A few recent reviews

I read the last of the yellow reviews you listed (42971). It was interesting that the writer stated that all the carbon fiber options only resulted in saving approximately 16 pounds of weight. I wonder how accurate that number is? Assuming it is correct, that is a significant weight savings. Porsche offers special packages where they charge enormous amounts of money for similar savings. Add to that the 50+ pounds that the ceramic brakes save over the steel and you do end up with a lighter car. I wonder if the upgraded OEM wheels are any less in weight than the standard wheels? Rotating mass has a significantly more advantageous benefit then fixed weight. In the end we all have different tastes and expectations for the cars that we own. I could have easily afforded the R8V10 or 911 Turbo S, but fell for the NSX. Even now I could sell mine and buy something else but just don't want to.
 
I was wondering about the 16 lbs as well. The roof alone should save significantly more than that. Then again, the rear spoiler is purely an add-on, so any weight there is actually in addition to the base car.
 
drmanny3 said:
... Add to that the 50+ pounds that the ceramic brakes save over the steel and you do end up with a lighter car. I wonder if the upgraded OEM wheels are any less in weight than the standard wheels? Rotating mass has a significantly more advantageous benefit then fixed weight. ...
Click to expand...

Rotating mass in a wheel affects acceleration more than non-rotating mass because it has to be brought up to rotational speed as well as forward speed. The magnitude of this effect varies with radius (how far the mass is from the axis of rotation). Divide the radius of a mass by the overall radius of the wheel, square the result, and that gives the magnitude of the additional effect due to rotation. Mass at the periphery of the wheel (mass at the surface of the tire) affects acceleration 2x as much as non-rotating mass does. Mass halfway between the periphery and axis affects acceleration 1.25x as much as non-rotating mass. 2=1+1². 1.25=1+0.5².

The 305/30R20 rear tires on a gen2 NSX have a radius of 13.6". The rear brake rotor has a radius of 7.1". 1+(7.1/13.6)² = 1.27. Mass at the edge of the brake rotor has 1.27x the effect of non-rotating mass. Most of the mass in the rotor is closer to the axis than that and has an even smaller additional effect due to its rotation.

Yes rotating mass counts more but in the instance of brake rotors it's not a huge difference.
 
Given the horsepower and torque associated with the NSX, I would agree we are not talking about a significant difference in say 0 to 60 mph or the 1/4 mile. Having said that people will often pay thousands for a ever so slight an advantage in weight. Rotating mass still beats static weight as you noted. I can recall in the early days with the first generation NSX some would literally remove all the paint from the frame of the car to gain in overall weight reduction and subsequent performance. Those of you who are fanatics with bicycles can probably remember how we would spend small fortunes saving grams of weight. Especially wheels. By the way that was a great video to watch.
 
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drmanny3 said:
... Those of you who are fanatics with bicycles can probably remember how we would spend small fortunes saving grams of weight. Especially wheels.
Click to expand...

I remember those days of criterion racing. It was tough trying to shed weight on bicycles back in the 80's. That Brooks leather seat wasn't pleasant to break in.
 
DocL said:
I remember those days of criterion racing. It was tough trying to shed weight on bicycles back in the 80's. That Brooks leather seat wasn't pleasant to break in.
Click to expand...

The hipsters here in Chicago love those Brooks saddles with the brass details.
 
I had a Raleigh Competition bike in the 70s with sew ups.

The rear tire rolled off the rim and the wheel collapsed. Went with a tube rim after that. The sew up on the front was remarkably durable.

The big changes for me was going to an 853 steel and carbon fiber fork with Campy Record 9 speed about 20 years ago, then adding a Ti single speed with a carbon fiber fork and Dura Ace a couple of years later.

The bicycle industry pumps out wonderful stuff. Love the evolution of electric shifting these days.
 
I contacted a resource within the NSX group who indicated the following with respect to weight reduction. The Ceramic Brakes represent about a 9+ lb. weight reduction per wheel. The Carbon Fiber roof is approximately 25 to 28 lbs. lighter than the aluminum. The rest of the carbon fiber does not really save much weight. The Mechanical front seats will save about 20 lbs.
 
Those were the days

Bricks and Bio said:
I had a Raleigh Competition bike in the 70s with sew ups.The rear tire rolled off the rim and the wheel collapsed. Went with a tube rim after that. The sew up on the front was remarkably durable.The big changes for me was going to an 853 steel and carbon fiber fork with Campy Record 9 speed about 20 years ago, then adding a Ti single speed with a carbon fiber fork and Dura Ace a couple of years later.The bicycle industry pumps out wonderful stuff. Love the evolution of electric shifting these days.
Click to expand...
Talking about bikes. I have you all on years as I just turned 73. Back in the day I had a Colnago Steel framed bike with Campy Panographed groupo. I also built up a Ciocc from the frame up with campy. Also built up a Nishiki frame Japan and a Team Bike from Washington with Dura Ace. I sold the last two Italian bikes in 2014 as my significant other wanted me to get rid of stuff we did not use. We moved on to mountain bikes and I had a early Merlin Titanium hardtail and hard fork with Shimano equip. Now I am riding Specialized S-Works Epic. The problem is my body will not do what my mind wants it to do. Any help in that area would be appreciated. Those were the days where you could have the best for a reasonable price. Now the good stuff sells for $12,000 an up. Though frankly given my physical condition a Target bike at $500 would be more than I can really handle.
 
Bricks and Bio said:
I had a Raleigh Competition bike in the 70s with sew ups.

The rear tire rolled off the rim and the wheel collapsed. Went with a tube rim after that. The sew up on the front was remarkably durable.

The big changes for me was going to an 853 steel and carbon fiber fork with Campy Record 9 speed about 20 years ago, then adding a Ti single speed with a carbon fiber fork and Dura Ace a couple of years later.

The bicycle industry pumps out wonderful stuff. Love the evolution of electric shifting these days.
Click to expand...

Reynolds 853 if I recall correctly. Nice.

Bricks, I thought I liked you but the defection from Campy to Shimano.......... Just kidding. I am still riding a Pinarello Opera, circa early 2000s with a Record triple gruppo. That old Opera hearkens back to the days of the pinnacle of steel frame building -- carbon fork and rear triangle and a wonderful ride that some say only steel can provide. I still love the bike.

I did pick up a Specialized Roubaix last year that provides a somewhat more relaxed ride on the crap roads in the Greater Detroit area and is Shimano equipped (Ultegra) with disc brakes. Not super expensive but a nice ride nonetheless. It also enables me to ride some of the rails to trails around here since it runs 28mm tires as opposed to the 23s on the Pinarello. There has certainly been a huge leap forward in materials and innovation over the past 20 years. However, I'm a bit of a luddite -- willing to make the move to disc brakes but no thanks on the e-shifting. I'll stick with a manual transmission.

Dr. M -- I suspect you are sandbagging us with your comment about a $500 Target bike being sufficient. Even if you wanted to test that theory you would have a hard time finding a bike at Target, Walmart or for that matter most bike shops these days.

Ride on guys!

Best,
Jeff
 
Bavaria,

Campy really did't have a non track single speed groupo like Shimano did with Dura Ace when I was doing that bike (Shimano referred to the components as straight bar technology back then). Plys I had wanted to go with Chris King hubs to enjoy his buzzing sound during coasting (and they were not compatible with Campy) Campy Record Pista stuff is kind of over optimized. I had a Gunnar 853 steel single speed and broke 2 Campy Record Pista crank arms (chubby me).
 
I had an orange 10 speed chopper.....jumped over so much stuff the frame bent..
 
It is funny that many of us were bike junkies back in the day. My first bike was a Bianchi with a three speed hub back in 1960. It was a Christmas gift, I was 13 years old. I would ride a street adjacent to a small airport runway in Hawthorne (Space X) and try and keep up with the cars as I approached the end of the run. Back then I had never heard of bikes with derailleurs and multiple gears. It is amazing how the evolution of cycling has progressed.

As for the review as noted it was long but enthusiastic. The fellow also reviewed the interior on a subsequent video.
 
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