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Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr
Even if there is not so much weight to eliminate, there is still some room for improvement. Have you never even considered to replace the glasses for some plexiglass? Could also eventually consider a single-blade wiper, since it not just saves a few ounces but can also reduce the drag.It may seem kinda odd, but some carbon fiber hoods are actually heavier than the sheetmetal ones.
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I considered plexiglass but rejected it out of safety concerns. As the car has both side air bags and rollover airbags plexiglass lacks the flexibility needed to support airbag deployment.
I was in limbo about the carbon fiber hood for the very reason you mention. Without making a few phone calls its hard to determine shipping weight from the actual weight of the hood. Carbon fiber hoods or any large of auto body panels also a history of shipping damage in a minority but still relevant number of cases. There are a few on e-bay advertised as used, but again without assurance that the original shipping crate/container will be sent, Who knows what condition the part will be in upon arrival.
For practical purposes the Yaris is a single wiper blade system. As the passenger side is this tiny runt of a blade with little value to cleaning the windshield. There may be a way to improve the front cowl to reduce the effects of the wipers but the windshield is already fairly well sloped, by economy car standards.
I have found a couple of Aluminum under panel options for the front end which seem reasonably priced for an engineered piece/ fitment. I may start in that direction for Aero mods. I just received my lightweight crankshaft pulley last night so it will be installed this weekend. Originally I planned to hold that piece in reserve until the powertrain build this late summer or fall, but I've got a suspension rear sway bar to install so I may as well tackle them both.
I'm also considering a front splitter and rear diffuser. but I'm still reading up on the pluses and minuses of that mod. At this point, a boat tale is not in the cards as I lack fabrication space, but canards are a possible alternative. The more I read about Coroplast the less I'm inclined to use it under a car. Its a diverse group of manufacturers and heat tolerance seems to vary quite a bit from one manufacturer to another. UV resistence is another concern with the product.