Engine Weigth Reduction

[Diablo_niterider]

hey guys,

was planning to put our f4i on a diet ,
would like to know how other teams have achieved weigth reduction on the engine.

not long back i had read a thread about some dude planning to use carbon fibre sump on their engine, let me know what u guys have done or can think of doing..

thanks in advance

[Diablo_niterider]

hey guys,

was planning to put our f4i on a diet ,
would like to know how other teams have achieved weigth reduction on the engine.

not long back i had read a thread about some dude planning to use carbon fibre sump on their engine, let me know what u guys have done or can think of doing..

thanks in advance

[Michael Palaszynski]

If you're looking to lose weight on your car, the engine is the last place i would look. Other than switching out for an entirely new engine (single or V-twin) there's very little to gain there.

But, all i can think of is lighter pistons and connecting rods. The gains you see from that weight loss won't be in the overall mass of the car, but in the reduced rotating mass.

[Chris @ UML]

Depending on your final drive ratio, you may be able to remove a gear or two. Also, a custom oil pan may reduce weight as well.

Like Mike said, weight reduction in the engine isn't a good place to start. They're built for bikes, so they've already been trimmed down considerably.

[Mustang Mac]

A good place to start is with the swing arm mount at the rear of the engine. There is a substantial amount of material that can me removes as long as you are not using any of the attachments back there for engine mounting. I would suggest you start with a blow motor, open the case and take a look at it, then machine accordinly. Transfer that to the working engine.

[exFSAE]

I would also say, shave a little bit off the engine (swing arm mount is worth a good pound) but the biggest gains will be elsewhere on the car.

You could screw with internals, but I've seen plenty of teams throw rods and F things up good with stock internals.

If you're thinking of carbon parts or things with adhesives.. keep in mind their strength degrades with temperature. And engines do tend to get hot.

[Mike Hart]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">And engines do tend to get hot. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

LOL. I think that should be in the running for quote of the year :P

[TG]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by exFSAE:
If you're thinking of carbon parts or things with adhesives.. keep in mind their strength degrades with temperature. And engines do tend to get hot. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Not to mention moisture absorption... water absorbed in a polymer matrix can sometimes halve the strength of a composite. I have no clue what effect oil will have on a matrix. To avoid absorption by the matrix, you can put a non-permiable barrier (ie metallic surface) between the composite and the environment or you can do what was done with the B2 bomber and have a composite layup of over a foot thick and it would be essentially impossible for water to permiate through the thickness of the composite.

You can get higher temperature composite materials (polyimides, BMI, etc.) that will easily resist the higher temperatures as seen in an engine... they are just harder to manufacture at the much higher processing temperatures required and the raw materials are more expensive as well.