I have put a LOT of time, effort, and money into my Fiero. I am obviously biased, but I honestly believe at this point it is one of the nicest Fieros in the country. It is in nearly perfect mechanical shape, and looks great. My only nagging thing about this car is that it is an 87.
My neighbor has spotted a Fiero for sale on the side of the road. He doesn't know a whole lot about them aside from my interest in them. He said it is a white fastback and he thinks it's an 88 based on what's written on the windshield. He's thinking it's an old lady selling it for cheap.
I don't need two Fieros. I will not have two Fieros. IF this car is an 88, and IF I can get it for cheap, I'm really torn. I would be very tempted to buy that 88 and try to transfer everything from my 87 over there.
Is that project worth it? It would be a true 88, but by the time I'm done with my 87 I will have an 88 rear cradle with a 3800SC built on it. I also have an 88 front end I'm considering swapping in. Would it be worth it to scrap that car and move that work over to an 88, assuming the 88 was in similar condition with regard to rust, suspension components, etc?
IMHO I would definately go for the 88 ... I have owned all the years of Fieros from 4 bangers to V8 383.... the 88 is a gem ... you already have an 3.8 on an 88 craddleso ... I say go for it Good luck regards Danyel
I would rather have multiple Fieros than modify another increasingly rare 88. As a collector, I remind myself that a bone-stock car is pretty much always more valuable than a modified one. Parts will only get harder to find and as little as our niche is, aftermarket options are limited. To each their own, and I won't judge you if you decide to do so much, but since you're asking for opinions, I felt compelled to chime in. I have a heavily modified '85 trans am (which was fully optioned off the line), a modified '86 Fiero GT, and a bone-stock '87 GT. I do regret the route I took on the trans am, 8 years later, now understanding the value of what it had that I removed (true H.O. 305, Lear Siegler seats, two tone rare color combo, the list goes on). At this point in my life, if I had an opportunity to snatch up an original 88, I would sell my 87 and keep the 88 original. My two cents.
Edit for typo
[This message has been edited by viperine (edited 06-15-2016).]
I have put a LOT of time, effort, and money into my Fiero. I am obviously biased, but I honestly believe at this point it is one of the nicest Fieros in the country. It is in nearly perfect mechanical shape, and looks great. My only nagging thing about this car is that it is an 87.
Is this something that will gnaw at you and lessen your enjoyment of your current car? If so, you just might have to find room for two Fieros. Otherwise, just enjoy your current car. There's nothing suddenly "wrong" with it that wasn't wrong with it before you spotted the '88 for sale.
My only nagging thing about this car is that it is an 87.
Clearly you've always wanted an '88... Will you be kicking yourself later if you passed it up?
Stripping your '87 for parts will make it into a junker. You're better off selling it as it stands and redo the '88 with that money. The thing is - do you want to "start over" doing that work?
You don't have to make a choice until you look at the '88. It may not be all that great if it wasn't looked after...
Hey - I wanted an '88 GT when I bought my '87 GT. Couldn't find one - turns out only 423 sold in all of CANADA. But I haven't really worried about it since...
The way I see it, if you want an 88, go for it, swap what you want over, and your golden. Everything is done, and modified already... body panels can be moved over, interior can be swapped, ect. You did the hard part already... The 3800SC will be on an 88 cradle already, you already have an 88 suspension from the one you parted out earlier, you can install poly bushings on those, and literally remove the old and swap in the new, and then you would have a spare suspension in the ones just removed!
As for the 87, you can put the panels that are on the 88 on to the 87, and keep it stock, engine and all... If your feeling saucy, paint the panels so it's the original color of the 87 and then have a second stock Fiero. Believe me, I didn't think I'd want a second Fiero, but after being around two of them (one mine, and then my uncle buying one because he liked driving mine so much) I want another one... I really want a notchie!
------------------ "Discord" Red 1988 GT under restoration!
Stay with the 87. I've thought about getting an 88 many times. But in the end, I couldn't chop it up as much as mine, parts are harder to find than mine... Just to say it's an '88.
No one _neeeds_ two Fieros, heck I wouldn't say anyone needs one! But you only live once, so, what they hey. Don't fret over it, follow your heart.
Think I've posted this on here a few times, in the 90's a guy I worked with had a 70's Firebird. In discussion he told me he'd murder someone to have it a manual, but numbers matching blah blah blah. Told me I was a fool for removing my 4 cyl/auto to swap for something else, worth this, worth that. By the end of that summer he went through a vicious divorce & wound up selling the Firebird. I'd rather enjoy my car that hold out for potential value. I didn't buy it to invest in it, I bought it to enjoy it.
All for nothing. The car turned out to be a base coupe. I had to give my neighbor a refresher on a fastback. Thanks for the advice. I feel like a dog with a bone in his mouth staring at his reflection in a river.
Base 88 coupes are not a bad thing. If nothing else, they make an excellent platform to mod to hell and back. I just bought a rust free example in March, with the plan of rebuilding the suspension (already halfway there) and driving it until it blows up or until I get my new garage built, and then doing a swap. It already comes with everything I required. It's an 88. It has a manual tranny. It has air. It also helps that it's not red, so I don't have to do a color change on it. It doesn't hurt that it's a "Western Edition" (RPO W02) coupe. Not really special, but kind of cool, nonetheless.
------------------ Raydar 88 Formula IMSA Fastback. 4.9, NVG T550 Praise the Lowered!
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