Pelican Parts Forums - Trying to make my carrera 3.2 FASTER!

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Trying to make my carrera 3.2 FASTER!

Well ill start by explaining what I have done so far. The car is an 88 3.2, it has fabspeed cat delete, K&N drop in filter and 911chips.com chip.

I raced my friends 04 350z which has intake, cat delete and clutch and flywheel package. from a 1st gear roll he would take me by like a car, car and 1/2. From the light I had him till the end of 4th which amazed me and made me so happy :). I was very impressed, but its those rolls that were killing me.

What else can be done to these motor for more power with out opening it up. I was thinking of getting the bursch exhaust but i didn't know if i would loose back pressure from having the cat delete and exhaust. Help please, thanks.

You have pretty much done what you can. You could always spend some dollars on headers and induction. But to get anything worthwhile in the HP it will run into big dollars. Headers maybe not but a better EFI and ITB's or carbs will cost in the $1000's.

Losing weight will make it a fun car to drive, but you always have to consider how much comfort you will lose and how it may affect resale.

A few things.

1) A 911 is not a dragster.
2) Street racing till the end of 4th? That's very fast for the street. Just take it to the track would you please.

Ya I'm not looking to spend thousands but ill def look into loosing weight. Where can I start first on that. Like what should i take out which will help my car loose weight.

Also with the exhaust question. Should i get one or should i just keep it stock for back pressure?

If you have the sports seats you can lose around 70lbs by putting in some light weight ones.

But for the definitive answer on losing weight..try

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/423361-438-lbs-gone-5-days-my-build-story.html

It is a comprehensive and excellent description of on how to lose weight and how much.

Go to a road track. You'll beat any stock 05 350Z. What are you trying to do anyway? Impress someone in a 20 year younger car? The 911 is an icon, you don't own it to drag race.

That said, headers and cams would be next on your list - with an updated chip taking this into account. And loosing weight as everyone has already pointed out.

You could also just go buy a 2004 996 turbo, catch up in time and forget about it.

George

Start at the rear of the car. 2you can remove the bumper shocks & exchange for the Euro crush tubes or just toss the whole bumper assembly.

kill the a/c; and any big heavy metal stuff on the motor.

get a FG rear deck lid...

you have a penalty with the later MY car as it has the heavy G50 in it. If you like the feel of a 915, build up a late 70's Mg cased one for strength and the gear ratios you want and put that in. people will pay good money for a G50.

remove the sound absorption material, again starting at the rear

toss the heater blowers in ecah footwell and then the one in the rear.

look at Shakingjoe's wt. loss thread it is currently active on here

So what's the weight difference between a G50 and a "late 70's Mg cased one for strength and the gear ratios you want", and what is the net performance gain of losing said pounds that low and centerish on the car? Has anyone ever actually done the switch from G50 to 915? Not trying to be antagonistic, if there really is a significant performance gain for this I'd like to know about it.

The "weight penalty" of a G50 is relatively minimal. As Randy correctly states a BUILT mag case 915 would be lighter with optimal gear ratios and the strength and dependability of a G50. But, that would be quite a pricey alternative to sticking with your already strong, reliable, sure shifting G50 that carries a small weight penalty.

My advice as the owner of an 87 G50 Carrera would be:

1. Don't race your friend on the street anymore. If someone crashed, you could end up in prison and lose EVERYTHING.

2. If you are going to keep your Carrera forever, comfort is not an issue, and resale does not matter, strip all the weight you can off that thing. My Carrera lost 400 lbs. It weighs 2,460 lbs. The result is a much more responsive, lively, fast, and noisy car.

Good luck.

Mike

Brandon:

A few people have actually weighed and measured a number of G50's. You may want to search posts from Tyson Schmidt. He recorded data from several G50 and 915 cars. I believe Tyson found there was a 15-20 lb difference stock. If your 915 has an oil cooler, the difference is nil. I think there is a lighter flywheel that brings the G50 to about the same weight as a 915.

The G50 is a strong transmission that is rated to survive much higher hp and torque loads than a standard 915.

Mike

Thanks Mike, confirms my suspicion. 15-20lbs reduction at that location is pointless. Changing your gear ratios is another story, although Porsche did a pretty damn good job already.

Lose weight, take it to the track.

If you're friend starts feeling good because he's faster than a Porsche, remind him your car is 20 years old and that any recent Porsche would gladly have him for breakfast. ( heck, it even doesn't have to be that recent either.)

Leave the engine alone: install close-ratio gears.

You'll be amazed at the difference,.... :)

On the engine side:
964 cams will prevent the car from being out of breath after 6000 rpms.
A MAF system will yield approx ten more HP... Nice little boost for reasonable amount of money.
Light flywheel will make the engine rev faster and contribute to overall weight reduction.

You guys need to go to some autox's that's where you will shine against the 350z

Quote:

Originally Posted by cgarr (Post 4183725)

You guys need to go to some autox's that's where you will shine against the 350z

Yep, 350z's are really heavy cars!:D

For drag racing
1) drop weight
2) install an 8:32cwp

For the G-50 to 915 myth - quoted posts of people that are much smarter than me:

G-50 vs 915 Transmission

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyson Schmidt (Post 2330791)

The weight difference between a G50 and a late model aluminum 915 is 25#. That's with similar clutch and flywheels set-ups. The stock G-50 clutch and flywheel are what add on the extra weight between a stock G50 car and a stock 915 car.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 911-32 (Post 2083211)

FWIW, the difference G50 vs 915 is 45lbs, but that includes everything flywheel forwards. The bare trannies are about 27lbs. You can fairly easily save 20lbs on the G50 by going for a lightweight aluminium pressure plate, a spring centred clutch and L/W flywheel. Now you are only 25lbs difference and you get the benefit of an engine that revs much quicker between gears and has less reciprocating mass for better acceleration. That's not to say you can't save some weight on a 915 as well, but you get the idea.
Richard

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwerion (Post 3275396)

I have weighed the late 80's G50 and the aluminum 915 and there is 20.5 lbs difference stock trans to stock trans. I figured by the time I beef up a 915 and add a cooler I would only have about a 10 lb savings, not worth sacrificing the reliability of the G50 in my opinion. My G50 is bullet proof with out a cooler and I have been very happy with the decision. There is another 10 lbs savings if you use an older mag case 915 but that would not hold up to a 3.8 RSR motor from what I hear.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Zimmermann (Post 5136580)

Let's look at this a little closer. The weight of a filled 915 RoW version 915/67 with cooler is approximately 60 kg (132 lbs). The cooler weighs almost nothing (I can testify to this because I've cleaned a number of them), so let's call the USA 915/68 at 130 lbs. The weight of a filled RoW G 50 version 950/00 is 66 kg (146 lbs), which is virtually identical to the USA version 950/01. So we have a weight difference between the two transmissions of 16 pounds.

The 915 flywheel weighs 12 lbs, and so does the G 50 flywheel, so that's even.

The stock 915 clutch weighs 18 lbs, the G 50 clutch weighs 29 lbs. So, in total, the G 50 package is approximately 27 lbs heavier, which was offset (in 1986) by an increase in rear torsion bar size from 24.1mm to 25mm. Something else comes into play here that contributes to the 915 car "feeling quicker" to some drivers. Back in the day of Hemi-Cudas, 427 Vettes, etc., the ticket to really quick quarter mile times was having a "short", 4.11 rear end (final drive) ratio, or an even shorter 4.56 ratio. Of course, the big compromise with a short ratio was having to run at much higher revs at freeway speeds. Cars with a taller, aka longer, 3.00, or 3.30 rear end (ring & pinion ratio) just wouldn't come out of the hole as quick, and the race was usually over in 2nd gear. In 1974, 911s were fitted with a 7:31 ring & pinion, which is a final drive ratio of 4.43 (remember, the bigger the number the shorter the ratio). Later SCs and early Carreras w/915s had an 8:31 (3.88) final drive ratio, BUT, G 50s are fitted with a 9:31 (3.44) final drive ratio. Yes, the factory fitted all new, "shorter" ratios to 1st-5th to try and make up for it, but, while striving for better mileage and reliability, couldn't overcome that "longer" ring and pinion, which can make, combined with the extra pounds, a G 50 car feel more sluggish than a 915 car. A lightweight clutch will help the G 50 car, but on a road course there should be very little difference between the two because the rpm drop between second and third, between third and fourth, and between fourth and fifth, is very similar when comparing a 915 to a G 50. Yes, the 915, in some situations, will "feel" quicker, but can it generate quicker lap times on a road racing course? I doubt it.

For the "How do I get the most of my Carrera"

Take your buddy to a DE or autocross.

Get some sticky tires.

Own the 350z

Racing on the street to the end of 4th gear? You're an idiot.