AutoX weight reduction

[JGood]

From what I understand, I'm not allowed to have a gutted interior for DSP. It seems you have to run DP to gut the interior.

What CAN I remove legally? The rule book really seems blurry, and I need to have my 325is built by May 19th...

So far I have this non-stock stuff waiting to go on the car...

H&R Race springs
Bilstein sport shocks
HD Meyle rear mounts
Electric fan
e36 M3 shift lever
I'm also removing the P/S and A/C.

And that should be it. That should be well within the confines of DSP, but as far as what exactly can be removed from the interior is unclear. If I want to pull the carpet, that automatically puts me in DP? Even the back seat?

[Garageaholic]

here are some things that I have heard people removing to save weight...

--Body-- --Firewall to Trunk Bulkhead-- --Interior--
I. Hood I. Windows: All the windows are up relatively high, so lowering them helps -Passenger Compartment-
A. Fiberglass Ireland Engineering Race Hood (-32lbs) A. Mashaw Lexan Side Windows (-7lbs) I. Seats
II. Fenders B. Euro Crank conversion (-5lbs) A. Sparco Evos (-58lbs for both)
A. Fiberglass or Carbon Fiber Custom (-15lbs) II. Sunroof: Again, up high, so losing weight will help handling. B. Back seat removal (-26lbs)
III. Valance A. Custom Closure, gutted (-4lbs) II. Trim
A. Strategic lightening of stock (-5lbs) III. Side Mirrors A. Center console removal (-2lbs)
B. Custom f/g or c/f (-12lbs) A. F/g or c/f small rectangular (-2.5lbs) B. Rear quarter panel trim removal (-6lbs)
C. Aftermarket (-7lbs) C. Door trim removal, replacement with c/f (-9lbs)
IV. Bumper ('84-'8 --Suspension and Wheels-- D. Parcel shelf removal, non-gloss coating (-3lbs)
A. Euro bumper swap (-20+lbs) -Suspension- E. Carpeting Removal (-15lbs)
B. For '88, plastic bumper swap (-20+lbs) I. Control Arms III. Ducting
V. Wipers A. M3 control arms, aluminum (-8lbs together, four pounds A. Leftover A/C ducting removal (-3lbs)
A. Single wiper conversion (-4lbs) apiece) IV. Sound Deadening
II. Wheels A. Removal of sound deadening in cabin and trunk (-55lbs)
--Engine Related-- A. OZ Superleggera 15x7” (-12lbs combined, three pounds a piece) B. For 318iS, removal of sound deading in cabin (-20lbs)
-Accessories- V. Dashboard
I. Air Conditioning System --Trunk Bulkhead Back-- A. Glovebox removal (-4lbs)
A. Removal of compressor and brackets (-45lbs) I. Trunklid: Up high, affects cg. B. Custom dash (-10lbs)
B. Removal of associated lines and wires (-5lbs) A. F/g Ireland Engineering Race (-12lbs) VI. Steering Wheel
II. Fan II. Bumper ('89-91) A. Sparco Racer 2 (-2lbs)
A.Replacement with electric aftermarket (-5lbs) A. Strategic Lightening (-7.5lbs) VII. Headliner: Any weight saved up here will help the cg,
III. Bumper ('84-'87) A. Removal (-4lbs)
--Bolt On's-- A. Euro bumper swap (-20+lbs) B. C/f remake (+1.5lbs)
I. Air Intake B. For '88, plastic bumper swap (-20+lbs)
A. Pipercross/iTg foam CAI w/ heat shield (-0.5lbs) IV. Window: Up high, affects cg. --Trunk--
II. Headers A. Mashaw Lexan (-4lbs) I. Battery
A. Ireland Engineering Ceramic Coated Shorty (-7lbs) A. Lighter, smaller (-8lbs)
III. Exhaust --Underside-- II. Trunk Stuff
A. Custom 2.75” headers back, no cat (-20lbs) I. Undercoating A. Removal of jack, trim, etc (-12lbs)
IV. Flywheel A. Full undercoating removal, replacement with clear coat. (-25lbs) B. Removal of spare and replacement with space saver spare (-15lbs)


it was a copy paste, try to sift it out...

[JGood]

All that stuff is allowed in DSP?

[Garageaholic]

ooh that i don't know. sorry

[hoyabmw]

All that stuff is allowed in DSP?

No.

You must retain stock body panels, and interior sound deadening. You can change the front seats to shells, and the rear seat to a non-armrest one (if you have an armrest one). The dash, glovebox, mirrors, etc must all remain in stock configuration (unless you have a roll cage that obstructs them, but then you wouldn't just now be putting in H&Rs) Glass, suspension mounting locations, sunroof must all remain as stock. Bushings can be changed, but locations can't. No 325 came to the US without a sunroof, so you're stuck with it.

Running with the windows down helps lower cg a little, but not appreciably. Most clubs make you run with the driver's window down anyway.

I don't believe you are allowed to remove the power steering (no US E30s came without power steering, so no UD/BD allowance)

The rule is that if it doesn't explicitly say you can change it in the rulebook, you can't.

Kevin

[JGood]

That sucks, I hate p/s.

Oh well, I'll get used to it.

I jut got a set of V710's, so DSP is really my only competitive option. On Azenis RT-615's, I can't hang with the WRX's in STX (well, I couldn't with my similarly setup suspension 325e with a 3.25 LSD and chip). I doubt the 325is will do much better on Azenis. There's a Fiat, he's the only guy that runs DSP consistently from event to event in my local region, it's this tiny little go kart thing that HAULS ASS. Oh well.

[Charlie]

H&R Race springs
Bilstein sport shocks
HD Meyle rear mounts
Electric fan
e36 M3 shift lever

Those are all good, I'm not 100% on the fan. More hassle than it's worth if you're on a time constrained setup.

I'm also removing the P/S and A/C.

Removing the PS isn't legal in DSP, and why bother? Running a capped rack with no PS on a relatively heavy car such as an e30 would be a PITA at an autox course.

There isn't much you can pull off the car and stay legal in DSP. Your best bet to drop weight is to pick up some aftermarket seats and toss those in, that'll get you a good drop from the stock seats.

-Charlie

[JGood]

Those are all good, I'm not 100% on the fan. More hassle than it's worth if you're on a time constrained setup.
Removing the PS isn't legal in DSP, and why bother? Running a capped rack with no PS on a relatively heavy car such as an e30 would be a PITA at an autox course.
There isn't much you can pull off the car and stay legal in DSP. Your best bet to drop weight is to pick up some aftermarket seats and toss those in, that'll get you a good drop from the stock seats.
-Charlie

Cool. I have a set of cloth e21 Recaro's which are pretty light, I'm going to try to mount those. I already have the engine torn apart to do plugs/cap/rotor, timing belt, water pump, valve adjustment, blah blah blah, so I'm just going to pick up the same electric fan and thermostat I put on my 325e. Less then $100 and makes working in the front of the engine bay cake. I'm 90% sure I read that it was legal in DSP.

I'll leave the PS in, I guess I'll get used to it. I'm used to my eta with a 3.0 turn rack with no p/s, so the 325is almost feels like a video game car, I'm waaay to sloppy with it. I'll just have to adjust.

Thanks for the input!

[nando]

electric fan should be legal because E30s already came with them.. just put in the E36 M42 temp switch and forget about it.

[JGood]

electric fan should be legal because E30s already came with them.. just put in the E36 M42 temp switch and forget about it.

I'm just putting in the aftermarket unit with the adjustable thermostat that I prefer. Comes with mounting brackets and works flawlessly.

[Jean]

DSP does not allow for P/S delete but A/C and/or Heater delete are OK ? Just making sure..

[hoyabmw]

DSP does not allow for P/S delete but A/C and/or Heater delete are OK ? Just making sure..

PS can't be deleted
AC can be (compressor & brackets, hoses, receiver/dryer, condenser, aux fan. Then replace the aux fan with an aftermarket one that works better and dump the engine fan)
Heater can't be

[Jean]

Gotta love SCCA rules... can remove all of A/C but not heater lol.

[joshh]

Gotta love SCCA rules... can remove all of A/C but not heater lol.

This is one part of the rules I don't understand. I was under the impression and part that is bolted down cannot be removed.

[JGood]

I'm guessing it's to alleviate the differences between options you can order on same-model cars. A lot of shitty American cars can be ordered without A/C, but no cars come without heaters.