weight but I’d be surprised if I’m anywhere near 3250 starting. That’s what 4S and Turbos start at. A Vinyl top and motor mechanism isn’t nearly as heavy as a differential and spinning snails with extra exhaust pipes.

Agreed, I’m all for OEM replacement and a little hesitant on the aftermarket poly designs on this one. When I was testing the play of the arm links, the degrees of movement were quite wide. If it were limited, it would get a lot of resistance from the spring. I’m sure it’s great for track only purposes, but given I have a 6 hour round trip to the nearest track, I’ll save my lower back for a second on the timer. Maybe once I start trailering, I’ll move to poly all around.

It depends on the organizer. For most newer cars with OEM pop outs, it’s considered to be safe. After all it has passed NHTSA and DOT requirements. But I’m now leaning on going rollbar regardless, and removing the OEM pop outs. By looking at the designs, my gut tells me they should be similar in weight so no weight added, and a bit of chassis rigidity added. I need this as a cab. Just hoping I don’t trigger another airbag code...

You’re right, I’m planning on a 5 point harness once the rollbar and bucket seats are in.

Thanks! Stay tuned!

Cabracer

Finally got around to weighing some things.

Each rear seat is 12.6lbs x 2 for 25.2lbs.
Rear carpet + 4 floor mats is 18.5 lbs.
Radio sat nav + Sat nav CD holder is 14.4lbs. (With lower console trim + speakers it was 20lbs)

fpena944

Speaking of airbag lights, are you keeping the stock steering wheel or moving on to something more track-centric?

Cabracer

Stock. If it was an unregistered track only car, I'd go for a smaller wheel. But since I do drive it on the streets, I'd like to keep the airbags for safety. Also the reason I'm not removing door cards and the dash, although I might cut the dash.

vitaminC

Not trying to be a jerk, but what about the driver? Many of us could stand to lose a few pounds, too...