Rotten Passat

[freebeard]

Also read up about the Dustball Rally and think I might sign up for 2017 NYC to LA. 3K miles of fun in July-August 2017.

http://dustballrally.com

???

You're thinking the car will have 3K miles left in it when you're done?

[dfeldt91]

To the two who joked about tossing the engine: Figured people on a forum for saving fuel would be all over, or at least receptive to, the idea of weight reduction to save fuel. The jokes aren't necessary nor funny. Save your effort a bit longer and make it worth it with some real posts...

And yes, the car has tons of life. Just because it doesn't have interior doesn't mean it isn't capable of doing a cross country rally. And yes, I know the car is semi loud at highway speeds and it will only be getting louder this year when it gets a straight pipe. I love the sound of the engine and the road, and no it doesn't bother me at all! Turn the music up

[Ecky]

Please accept my apologies. This is not the type of project I'd want to do, but I'm supportive of bizarre / interesting / extreme projects in the name of efficiency.

[deejaaa]

Originally Posted by dfeldt91

To the two who joked about tossing the engine: Figured people on a forum for saving fuel would be all over, or at least receptive to, the idea of weight reduction to save fuel. The jokes aren't necessary nor funny. Save your effort a bit longer and make it worth it with some real posts...

And yes, the car has tons of life. Just because it doesn't have interior doesn't mean it isn't capable of doing a cross country rally. And yes, I know the car is semi loud at highway speeds and it will only be getting louder this year when it gets a straight pipe. I love the sound of the engine and the road, and no it doesn't bother me at all! Turn the music up

kind of surprised too. I have seen a lot of silly things done here but comments have been more receptive.

[dfeldt91]

Thanks! BTW, what is the weight and Cd of your insight? I keep seeing the same one around town and wanted to get one as a daily driver while working on this thing.

[elhigh]

Originally Posted by dfeldt91

To the two who joked about tossing the engine: Figured people on a forum for saving fuel would be all over, or at least receptive to, the idea of weight reduction to save fuel. The jokes aren't necessary nor funny. Save your effort a bit longer and make it worth it with some real posts...

Dude, chill. It's the internet. You put all this on this forum, you're going to get commentary. Whether you like it or not, that isn't up to you - you don't get to say how people react to your posts, you only get to determine whether you post them.

If you step back and look at your process objectively, it looks pretty extreme. If someone gives it an absurd twist to make a joke, take that as the compliment it is. They read what you wrote, and acknowledge that you are running where few have walked. No need to get thin skinned about it.

I saw mention of a roll cage on your first post. Are planning on tracking your minimalist Passat, or what is the cage about? Otherwise that's putting weight back in in direct contradiction to your reduction goals.

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by dfeldt91

Thanks! BTW, what is the weight and Cd of your insight? I keep seeing the same one around town and wanted to get one as a daily driver while working on this thing.

From the factory, the 5MT with A/C weighs in dry at around 1850lbs (including the hybrid and 12v battery though), and has a Cd of ~0.25.

Most of the interior is made of extremely lightweight plastic, and it has virtually no sound deadening.

[steddie]

G'day there,
Just a thought, maybe if you take the bootlid off and cover the hole with coroplast will make it lighter again, or cut off the rearend off alltogether behind the back wheel under an angle so part of the back mudgards/fenders are cut away,as you said 'i dont use the boot' and fill the hole with coroplast, that for sure will make a big weight difference.
Good luck.
Greetings,
Eddie.

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by steddie

G'day there,
Just a thought, maybe if you take the bootlid off and cover the hole with coroplast will make it lighter again, or cut off the rearend off alltogether behind the back wheel under an angle so part of the back mudgards/fenders are cut away,as you said 'i dont use the boot' and fill the hole with coroplast, that for sure will make a big weight difference.
Good luck.
Greetings,
Eddie.

That's actually a really interesting suggestion. What parts of the car are not structural that you could remove? I could definitely see window glass being replaced by plastic, and a coroplast boat tail replacing rear bumper and trunk lid. Not only that, but a boat tail would have a huge effect on highway mileage - probably more than the sum of the weight reductions. Win-win?

[niky]

If you're planning on taking it rallying, more welds rather than less are what you need. You may end up seam welding some of the panels for added structural strength... because that car is going to take a chassis-rattling beating if you drive it at speed over 3,000 miles.

Focus on non-essentials when lightening. I wouldn't touch anything structural until you have a chassis-stiffening cage in the car, already.