Rescuing my dads old Fiero GT 1987 (Page 5/23)
Repulsiv OCT 06, 07:28 PM
Ok, so I can order the R42TS then.

Today I realised that I needed two screws for the battery adapters, more precise two 3/8-16 UNC screws.. gah, I have no imperial screws, but a lot of metric.. have to check if someone have a few and can send them to me, seem to be expensive to buy imperial screws online with shipping and everything.

Anyway, I talked to my dad on phone today, he is visiting tomorrow for other reasons (mainly to drop a lot of crap..eh..useful things he do not have space for anymore (a bit like the Fiero)) but..

- He found the registration papers
- He found the extra keys and alarm fob
- He also found a map with papers the former owner left him "about the car", no idea what that can be.

He will bring it all to me tomorrow.

I also asked him if the oil pressure meter was broken whenhe had the car, and he said no, but he remembered that when the battery went bad "all gauges was acting up" hmm..

..When I asked him if he had the original owners manual, and he said no, but he said he bought a workshop manual for it from some place specialising on american cars, and was going to look for it.
Repulsiv OCT 10, 04:19 AM
Wee, the registration papers are found, and we filled them in today, its probably registred on me tomorrow, and I also got an insurance for it.

I also got the map with documentation, I only flipped it quickly and it was mainly old receipts for service and parts that the first owner in sweden had saved, including the bill for the chiptuning.
More interesting was the receipt and tjhe manual for the adjustable konis that are on the car now, including a receipt fpor wheel align,ment that was done at the same time (1992 I think)

I also got a members certificate for some swedish fiero club that probably does not exist anymore


I also crossed the "I want to use the car" on the "change owner" part on the registration paper, that is the second step to make it road legal.. the first was to get an insurance, since it is 30 years old
I can skip the next step (pay the tax, cars and motorcycles older than 30 years are tax-free), and go directly to booking a time for a yearly inspection, the last one was done 2006.

I just must fix the tyres first, and hrrm, make some illegal testdrive so I know everything works.. and Yes, change the oil+filter too.
theogre OCT 10, 11:14 AM
DOT X is covered in my cave, Brake Fluid
While 3 is high boil when dry, very often old systems have too much water and makes all types wet instantly.
Look at Wet Boil on the can. "Race" and other DOT 3 have high boil as DOT5 and 5.1 but wet boil is very low. (Never use 5 in a system design to have 3 4 or 5.1.)
DOT4 and 5.1 have higher wet boil but most old systems are so wet that wet spec is useless.

Wait until you replace calipers and soft hoses to flush MC and hard lines then install new soft line and calipers.
If keeping old calipers etc, compress them so less wet fluid volume to flush.
To flush OE rear... carefully turn E brake screw in just enough can empty the caliper of fluid, turn screw back to seal and lock w/ lever parts then bleed.
Note: Use block of wood to keep rear piston in. Heavy springs can push piston out very easy while bleeding/flushing w/o rotors pads etc. More so when E brake parts are loose/off the screw.

Drain and clean up the MC tank and fill w/ new fluid.
DO NOT empty MC when flushing/bleeding. If MC sucks air you will have problems.

See rest of brake section.

If you replace MC then can use clean dry air to push wet fluid out of lines but Even then the fluid will have some water and you never sees dry boil spec.
Use a non oil air compressor. Oil compressors even w/ extra filters can have enough oil in air to contaminate the system. Any oils can be far worse air/water in the system.

[This message has been edited by theogre (edited 10-10-2017).]

Repulsiv OCT 15, 06:17 PM
First, yesterday I finally got the registration papers, so now the car is officially mine, and it is insured on me too

Today was a "fix the garden and house for the winter" day, but it was also a fiero day

I was going to remove the weels (to bring them to the tyre-guy and let him put new tyres on them) , and to dot hat i needed to move the car.. and it was impossible to push it, so I decided to start it.. to do that i had to put a battery in, and to do that I had to fix my adapters with the imperial screws I bought last friday..

It wasnt very easy but finally the battery was in place, with adapters..



No, its not a new battery, its a old battery that i reversed polarity of.. partly to get a new life for it, partly because I needed a battery with the plus pole to the left, seem to work fine.

..Just have to put something to protect the battery adapter at the plus pole, dont like that it can cause a short so easy..

Then I started the engine, and Wow, to my surprise BOTH the oil-gauge AND the radio suddenly worked, yay! ..I asked my dad a while ago if the oil pressure gauge was broken when he had the car and he said no - it worked, but then he also said that when the old battery went bad "all the gauges went funny", so I guess that was the problem, probably the same for the radio ? ..when I tried to get it to work the last time I had put it on max volume however, so I got a bit surprised when i heard a LOT of sound suddenly when turning the key

Then I tried to put in the reverse.. NOT easy, I think something in the linkage is rusty or just need some oil, it was very hard to get it in reverse, and even other gears.. finally i got it in, and no, it felt like the parking brake was engaged, and when I tried to pull the handle it felt like the wire was off ? ..damn..

Had to move the car with a garage-jack and a bit help.. then I could remove the wheels.. to my surprise it was metric nuts ? ..and I was also surprised that the brakes looked so nice for not being used for 10 years..



I noticed a few other things.. first of all the rubber on the links where not very nice..



Not sure how expensive those are, but they should be replaced..

Then the front brakes where partly engaged, can be due to the long time of standing outdoors, so I probably should take them apart, clean, push back the pistons and see that everything is smooth..

In the rear I think the parking brake is engaged.. and I really dont understand what kind of system it is, its obvious that its a system where the parking brake use the calipers, and not a separate parking brake in a drum inside the rotor (and that is because it is rear wheel drive I guess..) , and it seem to be engaged all the time, I juist dont understand how it is supposed to work, I must look into that, in a service manual or some forum post ..right now this make the car impossible to make road legal..


Some questions.. first of all, i found this in the car, where is it supposed to be ?



Then, does anyone have any idea why the parking brake is stuck ? ..my first guess is the wire, is it easy to remove ? any other ideas ?

Another thing, how the h**l am I supposed to change the front bank spark plugs ?? do I have to remove the engine hood ?

And yes, the shift linkage, I'm going to oil the joints I cans ee in the engine compatment, is there any other "standard" problem ? or why is it so hard to shift ?


btw, the theft alarm in the car making me CRAZY.. its a swedish Touchgard TG-500, and if you google it most people say "remove that crap", and I will.. belive me.. I think I accidenticaly made it sound 10 times today, probably my neighbours hate me now.. SInce I want remote locks I will put in a "standard" remote lock control unit instead.

[This message has been edited by Repulsiv (edited 10-15-2017).]

Repulsiv OCT 15, 07:24 PM
Just have to add, the "BRAKE" lamp is also lit..
Gall757 OCT 15, 08:25 PM
Do you know how the parking brake works? It's unusual. Push the button as you lift it to the top position and see if it releases.
tshark OCT 15, 11:07 PM
The “BRAKE” lamp indicates that the hand brake is engaged.
fierofool OCT 15, 11:53 PM
The plastic piece in your pic is used to keep the heat away from the battery. The piece fits between the battery and deck lid hinge. The 2 large holes go at the top near the positive terminal. The one most visible in your pic is where the positive cable passes through. The one on the small surface is to access the terminal with a tool. The leg at the lower right should have an eyelet in it. It accommodates a small metal screw and washer that holds it to the battery tray. At the top left should be another small leg shaped like a hook. That hook supports the back corner of the insulator. The arched area was for clearance of a pulley. Since the same shield was used on all Fieros, it was probably for a 4-cylinder. That piece is in rough condition but it could be installed to give some protection to the battery.

Gall757 probably has the answer to your brake light, but it can also be that the little switch in the brakeline in the front compartment has tripped, especially if there's ever been a brake failure. To add to Gall's answer, you must continue to hold the button as you lower the brake lever. Holding it down as you pull up until you feel resistance. Pull a little more and let the lever down while holding the button. Your locked brakes could also be that the front pistons have seized. It's common for the front ones to stick when the car's been sitting for years.
Repulsiv OCT 16, 02:19 AM
Hmm, I have to try again, I just thought it worked the same way as all other cars I have driven ..Would be great if it's not broken.

I also will try to fit the battery-heat-protection, if its possible, but I guess it was removed because the old very crappy "conversion" to european battery poles, I think that was the reason the car didnt start before too, now ehern I done it properly (and reversed the battery) everything seem to work much better.

Nest week my girl and the kids might go to her mom for a week, if they do I might get the time to fix more stuff, right now time is something I have very little of..
Repulsiv OCT 16, 06:31 AM
By the way.. towing.. is it even possible ? I couldnt find ANY place to connect a wire/rope ?

Also, is the manual transaxle "safe" to tow ?