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[road_rescue]

Hi all,
Courtenay's are advertising a lightened flywheel kit for the V6 or their website;
has anyone done this? any good? did you need to remap/mod to alter the idle speed, my thought being is the flywheel is heavy to keep the idle down to 480rpm, so surely taking 2/3's of the weight off it would make it a bit lumpy on tickover...

Interested to hear thoughts

Discus.

[Kevin Wood]

A lightened flywheel will make a small diference to the performance in the lower gears due to reduced intertia however it can also make the idle a little lumpy as said, and can make the car awkward to drive in traffic because the engine has less momentum when pulling away.

It does make the engine more responsive to the throttle and can help make faster gearchanges both up and down the box.

The Omega's flywheel is a dual mass device. If this is not maintained the clutch driven plate will need to be changed to one with a sprung hub.

Kevin

[Minispud]

Demon Tweeks list lightened flywheels for the V6 ( TTV Racing Components, Billet Steel), yes it might be a little lumpy at tick over.
 The lower inertia and reduced weight offers more available power at the wheels, instant throttle response, better acceleration, quicker gear changes and greater engine braking and the price £295

[hotel21]

once the flywheel is spinning, the 'available power' remains the same.  The advantages are only as listed.....  Slightly better pickup, but with lumpy tickover and reduced engine braking when slowing....

Depends on what you are looking for, ultimately....  

[Andy B]

 .... and will an engine that gets to higher revs faster make a difference to a car that tips the scales at a ton(ne) & 3/4's?  :-/  :-/  :-/

[Kevin Wood]

.... and will an engine that gets to higher revs faster make a difference to a car that tips the scales at a ton(ne) & 3/4's?  :-/  :-/  :-/

This is very valid. I fitted one to a 650Kg car and the difference in acceleration wasn't really that noticeable and I also rebuilt the engine at the same time so any difference was more likely to do with the fact that the compression had picked up.

Lard the car up with another tonne of weight and I certainly wouldn't go to the trouble unless it was all coming out anyway. As Hotel21 says, the available power is the same.

The main difference is that beforehand I could "beat the flywheel" with gearchanges. I.e. when changing up, there was still too much energy in the flywheel once I'd got into the next gear. In a rapid change this either resulted in the clutch slipping or the wheels breaking traction depending on the gear. With a light flywheel the engine RPM settles a lot quicker during a change and it's also easier to blip the throttle on downchanges to match the revs.

I went from about 18kg to 5.5 kg. On a light car that weight saving is worthwhile in itself.

Also beware of letting cowboys lighten flywheels. They can bite!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2pz1PkhAo8

Kevin

[Andy B]

.......
Also beware of letting cowboys lighten flywheels. They can bite!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2pz1PkhAo8

Kevin

     A brown trouser moment if ever there was one!  

[Kevin Wood]

There's one I was looking for of a C20XE flywheel letting go in a Caterham at circa 8500 RPM.

Car wrote itself off from the inside, practically. Bits of clutch and flywheel all over the engine bay and scuttle, and launched through the bodywork, taking out any chassis members that were in the way. Driver was lucky the debris didn't take his ankles out. New underwear required without a shadow of doubt.

Kevin

[Marks DTM Calib]

Anybody who thinks a light weight flywheel will help your 0-60 time in a 1.7 ton car needs to apply some common sense.

It will only affect the rate at which the revs change when in neutral or with the clutch pressed.......as Kevin has said, this has helped his kit car mainly I expect because he can throw a faster change in, that and the engine changes at the time!

[road_rescue]

don't think i'll bother then...