Welcome to the official "SINISTER GT" build thread. I'll be using a slightly different approach to the typical build thread, as I'm utilizing the first few posts to display each portion of the build. Overall progress can be monitored simply by accessing the first page of this build. The rest of this build thread will be used for general posting and updates... and of course, your comments and insights are welcome!
Underneath the "GT's" skin is actually an '86 2.5 base coupe that was once resting in a grassy field somewhere around Norman, OK. The previous owner rescued the rust-free car and began to build this V8-powered Fiero, combining '87 GT body panels to the coupe's frame. The suspension received all polyurethane bushings and was lowered using Eibach lowering springs. Brakes were upgraded with Archie's 11.25" big-brake kit, and the rolling stock was upgraded to Enkei RS5 17x7's with 215/45 front and 235/45 rear tires.
In January of 2003 the car received it's first V8 transplant... originally a stock 305 TPI V8 put in by Archie himself. Later, the motor was dropped for a much more potent 350 cubed engine with a four-bolt main block, Vortec heads and Scoggin-Dickey TPI base-plate, a Comp Cams High Energy 252H Hydraulic Flat Tappet cam from Jegs, 24lb. injectors, and Street and Performance custom burned chip.
The body was upgraded with GT panels and smooth trim, then the car was painted black with a little help from fellow Fiero nut Roger Garrison. The Fiero Store quarter-window scoops were also installed along with a new windshield. Jacob also did a slick little front turn-signal modification, mounting them behind the front wheels for a European touch.
The interior of the car began it's transformation with a Momo Anatomico steering wheel, MOMO shifter on Rodney Dickman's short shifter for aftermarket knobs. Panels were painted black, sound-deadener and new carpet installed, and black vinyl was used to cover the headliner and firewall. A Viper alarm was also installed, along with a few stereo goodies.
Jacob eventually abandoned this project... it was then he offered it for sale here in the PFF mall, which is where I come in. On May 7th 2006, my 30th birthday, I flew from Florida to Ohio to purchase the car. Two days, many miles and a malfunctioning clutch slave-cylinder later, I was back in Florida with my fourth Fiero!
So now the build continues, with a new owner, new plan and a new name... "SINISTER GT." The initial phase of this build will be overall completion of the car. Smaller mechanical and functional details will be tended to first, along with a few small modifications here and there... then eventually working into heavier modifications as time and money allow.
As with many Fiero owners, the overwhelming urge to modify and tweak this car runs heavy in my blood... expect to see some cool things in this thread in the months to come.
This is going to be one wicked car...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 01-22-2008).]
The newer paint job on the car car now wasn't professionally done and has it's flaws. I've done some buffing and wet-sanding to help cure that, and I must say I'm rather happy with the results. It's got good gloss now, and after several labor-intensive sessions of polishing and waxing, she looks great. If you have a black car, I highly encourage using Black Magic (the stuff works great)... Consumer Reports rated it number one. I'll keep using it until the time comes for a new paint job.
I recently bought a GT wing and will be fabricating my own aluminum pedestals to locate the wing back on the decklid how I want it. I'm also installing new grill mesh into the quarter window scoops...
More to come...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 01-22-2008).]
When I got my hands on this GT, the interior upgrading was started but no where near finished. I bought the car with a 350mm MOMO "Millennium" steering wheel and "Anatomico" shifter, as well as new black carpet and new headliner/ firewall vinyl. Otherwise, here's what I've started with; your basic, otherwise stock Fiero interior (minus some bits and peices)...
After the panels were slapped in:
During the first phase of this interior build, I am utilizing the original Fiero interior to my advantage. The already "boxy" appearance of the stock interior will help give the car the purposeful and visceral "jet-fighter" feel I'm looking for. Don't expect to see any fluffy/cuddly stuff here! In the end, the inside of this car will be looking more like a cockpit than an interior.
Here is a shot of the interior in it's current phase... face-plates painted, stainless overlay on the speedo panel, chrome license caps, custom shifter (in progress), map-pockets removed, aluminum pedal covers:
A better shot of the shifter:
1/2" solid aluminum rod I am fabricating for the doors and dash:
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 05-20-2007).]
Of course, the V8 sounds great and I love the way it roars away back there in the engine bay... but I also happen to love listening to music. What is in store? Stay tuned...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 11-04-2006).]
The first phase of this build will consist of making this GT as nice as it can be as it sits, with no heavy modifications being done to alter the overall theme of the car. I want it to be reliable, fun to drive, and "finished" using what I already have to work with.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-13-2007).]
The first thing I needed to do was get the interior panels to jive. Some parts had been painted black, other parts were still grey. Door panels were untouched and the most obvious as far as not matching, so I elected to do them first.
I started with the prep work, scrubbing them down good with a scotchbrite pad and some iso-alcohol. You can also buy a spray-on adhesion promoter to help the paint bond to the surface... I elected not to use it, as I've found that the paint sticks just fine with proper prep as described above.
Next up was masking the door panels. I elected to leave the map pocket attached as well as the door carpet to keep things simple and save time.
I used black Duplicolor flat-black interior paint... you can get this stuff at Walmart and most auto parts stores. This paint can be used on carpet but it's best to recoat it good a few times to get it dark... it does lighten a bit after it's dried.
Notice I painted the top of the door panel black to flow better visually with the rest of the interior. It also looks better when standing outside the car... nothin' but black!
Panels reinstalled...
Much better, eh? =)
Look for similar treatment on the rest of the interior...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 11-05-2006).]
Looks good! Say, are new seats in the works? Some black Mr. Mikes or Corbeaus would be rad.
...New seats are definately on the way! Driver's side is in ok shape, but the passenger side is torn up some. I will be replacing them both with aftermarket racing seats...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-23-2006).]
When I bought this car, there was some nasty over-spray left on the tail lights from when it had been painted...
I successfully removed the overspray using a scotchbrite pad and alcohol. I also scuffed the rest of the lenses repeatedly, working out some of the more obvious scuffs and scratches. These scotchbrite pads are just coarse enough to work out some of the scratches and swirl-marks...
It actually worked pretty well:
After scuffing, I got out the power-buffer and attacked the lenses with rubbing compound, followed by some plastic polish and a couple of coats of wax. Here's the results:
I was actually quite surprised how well they came out, and it wasn't all that tough. I will eventually finish this project with a black-out treatment using Night Shades spray tint.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-31-2006).]
Today I took a closer look at the car and found that I have some tires that absolutely have to be replaced. They are getting BAD and I'm actually quite surprised how quickly they wore and where they wore, considering an alignment had supposedly been done before I bought the car. So... a long story short... time for some new rubber/ alignment.
I knew I was going to be putting the car up on stands eventually for some work, just not this soon! Today I broke down and bought a "Black Jack" 3 ton low-profile jack (steel) from good ol' Wally-World, $68... 3.3" minimum height. Also bought some GM Goodrich 3-ton jack stands with a 21" max height... those sold for $17 a pair. About $100 and a trip to Walmart gets you this:
I just tried it on the car... it does clear nicely, and also lets you inboard enough to reach the engine cradle. The steel lift pad is a little big for lifting in the factory jack locations... I'm sure a rubber pad would be useful here, but I won't be using it there anyway.
Next up? As I said before, the tires are bad enough that I won't be driving it until their replacement. Current wheels are 17x7's with Falken 215/45ZR fronts, 235/45ZR rears... puny little things.
The cheap route for now will be to buy new tires for the existing rims, of course. Down the road I would like to install more of a 18" diameter front and 19" or 20" rear combination. This means coil-over's in the rear to get the width I want, yet another expense, but hey... that's just part of the game!
It's time to start pricing out some new rolling stock... =)
Brett
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-31-2006).]
Today I got the car up on stands and removed the wheels for the inevitable... it's time for some powder-coating! I'm also taking this time to thoroughly inspect the car, as I really haven't since it was bought. I like the idea of catching the little problems before the big ones arrise...
I will also be replacing the 11.25" rotors with cross-drilled units eventually, and possibly upgrading the calipers. Parking brake upgrade will also be performed down the road...
Here's a look at those nasty tires heading for the dump:
Fronts:
Rears:
Yeah, we seem to have some suspension issues, don't we? Hopefully nothing a good alignment won't cure. The passenger side tire is actually the only one that show's no excessive wear. The driver's side rear tire actually has a broken belt on it's inner perimeter (you can see it in the picture) as well as obvious wear on the outer tread. I suspected this was the issue when the car shook madly at about 70mph. I'm glad that chapter is over with!
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-31-2006).]
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12:47 AM
speedracerfx Member
Posts: 164 From: Douglassville, PA Registered: Feb 2003
Wow. That's an awesome looking car. I think my favorite thing is the idea of powdercoating the wheel centers black....the photoshop of that looks wicked.
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01:20 AM
Dragon Member
Posts: 1352 From: Space Coast, Florida Registered: Jun 2001
At this point I won't be able to make it to the Keys unless I win the lotto, and I don't play! Seriously though, my intentions were to have the car ready by then but I've just had too many financial set-backs over the past several weeks... I just bought this Fiero AND a house within a couple of months of each other, so as you can imagine I'm just a wee-bit tapped out at the moment. I've never been to the Keys before, but it's been a dream of mine for years. I just hate to do this, but I'm going to say the words... "maybe next year."
There, I said it. =)
Have patience, my fellow Fiero freaks... I'll be coming out of the woodwork here shortly. I just moved here from the midwest not even a year ago... and I feel I'm just now getting settled in. I'll be working on this car to get it back on the road as soon as possible and get to those club meetings and shows. In the meantime, I've got some work to do!
Tomarrow I will be bringing my wheels and tires to a tire shop to have them separated, then begin the prep on the wheels for the black powder coat.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-14-2006).]
A couple of quick photoshops of the first wheel conception I came up with:
Today I powder-coated the lug nuts, and did some more prep work on the first wheel. Hopefully tomarrow I will have the first wheel done...
And one last thing... I've been dealing with a mystery rattling noise lately, mostly sparatic and located under the engine area. After a quick inspection, I found that one of my cat's are shot... I knew that the passenger side exhaust didn't sound right! Luckily for me a new and much improved system will be on the way soon enough...
That's about it for now... stay tuned, "new" wheels on the way!
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-28-2006).]
A little change of plans... a quick photoshop to demonstrate:
While I was masking the first wheel tonight, I came up with a little tweak that I think will make a big difference in the way these wheels come out. I blacked out the inner lip of the wheel... much better looking in my opinion. It makes the wheel look bigger than it really is, and gives it a smoother look. By the way, the chrome and gold Enkei center-caps will be retained, it just isn't shown in these photos.
Red calipers maybe??? Hmmm...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-19-2006).]
[ I suspected this was the issue when the car shook madly at about 70mph.
Was it a shake or a wobble? If its a wobble it could be solve by putting a hood vent, I had no Idea that was causing(or at least contributing to) my wobble problem till I took a trip down the highway with the hood off.
[This message has been edited by jmbishop (edited 10-06-2006).]
...it was definately a shake, and by looking at the belt that is broken, I'm sure that it was the culprit. About the hood... a vented hood is in the future. Nice to know it will make it handle better too... =)
I think you're headed for a mistake by painting your wheels black, personal preference I guess, but I think you'd be eliminating your contrast to the black. Also you don't just paint a set of Enkei wheels..too expensive a set of wheels, paint a set of Koning's.
Very interesting idea... I've never thought of that before. I personally don't like a lot of hood vent styles out there, but there is one that to me just looks great on a Fiero:
I was thinking about what color to do the calipers in, and the choices I narrowed down to were: RED... for the traditional "performance" caliper look; BLACK... aside from matching the wheels and body, it would be very subtle... enhances the "roundness" of the wheel and brake rotor and darkens the wheels area even more; BLACK CHROME... similar results to black, but with a very cool metal-like finish (think a dark-hued gun-metal).
Until I can get the upgraded calpers I want, I'll see if it's possible to powder-coat the ones that I have now... same with the rotors (black). Not sure if the rotors will make it back on the car though... I'll be ordering some shiny-new cross-drilled units to take their place.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-14-2006).]
Oh, there it is, on my handy-dandy portable ping-pong-slash-work table!
While I've got a little time on my hands before I get the wheel and tire project done, I figured now would be a good time to do a little more interior work. Look for the similar black treatment that I did earlier on my door panels, along with a few other neat little details I have in the works for the rest of the interior.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-18-2006).]
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02:04 PM
Oct 13th, 2006
exoticse Member
Posts: 8650 From: Orlando, Fl Registered: Jun 2003
Thanks for reminding me... I'm gonna' be needing one of those car covers myself. Black is such a pretty color but such a b!tch to keep clean!
Quick update while I'm at it... I've got the other three wheels prepped and ready for masking, which I will have done this weekend. My plan is to have them powdered by the end of next week... then it's just a matter of time until I get enough money rounded up for the tires and alignment. Today I powder-coated my brake rotors black, now all I have left is to paint those calipers... how's red sound, Tony? =)
i like that idea of painting the carpet. How does it feel now? does the carpet feel britle, or does it flake off?? I've got the beechwood interior, but i'm making the bottom half black to be different. Are you pleased with this paint from wal-mart??
Once i get my v-8 Archie choptop down here to florida you are more than welcome to check it out, if u want.
Tony
Thanks Tony... I can't wait to see your Fiero in person. I've seen plenty of Archie's work and the one thing that doesn't cross my mind is his lack of quality or craftsmanship... always top-notch stuff... and his shop has definately been putting out some mind-blowing Fiero projects lately. Hope your's turns out just as cool!
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-19-2006).]
I like that idea of painting the carpet. How does it feel now? does the carpet feel britle, or does it flake off??
...Now that the paint has dried, the carpet doesn't feel much different than it did before. But... the carpet that I started with wasn't in that great of shape to begin with. In the future I will be completely redoing it THE RIGHT WAY, so for me this was a perfect alternative to new carpet. If you really want black carpet, I would suggest just that... the end product will be much better. When using the interior paint on carpet, this paint does leave a slight brittle feel as you say, but it doesn't appear to flake off at all (providing you clean it well and let dry prior to painting). The key to getting the carpet nice and dark is to multi-coat, allowing plenty of time in between coats to allow for soaking into the threads. After a couple of days, my panels were ready for the final "soaking." In my opinion, definately worth the few $$$ invested.
quote
I've got the beechwood interior, but i'm making the bottom half black to be different. Are you pleased with this paint from wal-mart??
...For my intended purposes, I'd say the Duplicolor does just fine. You may also want to check out other brands of interior paints out there... lots of colors available too. Cost will vary depending on the brand, but generally speaking, you get what you pay for. =) Just remember to prep your surfaces thouroughly so the paint sticks...
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 10-31-2006).]
Today I needed to replace a bad tire on my work van, so I went to a used tire shop just around the corner from work to see if I could buy a decent used one. Just out of curiousity, I asked them if they would happen to have any 17" tires laying back on the shelf. Sure enough, after sorting through several "iffy" pairs and oddballs, we came accross these beaute's... Bridgestone Potenza RE050's (215/45-17 front and 245/40-17 rear). I was really surprised to see how nice they were; they are literally "like new" with very few flaws. The tread is deep and they even have those little rubber nipples on the side-walls! And the kicker? $180 for all four... mounting and balancing included! I couldn't pass a deal like this up; the cheapest NEW tires I found so far were over $450 for the set.
How much would you rather spend? =)
Just in time too... the 2006 Fiero Fall Haul is November 11th. That gives me about 3 weeks to get the car put back together and ready... plenty of time.
I had originally intended to replace the rears with 235/45's but... =) I'm really starting to like the width on these Michelins!
Side by side with the old tire:
These tires are going on 17x7" rims... plenty wide and a little shorter but they'll work for now. Someday they'll be replaced with the wheels and tires I really want.
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 02-24-2008).]
Well, it's been a LONG three weeks of on-and-off sanding, masking, sand-blasting, painting, and finally powder-coating the wheels. It's funny... three-plus weeks of work and the final powder-coating process lasts only about 20 minutes! If you ever wonder why powder-coating wheels is generally an expensive endeavor... now you know why!... ...most of what you pay for is labor. Of course, I did start with rims that needed some work to begin with... they had some road-rash that needed to be fixed too... but on the other hand, it was also nice to start messing with rims that weren't all pretty and new!
These were the first wheels I've ever done so it was also a learning experience for me. Now that I've done a set, I for the most part know what to do and what not to do... but I assure you, I won't be jumping at the chance to do another set of wheels anytime soon! It's not that it's that difficult of a job to do... it just requires A LOT of patience and attention to detail. Four times over! The only reason I decided to do it is because "powder-coating" happens to be my day job... and my powder-coating is free.
Overall I'm very pleased with how they came out... and even more pleased how they look on the car. The "personality" of this car just did a three-sixty! I like the look of black-centered wheels on any color car, and obviously they look great on a black one too. The other thing I really like about them is that they resemble the factory black-cented "honey-come" wheels that were standard issue for GT's and such... so not only do they look cool, they keep some of that original/stock Fiero look. I like that!
New wheels/tires and...
...a refreshed interior to boot! Dash, center console, door pillars, gauge pods and trim were treated to the same flat-black treatment as the doors. I also powder-coated the heater-vent grill "Silver Reflectra" (basically looks like chrome). I haven't done anything with the faceplates yet... I'm thinking about painting them in a satin aluminum finish or black.
The car is now back together with an alignment scheduled for tomarrow morning. I have to say I'm very pleased how well the car is coming together. Next up is a list of small things: tail-light tint, rear-window tint, install rear wing, installing rear wheel-well liners, overall car detailing, fixing a couple of minor things.
I am also in the process of buying another GT which comes with all sorts of parts I'll be needing, including some new APC black/grey racing seats... they will really set off the interior. I will also be able to put the parts on the car that are missing.
Now it's a matter of preparing the car for the 2006 Fiero Fall Haul, on November 11th... this is going to be fun!
[This message has been edited by ITALGT (edited 11-05-2006).]
...most of what you pay for is labor. Of course, I did start with rims that needed some work to begin with... they had some road-rash that needed to be fixed too... but on the other hand, it was also nice to start messing with rims that weren't all pretty and new!
