Any way to drop weight from an e30 convertible?

[bmk]

the entire soft top and frame is actually very heavy. the frame is steel. i would guess it weighs well north of 80 lbs. i would say it weighs just slightly less than my hard top does. however, with that said, it seems like a pretty silly proposition to remove it in order to save weight. as mentioned earlier, it is a cabrio for gods sake. just enjoy it as the cruiser it is.

the good news is that it is attached with only 6 bolts. you can take it off easily. good luck getting it to line up properly when you go to put it back on.

I removed it when I had the canvas replaced its very easy to get it to realign if you mark where is was previously. At the time I didnt have a hard top and didnt think to weigh it when removed

When your competition has 150-200 hp more than you every possible pound counts. When I go turbo next year I wont care as much about weight. lol

[cWalk3r]

Yeah soft top seems a lot lighter than the hardtop would. I can barely lift it myself buy that's probably because its awkward. Just build a little frame from aluminium and wrap a trap around it lol #weightreduction

[flyboyx]

the entire soft top and frame is actually very heavy. the frame is steel. i would guess it weighs well north of 80 lbs. i would say it weighs just slightly less than my hard top does. however, with that said, it seems like a pretty silly proposition to remove it in order to save weight. as mentioned earlier, it is a cabrio for gods sake. just enjoy it as the cruiser it is.

the good news is that it is attached with only 6 bolts. you can take it off easily. good luck getting it to line up properly when you go to put it back on.

[Das Delfin]

The entire soft top can't weigh all that much

I know the thread is old but I want to add my 0.02.

1. The weight on the rear corner is to reduce cowl shake. I've driven both with and without it and there is a obvious cowl shake when driving with an empty trunk and without the weight. The reason bmw put the e36 battery there is because the e36 battery is vibration resistant. Being that the weight is there to absorb vibrations, putting a vibration-susceptible battery there wouldn't make much sense. You can swap it out with an AGM battery and not have a problem (which would actually be better because they are valve regulated and you wouldn't have to set up an acid leak tube to prevent rust in the corner there) however this is a lot of work and not really worth it just to save a few pounds. (I have a 100% entire kit to swap the battery if anyone is interested)

2. I like bigger cars and I feel like my convertible drives like a small version of a 5 series. So I'm not really going for nimble or light, but it does feel nice in the corners. It feels to me like a small big car, rather than a big small car. If that makes sense.

3. Anything you can remove from a convertible you can remove from a hard top and now you're back where you started. Just buy a cross brace and swap the motor for more power. A convertible is a different experience but still a fun one

[bmk]

Old thread I know. However wondering if anyone has weighed the difference between the soft top and hard top off of the car?

Im debating competely removing my soft top in favor of the hard top.

[Wiglaf]

you know, I have no idea why the batt wasn't in the trunk like the other E30's. A damn good trivia question, let me know if you find out.

I'm guessing it has to do with the extra bulkhead trunk wall thing that they added and not enough schedule before production started.

[Bearmw]

A vert with reduced weight will be benefit performance if it is done carefully. To date my 89 car has the following weight reductions:

No central locking
No AC including evaporator
No viscous fan
Lightened bumpers
UUC BBK
D Force LTW 15x7's
M3 alum. control arms
Minimal engine insulation
NO vibration damper
Lighter exhaust system
No oil cooler
No EVAP cannister
Lighter seats
Lightend cowl cover
CF hood
Lighter battery

I have added some weight with the B35 and 260/6 as well as a Luke box and Mason X brace. The plan is to get it corner weighted and see if I need to address any major imbalances.

[bastianshaw]

Removed weight, moved battery to trunk. win

yea i think this is the best way to go,
pull the spare and unbolt the top for the summer if you have a garage deff get a front strut bar

[nando]

it started later when they realized hence the change

E36 batteries are in the trunk. Also, early e30s came with it up front (318 ). Your logic doesn't add up.

[BenDem]

When they through the trouble of altering existing production methods for one style, it would be trivial (and more cost effective) to just move the whole range over to the same method when the vert was introduced.

[Thizzelle]

If that's the case, why didn't they move the batteries to the front in all the e30's?

it started later when they realized hence the change

[DER E30]

Chop off your legs

You've also got two kidneys... loose one of those for more weight. Toes are unneeded too

[Danny]

Chop off your legs

[BenDem]

probably the price of the copper wire to go to the trunk, bitches were getting cheap as you can see in the e36

If that's the case, why didn't they move the batteries to the front in all the e30's?

[Thizzelle]

anyways....... verts are for cruising and getting hoes