Hello to all here on Pennock’s. I greatly appreciate the time given to read and assist in this post. I have lurked on this site occasionally and have thought about joining, but I have finally joined today under circumstances that grieve my heart. I come to inform the Fiero community of a man that may not have been known by anyone here, but he was a Fiero-friend of mine. Sadly my friend, Kenneth Kahle, passed away the 17th of this month. Of course it’s the dedication to the Pontiac Fiero that Ken and many of us here share, but Ken’s dedication achieved something that I don’t think anyone else has accomplished and may possibly stand as a record for the rest of time. Back in the 80s Ken was a banker, but his work place and home were separated by a 100 mile commute. Ken needed a vehicle that could serve him with exceptional gas mileage. He chose wisely by purchasing a brand new 1988 Pontiac Fiero coupe from the dealership. Ken was so pleased with his new Fiero that not long after it’s purchase he bought another brand new 1988 Pontiac Fiero, this time opting for the V6 Formula. As the years went by, Ken accumulated a total of approximately 770,000 miles on his two Fieros. That’s over three-quarters of a million Fiero miles logged for one man! I originally met Ken years ago when I was in college. I had actually bought my first car which was a Pontiac Fiero and graduated high school from the same small town where Ken and his wife resided. I decided to drop by his place one day as I was passing through to talk with him about his Fieros. By this time I had two or three Fieros of my own and was quite a fan of the Fiero. I would drop by and Fiero-talk with my friend when I had the chance to. Ken was a good man and I will miss having him as one of my Fiero-friends. He and his wife, Shirley, had just celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary earlier this month. She called me last week to let me know about Ken. She said that he always spoke fondly of the times when I would drop by to Fiero-talk with him. She also said that he was a good judge of character and figured she would ask me if I was interested in his Fieros. I know Ken had asked me in the past if I would be interested in them if/when he decided to let them go. As much as I am interested in his Fieros, I just had back surgery a few months ago and since the beginning of this year I’ve been living off of less than half of what my income use to be. I also already have too many Fieros the way it is… six of ‘em! Shirley doesn’t know a whole lot about the cars and would like to have them go to a good home since they remind her of Ken when she sees them. As much as I know about Fieros I was kind of at a loss as to what to tell her a fair value for them would be. I think these two Fieros might be the highest mileage ones around, but they are also some of the nicest ones I’ve seen. Ken was the original and only owner of them and he obviously took very good care of them. Basically all the miles put on them were highway miles and I know Ken didn’t drive the cars hard like I do mine. They were always kept in the garage when at home. I’m pretty sure he told me that he had both the engines rebuilt in the past, and I think I remember them both being automatics. The Coupe is red and is at approximately 340,000 miles, while the Formula is the metallic maroon red with approximately 430,000 miles. I don’t have much more info on them, but can possibly obtain it. I told Shirley I’d see if I could figure out a fair market value on them and see if anyone would be interested in them. Feedback would be appreciated and the cars are located in Hoxie, KS for those who might be interested. The Fiero has brought many friends into my life over the years and Ken was one that I felt had a unique story to share. Thanks.

Deep sympathy for the loss of your friend, and thank you for sharing his story with us.

Oh wow, same here. My condolences go out to all affected.

I'd be honored to own a Fiero with that story behind it, but it isn't the right time for me.
Thanks for sharing, I'm sure he would have been happy to know that you shared his story with us Fiero nuts.

I'm very sorry for the loss of your friend.
I do hope that good homes can be found for his Fieros.

I won't speculate on the value of the cars, as there are obviously a lot of emotions wrapped up in them.
Taken from an objective standpoint, it really depends more on the condition of the cars than anything. It does sound as if they've been well taken care of.

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Raydar
88 4.9 Formula IMSA Fasback..........................88 3.4 coupe - going...going... gone to a new home.

Read Nealz Nuze! Praise the Lowered!

Wow, that is the most miles I have ever seen, i know you most likely don't know the answer to this, but are the engines original? Pretty amazing.

My condolences go out to his wife and family. It is always sad when we lose one of our beloved cars, but when we lose an owner, it truly is heart breaking. Thank you so much for sharing his story, I would personally love to own one of his beloved cars, having a piece of history like that would be really moving. Funding is very absent right now, but please pm me or email me, and i'll see if I can help his family out.

quote Originally posted by the Fiero guy: Feedback would be appreciated and the cars are located in Hoxie, KS for those who might be interested. The Fiero has brought many friends into my life over the years and Ken was one that I felt had a unique story to share. Thanks.

Sorry to hear of OUR lost. If you have time please post pics here.

https://www.fiero.nl/forum/F...1/HTML/063264-3.html

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"Friends don't let their friends drive stock."

Thanks for sharing this. I would love to get the Formula and keep it stock in honour of him, drive it, enjoy it but I have no room for another car unfortunately. Hope someone will take care of the cars. Maybe "RareW66"? Fred might be interested in aquiring the beloved cars

My condolences.

I hope the cars go to a great home.

Sorry for the loss of your dear friend. You know he is still driving a Fiero somewhere.

Tony

My condolences.

Thanks for sharing this story and Welcome to the Forum.

My condolences.

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Car History: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/025670.html

I also want to thank you for sharing this story with the group. My condolences.
Welcome to the Forum.

Thanks for the replies! I spoke with Shirley not too long ago and she’s very thankful for the kind words and assistance here. Would anyone care to speculate on an approximate selling price she should advertise them for? I know if the cars had under 100,000 miles on them the V6 would be around $4,500 and the 4cyl would be around $2,500, but with as many miles they have on them I’m not certain how much it would reasonably affect the value.

Very sorry for the loss of your friend.

quote Originally posted by mattwa: Wow, that is the most miles I have ever seen, i know you most likely don't know the answer to this, but are the engines original? Pretty amazing.

Yeah, his Fieros got my highest mileage one beat pretty good... only 231,325.9 on my first Fiero. When I spoke with his wife earlier she wasn't sure if the engines were rebuilt or replaced. I think he may have had them rebuilt, but I'm not certain. I live 180 miles from where the cars are and don't get out that way much anymore so I'm not able to check them out at the moment.

So far as I can tell, a high mileage car,no matter the model, does much better price wise if the owner was a celebrity. Like if Elvis had had a Fiero if you follow. Any high mileage car is going to go for minimal value. If she gets $2000 per car she'll have done very well. I suspect they'll go for under $1000.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong here.

Arn

I would be interested in seeing pictures of both Fieros and depending on the price and condition I might just buy one!


Aside from possible engine rebuilds/replacements, has either had any paint work or is it original? Interior condition? Options? I know you aren't close by to these cars, but if you could get some more info on them then coming up with a fair value would be easier.

Thanks and sorry for the loss of your friend.

sorry for you loss of your friend, hope his cars find a good home.

Sorry for your loss. Its good to have had a friend like that and I am glad you know that you were just as important to him! I no longer get into value discussions because when I sell, I set a firm price and its take it or leave it. I've had more than one person try to take advantage at times thinking a woman wouldn't know what was going on! So what worries me here is someone trying to take advantage of this nice older lady and I hope you can step in and help her avoid this problem. Believe me, she doesn't need the stress of dealing with this right now. You can't always go by some of the online price estimators with Fieros and just remember that most car buyers are trying to get by as cheap as possible, which is understandable, but some will go about it the wrong way and pressure her. I don't look at them as an investment opportunity - I look at whether I'm getting a driveable car or a fixer upper and then decide if the price is worth the years of driving I expect to get out of the car.

Hopefully someone will be able to adopt them and care for them. At least as it pertains to my own Fieros, I have found that those that are driven the most seem to hold up better mechanically than the ones that sit for years at a time in the garage. My husband's truck has 257,000 miles and going strong, and my favorite Fiero has over 162,000, so as far as I'm concerned, miles wouldn't make much difference to me. I wish you the best, and hope you can help these cars find a home your friend would approve of.

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Jennifer Lindsey Green
"Fierochic" since 1989!
ASE Certified Automotive Parts Specialist
President, Mid America Fieros
Still Driving Excitement - Every Single Day!
Please visit my personal webpage at www.fierochic.com and our club's webpage
at www.midamericafieros.com

quote Originally posted by mrfiero: I would be interested in seeing pictures of both Fieros and depending on the price and condition I might just buy one! Aside from possible engine rebuilds/replacements, has either had any paint work or is it original? Interior condition? Options? I know you aren't close by to these cars, but if you could get some more info on them then coming up with a fair value would be easier. Thanks and sorry for the loss of your friend.

I'm pretty sure all the paint is original on the cars. I know he kept them in the garage at home and I don't remember seeing any of the clear coat going bad on them yet. I do remember Ken telling me he hit a deer in the Formula car one night. The deer ripped off the left headlight door and landed on the deck lid where it then kicked the deck lid a few times and left small cracks in the paint. I don't think it really done anything to the front of the car and the headlight door has been repaired... not too bad for hitting a deer. I know his wife said the cars have a bit of wear on the interiors, but I'm pretty sure they are in better shape than most Fieros you'd come across. I'm not too sure about the options on the cars. I recently let a friend of mine (a former Fiero owner) ride my motorcycle and he enjoyed it so much that he went and bought one as well. He's having some work done on it now, but when it gets finished he wants to take it on a roadtrip. As long as it gets finished while the weather is still nice I think we will be riding out by where the cars are located. If she still has them around I'll get some digital photos taken of them that I can post on here.

I'm sorry for your loss. Your friend sounds like someone I wish I could have known.

If I had the wherewithal I'd love to own that formula. I'd think with that many miles the car should be in a museum, especially if its original.

[This message has been edited by Scottzilla79 (edited 10-12-2010).]