Bang for your buck???

[Zmatt]

Is a lightened flywheel a good idea? A buddy of mine autocrosses a 240sx with a lightened flywheel and it makes it harder to dire on the street because of it. Then again a 240 isn't a spider.

[mdrburchette]

The only thing you may notice with the lightened flywheel is the engine will rev a little faster than before and your car may not coast as well. The flywheel on these Fiats are like 22 lbs so when you lighten it, the engine can respond quicker...but the downside is you lose the rotating weight that keeps the engine turning so you end up having to give it gas when you normally wouldn't have to. Also, you will not see much benefit performance wise if you only lighten the flywheel. It works best when you build your engine with reducing weight as a target.

[Zmatt]

ok cool. i think that's what he complained about, was waiting at red lights he had to rev it and people thought he was impatient.

[pastaroni34]

I've never known anyone who considers a lightened flywheel to be disappointed with one. The effect is noticeable but not extreme. Our lightening reduces the MOI (moment of inertia) to 2/3rds of what it is originally. For comparison sake our aluminum flywheels are about 1/3rd, and an ultralight flywheel is around 1/6th.

I can be completely lazy and not rev up my motor at lights etc even with the aluminum flywheel. I would not expect any problems with just a lightened one.

[TulsaSpider]

I actually noticed a difference when I deleted the Nadar tube bumpers. When the power comes on I can feel it more. Oh I wish I could re do my motor, maybe next winter...

[mdrburchette]

ok cool. i think that's what he complained about, was waiting at red lights he had to rev it and people thought he was impatient.

I wasn't referring to an idling problem with a lightened flywheel, but a difference when on the highway. Where you normally can take your foot off the accelerator and the car will keep the momentum, the lightened flywheel will cause the car to lose that momentum and you may notice having to give it gas to keep it rolling at a desired speed. Mine has a custom light flywheel and I love the way the engine is more peppy at lower speeds and revs like a motorcycle.

[meangreenspider]

I've never known anyone who considers a lightened flywheel to be disappointed with one. The effect is noticeable but not extreme. Our lightening reduces the MOI (moment of inertia) to 2/3rds of what it is originally. For comparison sake our aluminum flywheels are about 1/3rd, and an ultralight flywheel is around 1/6th.

I can be completely lazy and not rev up my motor at lights etc even with the aluminum flywheel. I would not expect any problems with just a lightened one.

where can I find an aluminum flywheel?

[So Cal Mark]

Miller's Mule is the only person I know that is advertising them right now. My perf clutch mfg makes them but he wants to do 10 Fiat units at a time, not just one or two, so that he can keep the cost down

[Zmatt]

how much of a performance increase are they? I understand how they work, but are we tlaking a second off of 0-60 times or what?

[So Cal Mark]

we normally only do them along with performance mods. Don't expect anything earth shattering if that is your only upgrade

[TulsaSpider]

Mark any drawbacks with the aluminum?

[So Cal Mark]

we haven't seen any drawbacks, but lightened flywheels are much more common than aluminum.

[meangreenspider]

Finally had new exhaust installed. My exhaust consists of header, 2 1/4" pipe and a dual tip muffler. It's possible that some of it's the sound but I really think there is a significant performance increase thru 2nd gear. the car sounds really good while accelerating but the drone at driving speeds is just too much for anything but a short drive. I installed a less than expensive dual tip muffler and wish I would have went a different direction. It doesn't sound like a ricer but not the exact sound I'm after. does the magnaflow muffler have a significant drone at normal driving speeds? Any recomendations for a muffler that sounds great under acceleration but doesn't drone under normal driving conditions?

[So Cal Mark]

I don't think the Magnaflow has a drone, but they are loud above 4k rpm. Many of the name muffs let you hear the sound on their websites. We've been using Hushpower on the X exhaust, and I know you can listen on their website. Mufflers in that class are in the $175 price range though

[meangreenspider]

Thanks Mark, $175 is a small price to pay to preserve whats left of my hearing.