Took the fun out of the car

[DaleNixon]

So, I installed a custom built sub box with a friend of mine in my 2 (he did most of the work as he's an audio expert). The amp I ended up buying (JL Audio 450/4) is much larger and heavier than I expected (19+ inches long, 25+ lbs.). It's powering some Morel Integra Ovation X06 speakers in the front doors as well. The sub is a shallow Dayton audio 12". The box we built is pretty bulky.

I'm enjoying my newfound sound quality, but I think a lot of the fun has been sapped from the car. I'll try to drive it around for a few more days and see if I can adjust, but it feels like I've lost a lot of acceleration and braking and steering nimbleness. Oddly enough, the steering feels a bit heavier now as well and the wheel seems to snap to center more quickly. I know this can be expected when adding weight to such a light car, but I didn't expect it to be so drastic. I need to weigh the setup and see how much I've really added.

Has anyone else experienced something similar when installing a sub in the hatch area? I may just have to drive around for a few days and get used to it. But I'm also considering buying a lighter amp like the JL HD600/4 and trying to look into much lighter shallower sub boxes for the sub I bought.

If anyone has any similar experience or suggestions, I'm all ears. Thanks!

 

[PGTBrow]

It's like putting a fat man in your trunk lol

 

[DaleNixon]

It kinda is. I'm going to drive around with it for a few more days to see if I can get used to it. I think it'll help when I put my fun wheel setup back on. I had to put the stockers on to shut off the TPMS light for inspection.

 

[DrWebster]

MDF is heavy as crap...that's why it works great for sub boxes. Maybe try yanking the spare tire to offset it a little? Could also switch to one of those Alpine class-D amps; those are compact and relatively lightweight, but still pack good power.

 

[genericmoniker]

That seems quite heavy. All of my equipment was probably south of 20 lbs. My sub box is quite large, something close to 2 cu.ft, so it isn't the lighest box out there.

 

[nikbrewer]

i have an alpine type r 8" in a fiberglass / baltic birch box i built. sub and box is maybe 12-15 lbs. Have a amp under each seat. After head unit, sub, amps, box, speakers, ect i be i added less than 40 lbs to the car. You just need to build a setup with weight in mind. a good 8" and a small amp will work great for this car. my 8" rattles everything in the car, and thats on 270 watts rms

 

[kwaits92]

Your box is what's weighing it down. If you got the money to spend. Get a custom fiber glass box made. It will reduce the weight drastically.
I have a 15" sub in the trunk, it has a small impact on acceleration.

 

[colonelangus]

MDF is heavy as crap...that's why it works great for sub boxes. Maybe try yanking the spare tire to offset it a little? Could also switch to one of those Alpine class-D amps; those are compact and relatively lightweight, but still pack good power.

actually any pro box will be made of hdf high density..mdf shakes apart with time..hdf is about 50% heavier than the same size mdf ..yankin the spare is a great idea just have AAA incase lol

 

[DaleNixon]

I've gotten used to it at this point. And putting my Kosei K1's back on the car really helped. Maybe I'll get they dynotronics reflash lol.

 

[Mazdamatic]

well i mean seeing how the car how like 90whp adding anything ***** the whole car up.

i weigh 180 and when im with my gf (who skinny so i dont know weight but shes skinny lol) i can tell it doesnt like it. dont even get me started how bad it was when i had 3 200+lb football player friends in there....

 

[ngd298]

well i mean seeing how the car how like 90whp adding anything ***** the whole car up.

i weigh 180 and when im with my gf (who skinny so i dont know weight but shes skinny lol) i can tell it doesnt like it. dont even get me started how bad it was when i had 3 200+lb football player friends in there....

Yep, I've had to go to 1st a few times when carrying 4-5 decent sized people up a mountain (lol2)