hey guys, i was wondering if anybody would be interested in a carbon fiber trunk for their rx-8? i have a friend who can create carbon fiber molds of most parts but needs 10 orders to make it worth while.

would anybody be interested in this part or other carbon fiber body part?

 

I think autoexe already makes one

 

No, theirs is FRP. But one of the other companies does... I don't remember which. RMagic, or someone like that... not FEED, RE Amemiya, etc....

 

there is a carbon trunk made by RS pantera and it can be seen here: http://www.rspantera.com/parts/carbon-trank/img_big.jpg

however that trunk is about $2,500 US. i was looking into something more affordable.

 

Would look sweet on a black car. How much weight is saved for $2,500?

 

I've never been a fan of cf trunks

 

IMO it would only look good if it were on a black car...

 

i would personally add a metalic kinda blue with some five spoke gunmetal rims but thats just me really...

 

any updates on a cf trunk? And what material is the stock trunk made out of?

 

I would be interested if it were

1) w/ in my budget
2) a considerable amount lighter than stock
3) an exact replacement (using all OEM parts to mount, and it'd be nice if it looked good on the inside, too)
4) paintable w/o additional work (I don't like how CF looks)

You can post the 2-4 on the forum, but may need to PM people interested for price ranges. I'm interested out of curiosity, but not a definite potential buyer. Like I said, I need 1-4 to be fulfilled. If there are any details, let's hear 'em.

 

your not going to save any weight over the aluminum trunk

 

The reason it is 2500.00 is becasue it is made the correct way saving alot of weight by using Pre-Preg carbon fiber vacum packed and autoclaved

This is the way we do it at IPT that is why the price is so high on that trunk.

here is a little run down on the diffrence from wet-lay carbon fiber (like all the hoods out there for 500 to 600)

and pre-preg carbon fiber (higher priced carbon items trunk for 2500 hoods for 2100 etc..)

Wet lay-Up or Pre-Preg?


In the wet Lay up process, a dry carbon-fiber mat is placed in the mold, and then the resin is poured and brushed into the carbon fiber cloth. This is usally done over fiberglass or plastic..

Pre-preg refers to a particular kind of carbon-fiber mat that has resin pre-impregnated in the cloth. Heat releases the resin from the cloth, so pre-preg mats must be keep cold until ready to use.

Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Dry carbon-fiber mats are less expensive than pre-preg and don’t require special handling before use. But the brush/pour method of adding resin is inexact and can be tough to control, so there’s a risk of having too much or too little resin in the cloth. Plus, the act of brushing the resin onto the cloth can cause the cloth to shift in the mold, which could result in an uneven weave pattern or snag in the cloth.

With pre-preg, the right amount of resin is already in the mat so there’s zero risk of over or under-coating the cloth. And since there’s no brushing, the mat won’t move once it’s in the mold, which will keep the weave even. But pre-preg is significantly more expensive than dry cloth/wet Lay-up.

IPT Starts with pre-preg sheets of carbon fiber mat. Then the mold comes a carbon-fiber part is only as good as its mold. So a lot of time and effort are put into constructing the mold. The smoother the mold the smoother the finish of the final product will be. This will bring out the shine in the carbon-fiber. No clear coats are applied to IPT carbon products the trick is in the mold.

 

Thanks for the informative post, IPT.

 

I wonder if a carbon fiber trunk and a carbon fiber hood would balance out the 50/50 weight distribution. I've notice a lot of people on the boards arent buying cf hoods because they think it might ruin their 50/50.