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Best Cars of the '80s by Formula Owner
Started on: 08-17-2018 01:00 PM
Replies: 8 (327 views)
Last post by: Australian on 08-23-2018 04:07 AM
Formula Owner
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Report this Post08-17-2018 01:00 PM Click Here to See the Profile for Formula OwnerSend a Private Message to Formula OwnerEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
Just came across an article in Grassroots Motorsports titled "Best Cars of the '80s".

Surprisingly, the Fiero is in there. The praise it gets is mixed, but it's better than the usual "worst" lists that slam the Fiero.
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RWDPLZ
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Report this Post08-17-2018 01:13 PM Click Here to See the Profile for RWDPLZClick Here to visit RWDPLZ's HomePageSend a Private Message to RWDPLZEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
That's a nearly complete list of all the cars I wanted in high school
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Formula Owner
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Report this Post08-17-2018 01:23 PM Click Here to See the Profile for Formula OwnerSend a Private Message to Formula OwnerEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
 
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Originally posted by RWDPLZ:

That's a nearly complete list of all the cars I wanted in high school

Yeah... that article has a lot in common with my wish list from those days, too.

[This message has been edited by Formula Owner (edited 08-17-2018).]

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cvxjet
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Report this Post08-17-2018 01:52 PM Click Here to See the Profile for cvxjetSend a Private Message to cvxjetEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
They still run the old "Pre-88s are absolute crap and drive like a 3-legged dog" BS....I still have copies of the MT and Road&Track issues that tested the 1985 Gt and >>>RAVED<<< about it- Including the handling.

To me, the Fiero V6, RX7 GSL-SE, and 944 Porsche were the cream of the crop for sports cars.....The MR2 was too small and really had a small/poorly shaped trunk (Although the later comparisons in Mags all claimed the Fiero/MR2 trunk situation reversed) not to mention the "Light-switch" engine.....
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andreww
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Report this Post08-21-2018 08:21 AM Click Here to See the Profile for andrewwSend a Private Message to andrewwEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
One line can always give you an indication that a writer has no idea what they are talking about. In this case its "But the 1988 Formula and GT still turn heads on the road." Seriously, the GT cars looked pretty much the same from mid 86 through 88, and the Formulas appearance isn't a hell of a lot different than an 84.

I'm also fed up with people trashing the handling and power of these cars. Go back and watch the Motorweek review of the 84 car, they rave about the handling and say the car feels a lot quicker than its low horsepower numbers would indicate. Yes 92 horsepower might seem anaemic by todays standards, but compare that number to a 914 (80bhp), a TR7(105bhp), and X19(75hp) or a Alfa Spider(108hp). The idea of a sports car back in the day didn't necessarily mean super high horsepower, it was more about size, styling and handling.

These days I see people who claim to be Fiero enthusiasts doing whatever it takes to turn the Fiero in to something else, bigger motor, bigger brakes, different bodies, different dash, and on and on. Not that I don't appreciate the craftsmanship of such cars, it just saddens me that so few seem to appreciate the car for what it was. You don't see Porsche 914 owners stuffing modern supercharged engines in to their cars do you? Why are we so insecure about our car's humble beginnings? And, are the majority of Fiero enthusiasts now "Tweakers" that just happen to have found a good platform for tweaking, and not Fiero enthusiasts at all?
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RayOtton
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Report this Post08-21-2018 08:34 AM Click Here to See the Profile for RayOttonSend a Private Message to RayOttonEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
 
quote
Originally posted by cvxjet:

To me, the Fiero V6, RX7 GSL-SE, and 944 Porsche were the cream of the crop for sports cars.....The MR2 was too small and really had a small/poorly shaped trunk (Although the later comparisons in Mags all claimed the Fiero/MR2 trunk situation reversed) not to mention the "Light-switch" engine.....


And this is how I ended up in a Fiero.

When it came time to buy a "toy" I though back to all the hours spent commuting to work in my Dadmoblie. When I'd see any of those exact three cars come zipping by I'd think "someday".

Well when "someday" arrived the only one I could afford with the Fiero, so.......................

BTW, not complaining.

Love the damn thing and more importantly, so does wifey.

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DotTC
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Report this Post08-23-2018 12:07 AM Click Here to See the Profile for DotTCClick Here to visit DotTC's HomePageSend a Private Message to DotTCEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
 
quote
Originally posted by andreww:

One line can always give you an indication that a writer has no idea what they are talking about. In this case its "But the 1988 Formula and GT still turn heads on the road." Seriously, the GT cars looked pretty much the same from mid 86 through 88, and the Formulas appearance isn't a hell of a lot different than an 84.

I'm also fed up with people trashing the handling and power of these cars. Go back and watch the Motorweek review of the 84 car, they rave about the handling and say the car feels a lot quicker than its low horsepower numbers would indicate. Yes 92 horsepower might seem anaemic by todays standards, but compare that number to a 914 (80bhp), a TR7(105bhp), and X19(75hp) or a Alfa Spider(108hp). The idea of a sports car back in the day didn't necessarily mean super high horsepower, it was more about size, styling and handling.

These days I see people who claim to be Fiero enthusiasts doing whatever it takes to turn the Fiero in to something else, bigger motor, bigger brakes, different bodies, different dash, and on and on. Not that I don't appreciate the craftsmanship of such cars, it just saddens me that so few seem to appreciate the car for what it was. You don't see Porsche 914 owners stuffing modern supercharged engines in to their cars do you? Why are we so insecure about our car's humble beginnings? And, are the majority of Fiero enthusiasts now "Tweakers" that just happen to have found a good platform for tweaking, and not Fiero enthusiasts at all?


The 87-88 coupe looks miles better, imo, than the 84-86 coupes. The front and rear fascia give it an entirely different persona than the earlier cars. Not that the early cars are not beautiful, they are, the 87-88 coupe is much improved.
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Patrick
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Report this Post08-23-2018 01:58 AM Click Here to See the Profile for PatrickSend a Private Message to PatrickEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
 
quote
Originally posted by andreww:

Yes 92 horsepower might seem anaemic by todays standards, but compare that number to a 914 (80bhp), a TR7(105bhp), and X19(75hp) or a Alfa Spider(108hp). The idea of a sports car back in the day didn't necessarily mean super high horsepower, it was more about size, styling and handling.

These days I see people who claim to be Fiero enthusiasts doing whatever it takes to turn the Fiero in to something else, bigger motor, bigger brakes, different bodies, different dash, and on and on. Not that I don't appreciate the craftsmanship of such cars, it just saddens me that so few seem to appreciate the car for what it was. You don't see Porsche 914 owners stuffing modern supercharged engines in to their cars do you?


Andrew, spend a few minutes on YouTube and you'll see all sorts of modern powerful engines stuffed into a Porsche 914... and the bodies have been known to be modified as well.

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Australian
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Report this Post08-23-2018 04:07 AM Click Here to See the Profile for AustralianClick Here to visit Australian's HomePageSend a Private Message to AustralianEdit/Delete MessageReply w/QuoteDirect Link to This Post
 
quote
Originally posted by Patrick:

Andrew, spend a few minutes on YouTube and you'll see all sorts of modern powerful engines stuffed into a Porsche 914... and the bodies have been known to be modified as well.



The next craze is reboding the boxster I have seen a gt3 cup body on one.

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