Yes, I realized that they are designed to help me survive a roll over, strangely enough, the seats in my Miata were lighter and adequate for rolling the car. Mind you, the roll bar I installed in the Miata made a big difference in the outcome. Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk
Another issue is whether they will clear the top mechanism when lifting/lowering the top. I'm assuming it's already manual (no heavy hydraulics).
No, my top is still hydraulic. Although, I could probably save weight there, the top is awkward to lift up when it is manually operated. Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk
I don't think you are understanding what I am saying. Help you survive a roll over?......well kinda....when you roll/flip a Spider the a-pillar collapses and will take your face off or crush your head depending to some degree on seat position. The MAIN reason for those seats being constructed(which account for the heavy weight) is to be able to stand the full g-force load exerted on the seat belt. If you look at the Ferrari seat belt attachment points and the reel, they are all attached to the seat and not the chassis. There is a very specific reason Ferrari did it this way but I am not going to get into that part of the engineering. With the way Ferrari made the Spider that is why you could not order this model with the CF Sport Seats. This is completely different than a Miata.....and the engineering physics of the Miata design allows for a lighter seat because some of the g-force load is transmitted to the chassis seat belt attachment point behind the seat. Again most of the seat belt designs are not necessarily for rollover protection as the seat backs cannot take that kind of force and rollover protection is the primary function of a roll cage. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Agreed, I realized the seat belt issue after I posted, but you are absolutely correct. Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk
I am curious, next time we chat please bring this up. I spent a good deal of my working life looking at seats that were in accidents, more specifically rear end collisions was my area of expertise. I have never looked into Ferrari engineering but find it interesting. I have an idea why its seat point mounted but thats one of those ASSumes by me
Party pooper....spooning in CA is on my bucket list. Guess I'll have to get "sevminasyan" to hook me up with some of those hot Russian girls he knows...then it will be no spooning for you..LOL
Would be great Were kind of nutty fun out here you will love it Steve will set you up with the girls LOL He's a blast for sure
The 355 has no business being 3200-3300 lbs. it's a boat in stock form. The Scud is 2975 lbs wet and it is a much bigger car. The 355 is potentially Ferraris closes modern production car to achieve MilleChilli... Ferrari's weight goal of producing a 1000 kg (2200 lbs) sports car. The 355 should be sitting somewhere between 2200-2600 lbs. The 355 Competizione (1 of 1 prototype) weighed in at 2400 lbs and that was with a roll cage, a silly wing, and 90's weight reduction technology. At 2200 lbs and perhaps a bit more torque and a few more modern suspension upgrades, I would argue the 355 would be a better Ferrari than the CS, the Scud, and the Speciale or any other NA V8 they try to come up with. The CS is slow. The Scud is pretty much maxed out in terms of weight and engine performance. Prob could save another 75 lbs at the most. After having driven it for a year I can already pinpoint its flaws and see where a well modded 355 could do better. The Speciale is a porker at 3300 lbs. Good luck trying to remove weight from that car. The 355 basically needs to be turned into an 8 cylinder S2000. Light, agile, well balanced, responsive, high revving, stable and smooth torque curve, visceral and effortless.... Without the modern day electronic aids. There is art in simplicity. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Can the 355 be 1000 kgs? I'm not sure. But let's start with the 2400 lbs 355 competizione and work from there. Here is what it came with: Challenge front and rear bumpers, which are about 22 lbs a piece. Omp light weight bucket seats. Challenge Roll bar Light weight composite hood and fenders... Like the 348 Competizione Light weight composite doors... Like the 348 Competizione Lexan windows all around Center lock Speedline wheels, which were 18x11 in the rear instead of 18x10. Challenge Brembo Big Brake kit. Carbon door cards Challenge exhaust I have the challenge front and rear bumpers in my possession and it is a relatively thick composite. Made using a handlaid technique and probably 10 lbs (each) more than they need to be. 355 front and rear bumper can be reduced to 10lbs each if produced using a vacuum technique. 355 Competizione had no challenge rear grill. Stock rear panel has some weight to it. Would prob save 5 lbs going with a challenge grill. Stock headers are also heavy with the shields. Can reduce weight and improve reliability going with some light weight 321 SS headers. Perhaps a few more lbs with lighter weight race cats and a catless y-pipe ... Also made in 321 SS. Titanium or simplified muffler anyone? Stock air boxes have some weight to them as well. Bigger CF air boxes + foam filters for more flow. Not sure how heavy the sideskirts are but those can also be remade to be lighter and stronger. Full CF undertay/diffuser. Weight reduction + faster air flow from smooth CF surface is a nice plus. Not significant , but every little bit helps. Brakes/Calipers. Girodisc Rotors are probably 5 lbs lighter than brembo rotors each corner if I recall correctly. Stoptech Calipers are probably a few lbs lighter than Brembo calipers as well. I noticed immediately, driving the Scud for the first time how responsive the steering is and I am sure that has to do with significant reduction in unsprung weight compared to the stock 355 setup. Challenge wheels weigh about 21-22 lbs. The 18x11s on the Competizione prob weighs 24-25 lbs. There are after-market alternatives that weigh in at 18lbs and look just as nice, if not better. Lighter weight aluminum dampers and titanium springs would also shave some weight. Race battery would save 20-30 lbs. Can the 355 reach millechile tastefully and be a street car like the CS, Scud, and Speciale? You tell me. If Ferrari were to "re-imagine" a 355 using today's technology, it would be equipped with a 3.5 liter motor for high revving, higher lift cams, 14.1:1 compression ratio using direct injection technology. Individual throttle body stays. 5 valves preferably. 450 hp screams to 9500 rpm, while maintaining the 3.5 L motor's low center of gravity. Significant weight reduction using semi-aluminium chassis. Carbon brakes. Carbon reclineable seats. Aluminum doors. The car will weigh 2200 lbs and have all the torque you need. And of course a 6 speed MANUAL gear box with a lightweight flywheel and shorter gears. No drive-by-wire. No retarded computer aids. No clunky/heavy gear boxes. Smooth engagements. Do you your own damn rev matching. Completely raw, pure, visceral ... And simple. Tell me Ferrari can build a better car.
2200lb 355 sounds uncomfortable. I would be happy with 27-2800lb while retaining some sanity when it came to driving it regularly Ken, what does yours weigh in at?
Great post! ^^ I think about this quite a bit. Would love to do the bumpers/undertrays/hood/etc in carbon. Would be huge money but how about carbon wheels molded in the stock design but slightly wider and more aggressive offset. (and still paint them silver). Does BBK reduce weight? Any carbon brakes that will fit under 18's?
Hey Ken great info. Dropping the weight can and has been done but wont be cheap. Id like to see stock weight for body panels for a real apples to apples comparison. Why has no one posted an itemized list. Perhaps something for me to contribute ...at some point. Composite doors are the trickiest and most costly. For fixed lexan we need to construct a frame which the 355 door doesnt have. Ive seen it and it doesnt look bad but its obviously not a stock look, if thats what ones after.. Ive also heard the door hinge is heavy and can be updated and made lighter but wont swing out as much once modded. Can anyone comfirm? For roll cage Id take custom roll cage over the challenge one, safer, more updated and perhaps lighter. Whats the weight on the challenge rollcage? What about fenders? Ive seen cf ones but are the stock ones even that heavy? Pop up light replacement with fixed headlights..no out of the box ready kit available anymore. Some aftermarket company did them for 348s but those are now NA, cant remember which company right now..maybe Tubi? From my research ive found the following approx prices (in USD) for carbon fiber panels: Front Bumper:2000 Rear Bumper: 2000 Undertray incl diffusers: 3000 Hood: 2000 Decklid:2000 Doors: 6000 Side skirts:3000 Fenders:2000 So around 20-25k USD for all the necessary carbon fiber body panels, some are more obvious weight savers then others. Add to that the cost of carbon seats, roll cage, lightweight battery and any interior bits. 30-35k later we've got a light weight 355 which requires paint! Like I said not cheap!
Think I may have gone a bit OTT on the weight reduction with my one! Steve knows some good places to eat, we didn't get to sample the girls on the last visit to him though Image Unavailable, Please Login
Great writeup on the F355 competizione. I thought the competizione had the F1 system in it? How is the 360CS slow when compared to a stock street F355 or do you mean from a 430 Scud? The 360CS is are lighter, more powerful, and better balanced? Don't forget the F355 has modern day electronic aids in the suspension, the computer tells the dampers what to do during, speed, turn-in, g-force, etc... Not super high tech but, it works almost as good as today modern cars and it's an 21 yr old system. I like chasing the game on making F355's better and lighter, and mostly important FASTER.
Gearing is nothing special on the F150, it's a 6 speed auto with a 3.5 to 3.7 rear diff iirc. I guess that it's true that it is ecu limited to 100 mph. I suspect that its true top speed isn't limited by engine rpm, but limited by HP and poor aerodynamics inherent in a 1/2 ton truck. Still I have little doubt that it would walk past 100 mph with the stock tuning and boost with ease. There is nothing wrong with the gearing on the F355. The car is hardly limited by the gearing. Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk
This is an interesting thread. I love all the ideas, but it seems like a huge expense to do these items. Exhaust 10k Carbon seats 10k if you can find them Carbon body panels ??? $$$ Wheels 5k ? Thoughts ?
