Sunroof weight ...revealed!

[RedShift42]

Hi all,

I know there's been considerable discussion on this, but no definitive answer.

Until now...

Several weeks ago I contacted a friend at MINI USA and asked if he could get to the bottom of our sunroof weight concerns. Heard back from him this morning...

The sunroof adds 61 lbs.
Its weight is distributed w/ 22lbs on the front axle, and 39lbs on the rear axle.

Considering the level of detail he provided, I'm confident we now have an authorative number, worthy of inclusion in our technical FAQ. I'm still undecided on this option, but I hope this helps a few other obsessive souls like myself.


Disappointingly, he's unable to provide any insight on the 2003-model availability of center armrest or cloth/leather seating for USA models.

[Paul]

Nice one. Well sourced.

[cmt]

Quote:

Originally posted by RedShift42
[b]The sunroof adds 61 lbs.
Its weight is distributed w/ 22lbs on the front axle, and 39lbs on the rear axle.

Thanks for this info, I wonder if this actually helps the car by making the weight distribution better or not?

[Damo]

Is there any chance of the weight of the Air Conditioning and Automatic Air COnditioning, that way we can do a comparison. Thing with Air Con tho is that the weight is all on the front axel as its all under the bonnet!

Hmmmmmm Would be intresting to find out

[MiniMayhem]

In a recent Audi brochure I noticed that nearly all of the optional extras are now listed with the weight they add to the car, eg. Cup Holders - 0.1kg, etc. - maybe BMW will follow suit?

[BrantV]

Quote:

Originally posted by cmt

Thanks for this info, I wonder if this actually helps the car by making the weight distribution better or not?

Probably not. While the weight distribution moved back towards the rear wheels, the center of gravity also moved up.

[J.N.]

Noisy, ugly and a downright pain on a hot day.

I'll take the air-con, thanks.

[clarus]

Quote:

Originally posted by Damo
Is there any chance of the weight of the Air Conditioning and Automatic Air COnditioning, that way we can do a comparison. Thing with Air Con tho is that the weight is all on the front axel as its all under the bonnet!

I seriously doubt there'd be much difference between auto and non-auto air con, given it'd be mostly cosmetic (small dash control panel).

[Damo]

Quote:

Originally posted by clarus


I seriously doubt there'd be much difference between auto and non-auto air con, given it'd be mostly cosmetic (small dash control panel).

Thats what I thought at First, but everything's electrical at the dash (i.e. Buttons) as opposed to the Mechanical (i.e. Dials) on the normal one, so surely there are electric motors that change the position of Airflow (i.e. Windscreen, Floor, Dash) so surely there's at least some extra weight, although it may be only a kg or so.

Anyway I'd really like to know how heavy it is if anyone can find out, It would be greatly appreciated!

[myminis]

could someone please figure out how much the bonnett stripes weigh, that will be the decision on if i buy them or not, oh and how much horsepower they add

[PghArch]

The weight is considerable when applied, but they claim it decreases noticably as with aging. Some hokey about binders and solvents I think.

[tcjohnsson]

62 lbs is considerable. That's almost 3% of the car's curb weight. I wonder what this does to fuel efficiency? The sunroof probably adds slightly higher drag coefficiency too, even when closed. If you achieve 35 mpg with a sunroof I wonder if you could get 36 without it?

[Bilbo Baggins]

Quote:

Originally posted by cmt

Thanks for this info, I wonder if this actually helps the car by making the weight distribution better or not?

Putting the weight up in the roof will deffinately hurt the performance. Adding weight to the rear wheels "might" help, but not as much as the height hurts.

Motor on, Dude!!!!!

[Basil]

Quote:

Originally posted by tcjohnsson
62 lbs is considerable. That's almost 3% of the car's curb weight. I wonder what this does to fuel efficiency? The sunroof probably adds slightly higher drag coefficiency too, even when closed. If you achieve 35 mpg with a sunroof I wonder if you could get 36 without it?

I take it you won't be carrying many passengers then. ?

[tcjohnsson]

Yes,

I purchased the Mini to tote my butt and maybe a girlfriend around when required. 95% of the time I'm solo.