drive shaft upgrade

[puddin]

being cheap -- i m looking for "a get faster cheap idea" and i thought wouldn't an aluminum drive shaft speed things up

a one piece with not carrier bearing and only 2 u joints should reduce weight a good amount//


a suggestion for So Cal Mark-- how about an engine and tunning section -- with seperate trans and driveline sections too

other than that i like to say thanks to socalMark for this forum and his efforts - you are apperciated

[Raze]

Ever swap a 1 piece into a car made for a 2 piece? You may have some fun vibrations at speed...

[NCArachnid]

Vibration is definitely a problem.
A friend of mine had an '07 Mustang GT-500 Shelby Cobra that he put about $30k in uprades to take it on the track. The shop that prepared it (in Charlotte) built an identical one for the NASCAR driver Greg Biffle. One of the mods was the 1-piece aluminum drive shaft. Between 100-130 mph it progressively felt like the car was coming apart from vibration. He said he had it back to the shop to rebalance it but they couldn't get rid of all the high speed vibration. It was barely street worthy in my opinion.
He now has a ZO6 that is faster at the track and you can still drive it down to Taco Bell if you want.

[azruss]

stripping weight is a great way to get faster. try a lightened flywheel or aluminum crank pulley. you can also get crazy. first time i took mine out after the installing the engine it layed rubber down without me having to do anything but put my right foot down. I had no interior except drivers seat and dash. no doors, no hood, no trunk lid, no bumpers, no lights (see pix in the "post picture of your car" section).

[So Cal Mark]

one problem with going to a 1 piece shaft is getting the angles correct on each end

[puddin]

another great idea shot down == how about a 50hp shot of nitro on a stock 8:1 compression engine..

[So Cal Mark]

haha, this is something I've been kicking around and am surprised no one has done it. Or done it and talked about it. Why only 50?

[divace73]

If it's a post 73, remove the bumpers, they weigh a ton (figuratively speaking) it may be about 80kg's or approx 176 pounds

[puddin]

i'm a little worried about the remove bumpers idea-- the sheet metal is paper thin on these cars and i'd like to live another day if i was in an accident.. the bumpers are the only real steel protecting you. sometimes i take a drive with my 7 yr old daughter and couldn't stomach loosing her to gain some more speed.

now for the nitro -- i'm a muscle car guy and don't see why a 50hp shot along with feul sprayed into the intake at full throttle would do much damage.. might lose some longevity on the engine but if the fuel was mixed with the nitro (especially fuel inj engines with higher fuel pressure pumps) it shouldn't cause detonation and piston burning... just an idea for those with extra engines to spare and lots of spare change.

[donm]

Not to hijack the thread, but is that true about the sheet metel? Is it really thinner than other cars?

[azruss]

If sheet metal thickness has changed on the Spiders over the decade it is insignificant. your 80 is probably safer than the early cars because there is some added support in the doors. those bumpers offer protection in low speed fender benders. basically designed to reduce sheetmetal damage in parking lots. If you are in a collision hard enough to worry about the life of your bambinos, your bumpers will do little to help the cause. These cars are an all welded unibody construction which works in your favor. it is a 50 year old pre Ralph Nader design.