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I didn't get as much done last year as I wanted to. Much of my energy as most of my money was focused on my ZR1 purchase, delayed for almost the entire summer. I took delivery on 8/9/18.
Reviewing some of my PDR data from last year I found I was dropping oil pressure momentarily in some high-g cornering situations. Nothing damaging, but it's time for a dry sump system upgrade.
So on top of that and my winter boredom, I decided to build a new engine. I'm not going to say yet exactly what it will be because it's using some new products that Katech hasn't released yet. I think this will be one of our new track-focused crate engines for the Z06 also. It will be:
-Greater than 860hp (current power level)
-Run on E85
-Multi-stage dry sump
I bought an LT4 core so I didn't have to tear apart my perfectly good engine. I'll sell it later. It tore it down and washed it:
The block is now in the CNC department getting sleeved and Katech billet main caps.
I disassembled the heads and they are now in the CNC department waiting to be machined.
While waiting for parts I'm prepping other small items like transferring the baffle on the valley cover to the Katech AFM delete valley cover.
For someone that doesn't want to strip their interior, what are some good suggestions to shed weight?
Stuff that immediately comes to mind:
Titanium Exhaust (Akra) - 40lbs
Light flywheel - 20lbs
Carbon rear hatch w/lexan - 30lbs?
Lightweight forged wheels - 20lbs
Racing seats - ? (I don't really want do this as the 3LZ comp seats are really nice, maybe just replace the power rails with manual sliders somehow?)
Front fenders - would this save much at all over the SMC?
Headers/xpipe - ?
Light battery - ?
Obviously starting with a 1LZ would have been best, but I got my car used and the 3LZ was essentially free with the deal I got on it. Plus, I've really grown to enjoy cooled seats!
Jason not sure how tall you are, but here's an excerpt from my build thread in the RR forum on dealing with the C7's center wiring and slight floor pan variances to the C5/6 (that lip along the center tunnel).
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Wires run in this slight gap now Modifying rear half of harness. Fun fact the white part is a plastic "no loitering" sign from Home Depot. Even used the OEM locating stud in the floor. Wrapped and done. Now that I can get my seat rails on the floor I had to get the adapter stack height just right. The C7 floor pan compresses s little around the seat studs. OEM spec is 37 lbs, but I use 20.... 37 is way too much with the flex in the floor composite. The perfect combo was a Grade 8 washer, then the AMT stud adapter, then this 0.05" fender washer on top. It's a 1/2" washer from HD drilled out to 5/8". All done again... 4 different variants to get it right!
V1 - Seat rails on top of carpet
V2 - Trimmed carpet w/ seat rails floating off floor to clear wire harness sheath
V3 - Modified wire harness sheath with stud adapter stack height too low
V4 - Revised/corrected stack height to get seat rail on floor and properly supported so it didn't try to flex at the ends when tightened down.
Hopefully someone tall like me with a C7 finds this trial and error useful! If the car ever goes full track to where the stock seat is never going back in, the harness would be easy to relocate to the outside of the seat along the frame like they do in the C5.
Jason not sure how tall you are, but here's an excerpt from my build thread in the RR forum on dealing with the C7's center wiring and slight floor pan variances to the C5/6 (that lip along the center tunnel).
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Good to know, thanks. I'm 6'3" so I'll take anything I can get. I'm running OMP HTE-R seats with AMT brackets so I'll see how low they can go.
6'3" 260 myself... using AMT rails as well, but a custom fit Ultrashield seat. Removing the carpet section and modifying the harness allowed me to get much lower. Also, the AMT rails have a lot of relief cuts in them. When I had them floating off the floor so the seat could clear the wiring sheath (before I modified it) you could feel the slightest bit of flex. I used different large grade 8 fender washers to spread the load and it still had a little flex. Point I'm making is get the seat rails on the floor and then fit your seat to that. They work best on the floor.
Also, you'll find the C7 floor pan is squishy.... if you torque the seat stud adapters to the OEM 37 lb spec you'll feel it keep going and going like it's going to snap a stud. The floor compresses. I used a large washer under the stud adapter and only torqued to 20 lbs. I then had to get creative to get the stack height just right so the rails were on the lfoor, but not flexed down in the "stud depressions" when tightened down.
For someone that doesn't want to strip their interior, what are some good suggestions to shed weight?
Stuff that immediately comes to mind:
Titanium Exhaust (Akra) - 40lbs
Light flywheel - 20lbs
Carbon rear hatch w/lexan - 30lbs?
Lightweight forged wheels - 20lbs
Racing seats - ? (I don't really want do this as the 3LZ comp seats are really nice, maybe just replace the power rails with manual sliders somehow?)
Front fenders - would this save much at all over the SMC?
Headers/xpipe - ?
Light battery - ?
Obviously starting with a 1LZ would have been best, but I got my car used and the 3LZ was essentially free with the deal I got on it. Plus, I've really grown to enjoy cooled seats!
Anything else that would be a quick win?
Thanks!
Stuff that immediately comes to mind:
Titanium Exhaust (Akra) - 40lbs
-Akrapovic is nice. I'm currently running Corsa.
Light flywheel - 20lbs
-Katech lightweight flywheel saves 24.5lbs. Later this year I'll be switching to an RPS carbon-carbon and saving another 17lbs.
Carbon rear hatch w/lexan - 30lbs?
-I'm not sure exactly. Anderson Composites makes a dry carbon one that is super light but I'm not going to get one now. I need to find more things in the front to reduce rather than the rear.
Lightweight forged wheels - 20lbs
-I've got some Forgeline GS1Rs with Pirellis for track use now. I posted about them in last year's thread (linked in first post)
Racing seats - ? (I don't really want do this as the 3LZ comp seats are really nice, maybe just replace the power rails with manual sliders somehow?)
-Replacing the power rails with manual sliders seems very difficult. A lot of the weight is in the seat and airbag too, not just motors.
Front fenders - would this save much at all over the SMC?
-Doubtful. They're pretty light.
Headers/xpipe - ?
-A common and easy weight reduction. I had Kooks make me a custom set out of lightweight stainless last year. It saved a few pounds.
Light battery - ?
-That's an ace up my sleeve I will do soon. Shorai Li-Ion, -30lbs.
I got the seat where I wanted it last night. Super low. With my helmet on I can fit my flat hand between the top of the helmet and the roof. I couldn't say that for the stock seats. I went about the wiring to bottom of seat clearance a little differently. I removed the wires completely from the flat track and moved them to the sill area. I will loom and take pictures when it's done.
I got the seat where I wanted it last night. Super low. With my helmet on I can fit my flat hand between the top of the helmet and the roof. I couldn't say that for the stock seats. I went about the wiring to bottom of seat clearance a little differently. I removed the wires completely from the flat track and moved them to the sill area. I will loom and take pictures when it's done.
That's how I will do it once my car becomes 100% track with a cage. I wanted the ability to put the stock seat back in for random road trips with the wife. Did you relocate the wiring and sensor pad behind the seat too?
Interesting you fit in that seat? What's your overall build? Height, waist, inseam? I'm 6'3" 38-40" waist, 34" inseam (long torso) and 260 and I could never find an FIA composite seat that fit me and fit in a Corvette.
That's how I will do it once my car becomes 100% track with a cage. I wanted the ability to put the stock seat back in for random road trips with the wife. Did you relocate the wiring and sensor pad behind the seat too?
The wiring being the seat and sensor pad is still in place.
Interesting you fit in that seat? What's your overall build? Height, waist, inseam? I'm 6'3" 38-40" waist, 34" inseam (long torso) and 260 and I could never find an FIA composite seat that fit me and fit in a Corvette.
Interesting you fit in that seat? What's your overall build? Height, waist, inseam? I'm 6'3" 38-40" waist, 34" inseam (long torso) and 260 and I could never find an FIA composite seat that fit me and fit in a Corvette.
The HTE-R XL is about the only track seat I fit in.
BTW, I pulled the factory GT seat out of my car last night and it weighed 60 lbs so you're looking at roughly a 60 lb weight loss replacing both GT seats with what Jason has.
The HTE-R XL are what I use. Finspeed has a new wheel “EVO” I’m getting several sets built. With a new offset size to clear rubbing, doing 18’s all around under 20lbs each, that said By the end of the year Finspeed will have a magnesium forgings, same wheel will be 25-30% less weight. start saving...
02-02-2019, 01:01 PM
Jason's C7 Z06 weight reduction/2019 season modifications
