In a nutshell, it's an '88 Formula. It has very little to no rust, so it should make a good project car. It has been sitting for 8 years, though; and so all 4 tires are flat. He claims the motor will start but has a bad rod knock. Not sure of the condition of the clutch, trans or if any of the brakes/wheels are seized up. I'm still waiting for him to call me about a few things. I'm awful with logistics though, and I also don't own a truck or trailer. Car only needs to be transported about 70 miles. I have no problems renting something from u-haul or wherever for the occasion, but how could I get it up onto one of their transport trailers? A winch or something? He wants it gone by this weekend and I'd really just like to zip down and get it so I can start working. If I needs to I can get my hands on 4 steel wheels/tires for about $40 and a floor jack if I needed to take it down. Would that help? Otherwise if I could just winch it up onto the thing without any extra expenses that would be nice also.

Do you have another fiero? Borrow 2 tires off of that one and put them on the rear of the donor car. Then rent a tow dolly from u-haul or where ever. should be able to push/roll the front wheels up on the dolly. inflate the front tires before you try pushing the car. They will probably hold air long enough. You might want to deflate them once you get it on the dolly though, because you strap the car to the dolly over the tires. Should they go flat in transit, your straps will become loose.


Note how the straps are around the front tires...

[This message has been edited by Bump (edited 08-03-2010).]

If the car has been sitting for 8 years... all bets are off as far as it being able to roll for 70 miles w/o issue.

Only 2 ways I would get it:
Truck/trailer if you have access to them.
Flatbed wrecker... call around and you can get one to pick it up and deliver it for $2-3 per loaded mile.

Welcome new member, it may help to put your location in your profile. You never know who else is local that may be able to help you out.

Brad

quote Originally posted by Bump: Do you have another fiero? Borrow 2 tires off of that one and put them on the rear of the donor car. Then rent a tow dolly from u-haul or where ever. should be able to push/roll the front wheels up on the dolly.[/IMG]

You got those backwards. You should put the rear tires up on the rear dolly, so you don't damage the trans.

How do you transport a project car? Very carefuly!
I would use a full trailer and not the dolly because of the time the car has sat. You could be one bad wheel berring away from being stuck somewhere.

I agree the full trailer is the better way to go. The tow dolly is risky with a car that has sat for a long time. In some areas it's illegal to tow dolly an unregistered car.

I would rent the trailer from U haul and borrow someones pickup to pull it. You can get the car on the trailer with a come-a-long and chain. I've done it several times by myself, not difficult but it's a workout.

quote Originally posted by jscott1: I agree the full trailer is the better way to go. The tow dolly is risky with a car that has sat for a long time. In some areas it's illegal to tow dolly an unregistered car. I would rent the trailer from U haul and borrow someones pickup to pull it. You can get the car on the trailer with a come-a-long and chain. I've done it several times by myself, not difficult but it's a workout.

He said a mouth full.

Bring a friend you don't mind loosing and a second come-a-long and a piecce of long chain or strong rope. I would notr try to tow dolly a car after an 8 years sleep.

If you are trailering it on a full trailer, some things you may need.
Ratchet straps (at least 2)
chain
come-along
jack
12v air compressor or portable air tank
duct-tape (never hurts to have)

If you can't get a come-along, you can winch the car up on to the trailer with 2 STRONG ratchet straps, but this requires at least 2 people and a lot of time.

Oh, and Welcome to the forum!

Thank you everyone for your help. I really appreciate it. Tomorrow, I'm going to drive down and purchase it. I'm going to rent the full trailer from uhaul and buy a come-a-long winch to get it up there. I'm a big guy, I'll get it on.

The car itself is cosmetically in rough shape, but the frame is supposedly rust free. Suspension parts didn't look bad either, only mild surface rust. Body panels seem to be in good condition from pics, but paint is bad. Interior is in bad shape. Rod knock in motor. A lot of the wiring has been hacked apart, but I'll repair or replace it. Probably for now, I'll just try to track down a 3.4 and drop in.

Basically, when I finish it'll look better than new. Everything will be refurbished as best as I can. I'll take lots of pictures of it along the way so people can see my progress. It'll be a nice learning experience for me and a good hobby and project. Best of all though, it'll save another Fiero from being parted or crushed.

~Chris

If you were closer, I'd haul it for you. That's how I got one of mine home. On a flatbed trailer. The hard part is getting it on the trailer. not sure if it's been mentioned, but when you load it, put it on backwards, since the weight is in the rear of the Fiero, unlke most front engine cars. Here's how I loaded mine...

quote Originally posted by Kilofox13: The hard part is getting it on the trailer. not sure if it's been mentioned, but when you load it, put it on backwards, since the weight is in the rear of the Fiero, unlke most front engine cars. Here's how I loaded mine...

This is a very important point that no one mentioned. Load it back first. It will also provide more clearance to get the car up the ramps.

quote Originally posted by Zephyrus: Thank you everyone for your help. I really appreciate it. Tomorrow, I'm going to drive down and purchase it. I'm going to rent the full trailer from uhaul and buy a come-a-long winch to get it up there. I'm a big guy, I'll get it on. The car itself is cosmetically in rough shape, but the frame is supposedly rust free. Suspension parts didn't look bad either, only mild surface rust. Body panels seem to be in good condition from pics, but paint is bad. Interior is in bad shape. Rod knock in motor. A lot of the wiring has been hacked apart, but I'll repair or replace it. Probably for now, I'll just try to track down a 3.4 and drop in. Basically, when I finish it'll look better than new. Everything will be refurbished as best as I can. I'll take lots of pictures of it along the way so people can see my progress. It'll be a nice learning experience for me and a good hobby and project. Best of all though, it'll save another Fiero from being parted or crushed. ~Chris

Make sure to post pictures from the first moment you see it. We only exist through pictures. .

I'm pretty short on wiring right now, but may have parts. Let us know.

Brad

quote Originally posted by Kilofox13: but when you load it, put it on backwards, since the weight is in the rear of the Fiero, unlke most front engine cars.

That never even crossed my mind! That could be one costly or atleast time consuming mistake! Good catch! Deffinately want the weight on the front tongue if you are going to trailer it.

Someone above mentioned putting the rear wheels on the dolly... Is this any different with an auto or a manual? Could be done with a manual but not auto because of the oil/fluid pump?

quote Originally posted by Bump: That never even crossed my mind! That could be one costly or atleast time consuming mistake! Good catch! Deffinately want the weight on the front tongue if you are going to trailer it.

It completely depends on the trailer. I can load mine far enough forward to get the proper tongue weight. Towing backwards is not without risk...I've heard of more than one hood flying open and ripping off ( I own a car in which the hood was ripped off but it didn't happen while I was towing it). The hood was not designed to handle the air loads in that direction.

When I first bought my trailer, first I practiced loading it with the come-along and chain, with a parts car. Then I drove all over town with it to see how it handled. I have no handling issues loaded forward.

[This message has been edited by jscott1 (edited 08-04-2010).]

quote Originally posted by jscott1:

hey that looks like my Fiero cept i have a spoiler lol. loaded it on a similar trailor but with no power made it impossible to unload by myself.

quote Originally posted by Ramsespride: but with no power made it impossible to unload by myself.

I unload it the same way in reverse... just let out the chain.

I don't recommend this, but once I just pushed the car off the trailer. If you have lots of room and the car won't get away from you it might not be to scary.

But once I forgot to set the handbrake and a gust of wind pushed the car off the trailer. It went sailing across a parking lot and I had to run after it and jump in to press the brake. THAT was scary dangerous.

Most effective way is to get a flatbed truck; they are pricier though.

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For Fiero Articles, Magazines, and Prototype Photos, visit: http://www.gt.ppdictionary.com

jscott1's trailer will transport a Fiero either front or back loaded. It has the long front ahead of the trailer wheels, so you can load the engine over the trailer wheels and the nose weight up front, or you can load backwards and still have most of the weight on the tongue. Shorter trailers like Kilofox13's almost always requires the engine to the front of the trailer.

As for towing on a dolly, you can tow a manual transmission Fiero with the front wheels loaded. I brought my 85 150 miles through the mountains with the front wheels loaded onto a tow dolly. The car had been sitting for a long long time since it only had 69,000 miles on it. No issues.

For anyone thinking about pulling one on a tow dolly. If it's got bad tires, you should replace them all the way around. A tire that leaks down while you're towing can cause the straps to come loose.

quote Originally posted by Bump: Someone above mentioned putting the rear wheels on the dolly... Is this any different with an auto or a manual? Could be done with a manual but not auto because of the oil/fluid pump?

Yes, it can be done with a manual, but the preferred way is the rear wheels on the dolly. With an automatic, it's mandatory, for exactly the reason you gave above.

I really appreciate everyone taking the time to check out this thread and offer me their advice/ideas. It's nice to know I'll have so much help in the future when I need it. Everyone here is great.

Anyways, what happened yesterday. I bought a come-a-long, rented a trailer and drove down with a buddy in his van. About 9/10 of the way down, the guy calls my cell. He told me he had a buyer stop at his place early that morning with a truck and trailer, and that he offered double what I was agreed to pay. Originally, he wanted $850; but I talked him into $500. I don't really know if anyone bought it for $1k or if he was trying to hold out for a higher amount and lied. It's bad business either way.

So, I end up spending about $75 on the trailer rental and another $75 in fuel, plus the come-a-long (at least I'll have that though when I need it again). Needless to say I wasn't too happy yesterday. I think I'll save up a bit more next spring and find a Fiero I can drive home.

Man, that's rotten of him to sell it out from under you like that. I certainly hope you gave him a piece of your mind, and let him know how much you spent on getting the trailer and such.

quote Originally posted by Zephyrus: Got screwed.

Man, that ain't right. What specifically are you looking for? Year, body style, color? etc?

Brad

quote Originally posted by Zephyrus: . He told me he had a buyer stop at his place early that morning with a truck and trailer, and that he offered double what I was agreed to pay. Originally, he wanted $850; but I talked him into $500. I don't really know if anyone bought it for $1k or if he was trying to hold out for a higher amount and lied. It's bad business either way.

That is pretty crappy. A deal is supposed to be a deal. That is bad business to do that to somebody. If you have proof that he agreed to the deal, I would sue him in small claims court. You could at least get the money for the trailer, gas, and maybe even punitive damages.

After you transport a show car you end up with a project car at the destination and you start to question why it was strapped where it was what was put on the car etc. Don't worry too much as your starting out moving a project car.