View Single Post
Old 01-07-2014, 03:47 PM   #10
mike_ekim1024
Senior Member
 
mike_ekim1024's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Drives: Argento Scion FR-S
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Posts: 462
Thanks: 393
Thanked 178 Times in 107 Posts
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrk1 View Post
When I think of people who appreciate mods like a carbon driveshaft for example. They are not usually the type who are fixated on a dyno number. Lightweight is more of a driver mod. Ive always had the hardest time selling customers on final drives if they haven't experienced them. It is a considerable amount of money that doesn't really come with that tangible HP gain. Once I installed a diff for free in a friends car to prove a point, he then gladly paid after a test drive.
A lighter driveshaft will give you a different power-to-weight ratio, so that's somewhat measurable. But I agree, it's just some number - you don't know how it feels until you really drive it. Looking at this wiki page, they describe many of the factors related to handling, but it's not the complete picture:

[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automobile_handling"]Automobile handling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]


What else could be added to this this list? I'm not asking just for myself, but for the thread and to keep building up information.

Code:
HP / Torque       Displacement, forced induction, N2O, water injection
Rotational Mass   Lightweight pulleys, cf driveshaft, clutch, brakes
Sprung weight     Interior, battery, fluids, seats, etc., etc.
Unsprung weight   Wheels, suspension, brakes, rotors, axles
Traction          Wheels, alignment, suspension, chassis, track and wheelbase
Gearing           Clutch, transmission, final drive, wheels
Weight distrib.   Suspension, engine placement, driver weight/placement
Aerodynamics      Front lip, wing, underpanels, rear diffuser, cannards
Some related pages:

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=858223
http://www.w8ji.com/rotating_mass_acceleration.htm
mike_ekim1024 is offline   Reply With Quote