Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

I thought you meant weight reduction.





I've stripped the following:

A/C
A/C Condensor
A/C lines
A/C Evaporator
A/C vents
Heater core
Driver side airbag
Passenger side airbag
Passenger side seat
SRS Unit and wiring
Back seats
Moonroof
Panel from the ceiling
Door panels
Rear panels
Rear speakers
Jack
Spare tire
Carpet
Sound dampening material
Insulation from firewall
Center arm rest
Unnecessary wiring from Moonroof/Speakers/Rear defroster
Other misc stuff

Anything I don't need, I'm stripping. You'd be surprised by how much all this crap really weighed.

Soon to remove or replace by:

Tar, located on the floor from front to back (est. weight 117lbs from what I've read)
Windows replace by Plexi
Fenders (either custom made CF, or aluminum)
Hood replaced by CF
Trunk replaced by CF (custom)
Console to be replaced by Aluminum with just the necessary gauges



There are 3 ways to remove PS. Steps 2 and 3 have more than one way of doing it.

Step 1: Remove belt
Step 2: Remove belt and loop the system
Step 3: Remove belt, loop the system, and add a breather (track cars use this set up, again to help with lower speed turning)

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

For those of you that care, it's not street legal, and it's my track car. No need for insurance or registration since it's not driven on the streets. That's an old pic btw, and an old list. I've done more since then.

MOD EDIT:
All members, read POST #1 before posting. Failure to do so may result in a ban!

Inaccurate

I was a badddd boy this weekend.

I broke my one and only rule - I removed something that is noticeable to the average person.

It is easily replaced if I change my mine however. No tools are even required. Five minutes, and it is back in place. (ok, so much for rationalizing).

I Removed another 10 lbs.

The total weight reduction is now 219.4 Lbs





This weekend, I wanted to remove the rear seat to investigate what sort of insulation is lying underneath the carpet. The bad news is that the foam under the carpet is extremely lightweight stuff. It is not worth my effort to un-install the seats and side molding to remove the padding under the carpet. I was hoping that the padding was some sort of heavy foam insulation like the type used in homes.

But, my efforts of removing the rear seat was fruitful. I removed 3.7 lbs of insulation (sound deading) from under the rear seat area. As I was re-installing the rear seat, I noticed how heavy the rear armrest was. I thought "damn, this is TOO heavy for a damn armrest." So, I figured that I could remove it just to see how it would look. Once I got that armrest out and felt how heavy it was, I was fairly sure that it would stay off. It weighed 6.0 lbs.

extremetls

remove the headrests

Inaccurate

Well, well, well.. More interesting stuff.

Naysayers call me crazy because I claim to be able to feel/notice huge improvements in my car with the weight that I removed. Naysayers think I am just imagining these improvements.

Well then, I suppose these people (in the linked thread below) are crazy too. They claim that driving the TL with several passengers makes the TL handle like a TUG BOAT. One poster in the linked thread even hints that the handling becomes scary when carrying several passengers.


For myself, I prefer to be "Jack Be Nimble" instead of a "Sea Captain steering a Tug boat".

https://acurazine.com/forums/ramblings-12/%5Bxbox%5D-street-racing-syndicate-153194/

Inaccurate

extremetls, that would be too extreme !!!

(seriously, the headrest are somewhat light for what they are.)

Inaccurate

Well, as I always say... more interesting stuff.

http://www.z06vette.com/forums/archi...p/t-78782.html

I am researching for my micro battery, and ran across this gem. Even the Z06 owners strip-down their corvettes !!!!

You would think that the Z06 has too much power already (oem) !!! Looks like that I ain't the only crazy person.

Eoanou

I'd remove the rear headrests, honestly, all they do is obstruct your view.

Eoanou

His TL should be a bunch quicker now, you can see how on the M5 versus the M6 a 200lb weight difference does much for speed even though they have the exact same specs otherwise.
http://www.roadandtrack.com/assets/d...data_panel.pdf

pohljm

its really more like a 265lb difference. with 500hp the weight difference seems to not have much effect on the performance, it appears that it is an aerodynamics difference that is the cause of the performance increase.

Inaccurate

- - - - - - - - GRAND FINALE !!!! - - - - - - - -



This is to be my Grand Finale. I have no more items that I choose to remove/replace. So, "stick a fork in me, I'm done."



In this coming week ahead, I will add some final closing thoughts and comments (obviously). But for today, I wish to just present my final weight reduction mod.

I removed another 67.5 lbs !!!!!

Lightweight Rims = 40.0 lbs
Lightweight Battery = 27.5 lbs

:gheywave:

The rims are Motegi TrakLite 2.0. The rims weight 14.5 lbs each. The factory rims weight 24.5 lbs each. I purchased the rims from TireRack.com. The website for Motegi is www.motegiracing.com.

The rims are one-piece forged. The price from TireRack is $288 each. The factory TPMS sensors fits perfectly. The offset is 45, exactly as stock. The rims are 17x8, exactly as stock.

I have driven the car for one day with the new rims. How do they feel ? The rims feel the same as getting the UR Pulley. The engine revs quicker, the MPH pickup quicker, and there is less of a flattening-out (plateau) as you get beyond 90MPH. Before getting my pulley, my car would have a tendency to flatten-out beyond 80 MPH. After getting the pulley, that plateau was moved to 90 MPH. Now, with the rims, the plateau has been raised again. I can tell you this much, I hit 120 MPH damn fast without realizing it. And, this was encountering the dreaded "4th Gear Wall". I need to test more, but I have NEVER done a WOT into 4th without hitting the wall. And, on my first day with the rims, I did a WOT into 4th without even realizing that the car went into 4th gear - thus no Wall. I was not even aware that I was going that fast. Amazing.

Another interesting thing. One the first day with the rims, the car felt boggy at take-off. I noticed this on several occasions whenever I briskly accelerated from a red light. I then recalled from doing research on light weight rims, they said the car would peel-out easier because the wheels are offering less resistance to the engine's turning force. So, I turned off VSA. Oh hell yea baby !!! That was it. Even though the VSA did not light on the dash, the VSA was engaging traction control causing the bogginess. So, I will now need to remember to turn off VSA when I am on side streets. Without the VSA, the tires lightly screech for a good ways with just light throttle.

Regarding the battery. The car spins-over slightly quicker than with the factory battery. So, don't think that the little battery doesn't have the balls to turn the starter. However, the little battery does lack reserved capacity. And, I am afraid that the TL has too much drain with the key off. I think the TL will be sucking too much amperage while the car is off for the little battery to support. I installed the battery just today. And, I have been monitoring the voltage every few hours with the car setting in the garage. I do not like what I see. The voltage is quickly dropping. Plus, as I attached the battery cables during installation, it had some HEALTHY arching, which indicates a good size amperage draw with the key off. I will keep you updated on the outcome.

I purchased the battery directly from the mfg, www.brailleauto.com. The price was $179. The oem battery (and tray) weighs 39 lbs. The Braille weighs 11.5 lbs. The difference is 27.5 lbs saved.


ITEMIZED LIST OF WEIGHT REDUCTION
---------------------------------
40.0 Reduced Fuel (buy just 4.5 gallons at a time)
40.0 Rims
34.0 Spare Tire (use lightweight 12V air pump)
27.5 Braille Battery
23.0 Trunk Panels
17.0 Front Bumper
16.0 Rear Bumper
9.0 Side Airbag
8.5 Mid Muffler
8.0 CAI
7.5 Front Damper
7.0 UR Crank pulley
7.0 Ground Effect Panels
6.0 Engine Bay Panels
6.0 Rear seat Arm Rest
5.5 Subwoofer Speaker
5.0 Floor Mats
4.0 Reduced wiper fluid (use 1 pint at a time)
3.7 Rear seat Insulation
3.5 Engine Cradle Damper
2.5 Glovebox Plate
2.4 Owner Manual
1.8 Hood Insulation
1.5 Trunk Damper
0.5 Coin holder & sunglass holders
---------------------------------------------
287.5 Lbs TOTAL
8.0 Personal weight loss (attributed to this project)
---------------------------------------------
295.5 Lbs TOTAL NET

Meek32v6

iTrader: (7)

very nice and very impressed. Nice wheels and weight.

red00tl

Since the rims are "unsprung" rotational weight, I've been told that 1lb saved at the rims equals to 3lbs of "sprung" dead weight.

So the 40lbs you saved at the rims effectively become 120lbs, which in turn brings your final figure to 375.5lbs.

The same principle applies to brake rotors too.
You can lose a bit of weight by going for lighter rotors.

2 piece rotors are generally lighter than one piece cast rotors.

Inaccurate

The same concept also applies the the UR Pulley too. Many even say that weight savings at the crankshaft (UR Pulley) has even MORE effect than the wheels.

So, with the UR Pulley, 7 lb reduction in rotating mass is equivalent to "a lot" Lbs reduction in static weight.

Inaccurate

SOURCE = http://snowmobile.off-road.com/snowm....jsp?id=195881

According to this info, the UR pulley might be equal to

7 lbs times a factor of 15 = 105 lbs. of STATIC weight.

Meek32v6

iTrader: (7)

?...before you put in the new battery did you notice your orignal battery not holding as much power or recharging as much because of the lighter pulley?

red00tl

While I don't wish to dispute your figure, I think the factor of 15 applies to flywheels, and the factor for crank pulleys are somewhat less.


I congratulate you for a unique experiment.

As I have the same mind as you, your well-documented effort was extremely valuable to me.

Have fun and drive safely.

Inaccurate

To be blunt, I think that the underdriven pulley does Not (no-way in hell) affect the charging system. The biggest fact that support this is the following - You do Not see the headlights dim/brigthen as the engine RPMs drop to idle and increase from idle. I never seen my headlights dim at idle even with my heater blower (fan speed) on high and the seat warmer on high - and those two items draw a big chunk of amperage.

CleanCL

iTrader: (4)

why dont you remove the battery mount tray too? just mount your new battery on the crossbeam, that tray is usually 3-5 lbs.

Inaccurate

Thanks for the suggestion. Might try removing the tray after I gain some faith in the little bat. For now, I want it to be a quick swap if I need to throw the conventional bat back in.

BATTERY UPDATE – The bat is doing good so far. In a previous post, I mentioned that I was alarmed at how quick the voltage was dropping with the car sitting in the garage.

With a conventional bat, when the voltage drops much more below 12.6, the car is on the borderline of not starting. And, the little bat was quickly in this neighborhood. I was very disappointed at the voltage drop.

I installed the bat on Saturday. Took a test ride to make sure the car was mechanically sound. Parked the car. My intent was to leave the car turned off for the next 24 hours to test the “key off” current drain against the little bat. So, the experiment began at Saturday 4 PM. Every few hours, I checked the bat voltage with a digital volt meter. The voltage was dropping too quickly.

Grit teeth and wait for Sunday 4 PM to conclude my experiment. It was Sunday 5 PM when I went to see the gruesome results (depressed). I checked the voltage and it was 12.44 volts. Ha, ha… No way in hell is this going to spin the starter.

I turn the key, expecting to hear the clicks. Holy Shit !!!! That damn little bat turned the starter like damn quick. Car fired up right away. Happy, happy, joy, joy !!!!

Lesson learned. This little bat uses different battery technology than a conventional battery. And, I can not judge the state of the battery by comparing it’s voltage like a conventional battery. Even at the 12.44 volts, the little bat turned the starter as quickly, maybe more quickly, than the oem battery.

Touge

Imho that battery will not last long. I had one in my last car and got 1.5 years out of it before it died. Hopefully you get longer life out of it than I did . This time around for my RL I went with the TSX battery to shave some weight.

Inaccurate

Thanks for the heads-up. Downhere in the heat of Texas, it is common for conventional batteries to last around two years. So, I try to do preventative manaitence by replacing bats in all of my cars when the bat gets around two years old. So, if this little bat can easily go one year, I sure don't mind buying a new one once a year as preventative manaitence. After feeling the weight reduction, it is worth it to me.

Inaccurate

- - - - - - - Playing with some rough numbers - - - - - - -


DISCLAIMERS -

1) When comparing rotational weight versus static weight, it is impossible to find an equivalence factor that most people agree with.

2) One thing fairly well accepted is that theoretical calculations based on Physics are the worst indicator of true life experiences in regards to this topic.

3) Given the two statements above, the following post is based on conjecture. The "science" involved in this topic is too convoluted to engage into any meaningful discussion.


The best conversion factors that I found in the past few days of searching on the internet is the following - each pound of rotational weight saved at wheel RPM (i.e. wheel weight) is worth 3 pounds of static body weight and each pound saved at engine RPM (driveshaft, flywheel, etc) is worth 15 pounds of static body weight. Allegedly, the book "Chassis Engineering" by Herb Adams has a chart showing this 1-3-15 relationship.

For me, these conversions factors appear sensible. And, based on my recent experiences with my "TL Diet", these conversion factors match my experiences. This is the sole reason that I decided to make this post. My goal is to share my thinking with the lurkers and for anyone that might dig up this thread in the archives.

I realize that this post will lead to a pissing match... but, so be it. I will not be responding to many/any replies on this topic (see disclaimer #3 = The "science" involved in this topic is too convoluted to engage into any meaningful discussion). However, please feel free to interject your thoughts.

Now for the fun part.

The "TL Diet" has removed 295 lbs from the car. In this discussion, we will be looking at rotational weight versus static weight. Therefore, we need to first separate our total weight loss into these two categories.

Of the 295 lbs lost, 7 lbs comes from the UR Pulley and 40 lbs comes from the rims. Both the pulley and rims are being segregated from the total weight loss because the pulley and wheels are rotational weight.

295 Total Lost - 7 Pulley - 40 Wheels = 248 lbs of STATIC WEIGHT
7 Pulley + 40 Wheels = 47 lbs of ROTATIONAL WEIGHT

Let's now find the equivalent STATIC weight loss that the UR Pulley provided. Given the speculation that each pound saved at engine RPM (driveshaft, flywheel, etc) is worth 15 pounds of static body weight, then 7 lbs x 15 = 105 lbs. Thus, the UR Pulley will give the perception that we removed 105 lbs from the car. And, I can tell you that I fully agree with this presumption. The first time I drove my car after getting the pulley, I said to myself "WTF is this feeling".... but, I said it with a HUGE grin on my face !!! The car felt so much lighter when accelerating. So, I repeat, I fully agree that the 7 lbs lost from the pulley could equate to 105 lbs of STATIC weight.

Let's now find the equivalent STATIC weight loss that the rims provided. Given the speculation that each pound saved at wheel RPM (i.e. wheel weight) is worth 3 pounds of static body weight, then 40 lbs x 3 = 120 lbs. Thus, the wheels will give the perception that we removed 120 lbs from the car. And, I can tell you that I fully agree with this presumption too. Driving my car with the lightweight wheels feels identical to when I got the pulley. And, it seems that this "play with numbers" matches my real life observation.

In conclusion, it would seem appropriate to say that the "TL Diet" was equivalent to removing 473 lbs from my car. And, I can tell you that I fully agree with this presumption too.

Because I feel that this equivalent weight loss is more meaningful in conveying the results that I have obtained with my "TL Diet", I am revising my official list. Plus, this equivalent weight loss would be reflected in the actual performance improvements (0-60 MPH, 1/4 mile, braking).


ITEMIZED LIST OF STATIC WEIGHT REDUCTION
----------------------------------------------------
40.0 Reduced Fuel (buy just 4.5 gallons at a time)
40.0 Rims
34.0 Spare Tire (use lightweight 12V air pump)
27.5 Braille Battery
23.0 Trunk Panels
17.0 Bumper Front
16.0 Bumper Rear
9.0 Side Airbag
8.5 Mid Muffler
8.0 CAI
7.5 Front Damper
7.0 UR Crank pulley
7.0 Ground Effect Panels
6.0 Engine Bay Panels
6.0 Rear seat Arm Rest
5.5 Subwoofer Speaker
5.0 Floor Mats
4.0 Reduced wiper fluid (use 1 pint at a time)
3.7 Rear seat Insulation
3.5 Engine Cradle Damper
2.5 Glovebox Plate
2.4 Owner Manual
1.8 Hood Insulation
1.5 Trunk Damper
0.5 Coin holder & sunglass holders
---------------------------------------------
287.5 Lbs TOTAL
8.0 Personal weight loss (attributed to this project)
---------------------------------------------
295.5 Lbs TOTAL NET





:gheywave:

EQUIVALENT WEIGHT REDUCTION
-------------------------------------------------
248 Static weight loss
105 equivalent weight loss from UR Pulley
120 equivalent weight loss from rims
---------------------------------------------
473 Lbs TOTAL WEIGHT REDUCTION (equivalent weight reduction)

:gheywave:




Doing a little more "fun with numbers", the numbers (Hp/Weight ratio) indicate that a person would need a 40 HP Increase to match the same gains that I got from my "TL Diet". And, I have extensively used Nox in my younger days with my 1985 IROC-Z. So, I know what various Nox shots feel like. And, I can tell you that my TL does easily feel like it is getting a 40 HP Shot of Nox. So, again, it seems that the "play with numbers" matches my real life observation.



So, a rough approximation is each 100 lbs removed might equate to one tenth quicker in the 1/4 mile. Looks like I might be a half of a second quicker in the 1/4 mile just from my "silly" TL Diet !!!!





[sarcasm] Wow, who would had ever thought that my silly project would ever amount to anything ? [/sarcasm]

boxstock

This thread is awesome. I could never try what you've done, but it's been fun to follow.

The ones that crack me up the most are the floormats and the owners manual.

I'm happy to share a city with you.

boxstock

Inaccurate

UPDATE - I discovered today that The Wall is still there. I did a WOT into 4th today and felt the wall. It might be slightly less, but still there none the less.

I must had been too busy driving that one day and was too distracted that caused me to not feel The Wall.

evantec

This month's Road and Track (April 2007) has a Side Glances column all about how cars have generally gotten heavier in recent years, with some notable exceptions. It goes into the pros and cons of what features that added weight came from.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/article....rticle_id=4856

It doesn't add say specific about Acuras, but it seemed like the timing was good. Maybe Peter Egan reads this thread when he's not too busy restoring old English roadsters!

Inaccurate

Even the 2007 TL-S. Everyone comments about the increased HP. But, everyone fails to realize that some of this new HP is lost because the car weighs 100 more pounds.

Inaccurate

Just finished reading it. Great article. Thanks evantec !

I really like his closing comments.

I really like the comment "No weight is more superfluous than that which ticks you off." As you will see in a day or two when I post my closing thoughts, I say nearly the same damn thing as this comment.

BG74

Xenon lights do not and cannot dim. They are either on or off.

Eoanou

Too bad you don't have the M/T from what I hear the M/T is much lighter than the A/T not to mention the gear ratios are much closer and you add one more gear, that would eliminate your fourth gear wall, but yes I felt that too and boy does it suck!

Inaccurate

Thanks BG74 !!! I did not know that HID didn't dim with low voltage.

Inaccurate

.


________ ________ ________ ________ ________

-------------------------------------------------
- - - - TL Diet, The Closing Thoughts - - - -
-------------------------------------------------

My car in no way resembles the car that I bought. Obviously, that is an emotional statement. It is the same car logically. But, to convey how the TL Diet has transformed the car's overall perfromance can be described in no other way than by saying "the car in no way resembles the car that I bought." And, as Martha Stewart says, "That's a good thing !"

I have had my new TL for 15 months now. After having my new TL for a few months, I began to pickup on a few things that bugged me. These things bugged me because I felt that the car was capable of more. It is hard to describe the feeling.

From the first day, I have always been very pleased with the WOT performance of the TL. It was always more than I really needed. So, I did not start the TL Diet for WOT reasons. I even purchased my CAI for the sole purpose of elimanting weight. The UR pulley too. After I had read a few people comment how the pulley made their car feel lighter, I had to get one too.

But, it was those other areas that bugged me.

1) lack of quick maneuverability (not agile)
2) acceleration response similar to turbo lag
3) lacked a feeling of confidence during turning and high speed curves
4) lack of power at partial throttle

For a car such as the TL, I was bugged by these things because "it did Not fit." Similar to those picture puzzles where you must spot what is "unusual or out of place" in the photo. Same thing with the TL. For a car that was otherwise a FANTASTIC performance car (in my eyes), these things just seemed to be "out of character" for the car.

Let me elaborate.

1) lack of quick maneuverability (not agile)

I could just feel the heftiness of the car. And personally, I don't like that feeling in the least. This being a new car, I drove extra careful to avoid hitting anything in the road that could scratch my car. And, living in a large city like Houston, a person does encounter junk on freeways somewhat often. When I say junk, I mean things that dent a car or kill a person. Things such as 2x4 lumber, 4x4 lumber, lawn chairs, bed mattress, 6 foot foam cube (I kid you not)... all of this (and more) I have seen in the center of Houston freeways with traffic whizzing by at 70 MPH, swerving to avoid it at the last second.

So, it bugged me that my car was reluctant to QUICKLY swerve at freeway speeds. I am Not saying that the TL is a tug boat. It does handle well in oem condition. But, I just knew that it was capable of more.



2) acceleration response similar to turbo lag

This is NOT regarding acceleration from a dead stop. That was always more than I expected or needed.

I am referring to accelerating from a roll. It felt like I had to submit a request and wait for it to be approved (i.e. turbo lag). I push down the throttle (1/3 to 1/2 pedal travel), I hear the engine response right away, but the car would pause for a second before the acceleration (g-force) was slowly dealt out (i.e. turbo lag). The old saying "building up a head of steam" always crossed my mind when this happened. Once the power had been "dished out and put on the plate", I was always pleased with the level of power and acceleration. It was just the ugly manner in which it was being delivered. At the time, I was Not aware that it was the excess weight of the car causing this ugly phenomenon.



3) lacked a feeling of confidence during turning and high speed curves.

This is not really a problem. As I said already, the oem TL handles great. But, again, I somehow knew that it was capable of more. And that bugged me.

I have two favorite freeway curves. One on the way to work in the morning and another on the way home in the evening. These are favorites because the concrete pavement is excellent, the curves are somewhat tight radius, the curves are banked nicely, never seen a cop hiding in those spots, and traffic is usually light in those areas to allow me to play.

Now when I say play, I do Not mean having the tires squealing around the curve. But, fast enough to get my heart beating quickly and fast enough to begin to feel the limits of the car.



4) lack of power at partial throttle.

It bugged me that a car as powerful as the TL would need to struggle to briskly accelerate along with normal traffic. Again, not a real problem. But again, I just somehow knew it was capable of more.





Well the above describes the car BEFORE the TL Diet. Let's discuss how the car feels now AFTER the TL Diet.


1) lack of quick maneuverability (not agile)

Problem solved. The car is very nimble and agile now. I can take turns around town, and swerve at freeway speed while feeling NO heftiness. The steering is NOT too light either (cheap feeling) to cause the opposite problem (lack of steering feedback) . It is just that the steering is no longer reluctant. Instead, it feels very inviting and very eager to swerve and take turns.



2) acceleration response similar to turbo lag

Problem solved BIG TIME. I had always wondered what was causing that turbo lag feeling. Now I know. It is the time required to get all of that mass to start moving.

I know the following is hard for you to believe. The SPLIT SECOND that I lightly roll into the throttle to get a light downshift (just one gear lower), I feel the g-force IMMEDIATELY, QUICKLY, and HARD. And, even with me explaining it this way, it is still an understatement.



3) lacked a feeling of confidence during turning and high speed curves.

Problem solved BIG TIME. I mentioned my two favorite curves already.

With the stock TL, I could take Curve #1 at 70 MPH without the car struggling back any. Midway thru my project, this got bumped to 80 MPH while gaining a higher amount of confidence too. Now, at the end of my project, this is bumped to 90 MPH while gaining even more confidence.

Now after the project, if I take the turn doing the original 70 MPH, I feel like I can get out of the car and walk faster (i.e. too comfortable and boring at 70 MPH).

Not only is the confidence problem solved, I might had created another problem - over confidence. Handling wise, I feel like superman driving the car now. And that feeling can get one into trouble. Hopefully, I am older and wiser enough to control this feeling.



4) lack of power at partial throttle.

Problem solved BIG, BIG, BIG, BIG TIME.

Throughout the project, this had always been my "yardstick" to chart my progress.

This was always my main encouragement too. As I would remove items, the performance improvement was easily apparent each time I would moderately accelerate from a stop light. With each major item removed, traffic would be left further and further behind me as we pulled away from a red light. Midway thru the project, I had reaped so much improvement that it became hilarious. I had to restrain myself from laughing as the normal traffic was left so far behind - - while my TL motor just leisurely pulled thru the gears.





In conclusion, we can see that without the excess weight, the TL is a true thoroughbred. I never had imagined that all of those things that bugged me was caused by excess weight. The disease (the TL Diet) began because I knew that it could help to some degree if I tried to removed some weight. As I reaped the initial benefits, I knew that the disease would escalate into a project. And, I am so glad that I did it !

For my final thought, I want to share something with you. The second day that I drove my car after completing the TL Diet (after the rims and lightweight battery), it emotionally hit me just how much the car had been transformed. It nearly brought tears of joy to my eyes as I was driving.

Thank you for allowing me to share my "TL Diet" experience with you.

lookinco

Great write up !!!!

ACTROS

iTrader: (7)

^^^Agreed

Hey man I congratulate you with your success in making the TL more to your liking, that's what modding the car is all about, making the car better for YOU!!!
Hopefully now you are at piece with your car and you can finally enjoy it to the fullest!!!
Very happy for ya!!! Keep us posted on your future endeavors :-}

Eoanou

If you ever take your car to the drag strip mind sharing your times?

extremetls

too notice if the battery had an effect... take a close look at the gauges at night when they are on and try to see if they are dimmer than normal or if they flicker a bit.

Inaccurate

The little battery is a CHAMP thus far !

Granted, I was nervous on Monday when I got off of work (is it going to crank over ?) . But, now after one week of living with the little guy, I have complete faith in it . By the time Friday rolled around, the thought of the little guy being in there did not even enter my mind anymore.

Let me make one clear statement regarding that little battery. Although that battery is little, it has BIG balls !
It will spin the starter Faster than the oem battery. The car fires up just the same as having the oem battery. All lights and gauges light up normally.

Costco

Though I am happy to see the results of this experiment you undertook to improve your TL's handling and performance, I agree with Eoanou. If you went ahead and got the 6MT, fuel economy, handling, braking, and acceleration would all be improved to begin with, and the car would also be around 80-100 lbs lighter. Thanks to the lighter weight of the manual transmission, and the thicker rear sway bar, Brembo brake system, LSD, and less powertrain loss from the MT.

Again though, you seem thoroughly satisfied, so congrats.

HQTL6SPD

Glad to hear that your battery is working out great. I hadn't turned my car on since fri being that i had a bad fever... i had to jump start my car this morning. This shouldn't be after only 3 days... i'm thinking i may need a new battery pretty soon. btw how much is the battery made by Odyssey? I love the weight saving idea, and the fact that you say the Braille starts-over faster. But i don't know if i can bring myself to spend so much on a battery...

Also what is cost/pt #/ and weight of the tsx battery?

MOD EDIT:
All members, read POST #1 before posting. Failure to do so may result in a ban!

ACCURATEin

You're a happy TL enthusiast!

Diet TLs experience excess levels of euphoria!