Fiberglass Hoods

[sfwilliams@home.com (Scott F. Williams)]

Dave, the more weight that you can remove from the overloaded front end the
better. Improving the car's balances (towards an ideal of 50/50) will pay
huge dividends in braking and handling. The minor loss in straightline
traction is easily remedied with sticky tires, a limited slip differential,
or an adjusted launch technique. This isn't a matter of opinion; it is basic
car tuning fact.

So, don't make fun of the Honda guy's (or Josh Able's) carbon hoods because
of the weight redistribution issue. Even if most folks are just going for
the bling bling/ "Yo, check me out!" look, the balance enhancement is the
technically valid part of the modification! Anybody who races around turns
will heartily recommend a lightweight hood, a relocated battery (to the
trunk between the shock towers -not at the rear bumper), and anything else
that can be done to even the weight score. (In fact, I bought your
ultra-lightweight upper stress bar with this exact notion in mind.)

The quarter mile guys will keep the weight up front, but that's because
they're barbaric straight line weenies who know nothing about real racing.
;^) (Just kidding!) As always, optimize your car for a particular venue and
have fun thrashing. :^)
--
Scott F. Williams
NJ Scirocco nut
Golf GTI 16v "rollycar"
Mazda 323 GTX turbo "assaulted" vehicle
'99 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS (coming soon)
ClubVAC: "Roads found. Drivers wanted."

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