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| How to buy a fiero? (Page 1/2) |
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justin87
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MAY 06, 02:49 PM
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I'm looking for advice on how to buy a fiero.
I am looking to buy one within the next few months and have been steadily educating myself on things like pricing and what I'm looking for etc, but the more i research buying a fiero, even though I owned one years ago, the more I realize I do not know much. So does anyone here have advice on things to look for? Specifically I saw a post here a while ago detailing specific rust spots to look for. That is the sort of thing i'm looking for. Even if someone had put together a guide or 'how to' on buying one, that would be amazing. Maybe the community could post some tips and I could put it together? maybe something like that has been done before.
As these things go, when I finally do go to buy mine, it is entirely possible that I could be driving across country just to look at something that is rusted out. What I'm really looking for is stuff like this. Like.. before buying one, have the owner take pictures of X, Y, Z
In particular I'm looking for a 86, 87, or 88 GT. One with a swap would be cool, but an original v6 just as nice. (that would be another great tip.. like.. if its a swap, look for this..)
I know in reality i"m looking at a project any way you slice it. You cannot expect to buy a 30 year old car without expecting some level of work needing to be done. However, I want to know what i'm getting into when I purchase it. One of the biggest things I'll be looking for on my particular purchase is "do I need to have it shipped" or "can i drive it 1000 miles home"[This message has been edited by justin87 (edited 05-06-2019).]
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JMTUT
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MAY 06, 04:01 PM
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justin87
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MAY 06, 04:50 PM
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Dang. I didnt expect that someone had written a book on the subject. I will be downloading that tonight! Thanks
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Easy8
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MAY 06, 06:53 PM
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Another option if you are planning on traveling across the country. You can ask here and see if a member would be willing to go look at a car for you before you travel to see what they think of the car. I have seen many offers of this on this forum.
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cvxjet
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MAY 06, 07:04 PM
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Another suggestion; Take your time...Don't be in a rush....This will allow you to find a relatively good deal (And car).......And also, If you get a chance, if one shows up at a Dismantler near you, go check it out so you get a feel for where to look, how to look, etc.......If you see an 88 (Any 88) grab the brake calipers, and front hubs...They are becoming "Hens teeth"........Even if you don't end up with an 88, these parts are worth saving and can be sold/traded with other Fiero owners.
And that book is simply amazing....How cool; Wish I could have read it before I bought mine.....New in 1985.......
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justin87
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MAY 06, 09:47 PM
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Some great suggestions so far! Thanks guys. I really liked the tip about seeing if there was a local that I could talk into (or maybe toss a 20$ via pay pal ) to go check it out.
Side note, I did find another thread from long ago on this subject,
http://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/093001.html
however, this doesnt really go into much, more of a checklist of places to look for problems. I'm really looking at things like A) how to know if the thing will make a cross country road trip and B) how much will this cost to get up and running to be a daily(ish) driver if I buy this car. That sort of thing.
For instance, I found this great mechanic who did a video on a classic car flip scam
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ9tdAv2E8o
I cant remember exactly what the car was supposed to be, but when they got there to look at it, it was like a 71, 72,73 mish mash of stuff that looked very pretty on the outside, but was a bucket-o-crap on the inside. Rusted out floor, barely patched together with sheet metal, VINs that didnt match, that sort of thing. Again, I'm no mechanic and that sort of thing scares the crap out of me
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2.5
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MAY 07, 10:46 AM
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Mainly rust, watch out for hidden rust as it hides better than average on these cars.
There are coolant tubes under it, check to see that they aren't dented. Even if they are you can replace them with used ones.
Otherwise in my opinion many of the issues are similar to what you would look for on any 80s/old car. Questions of condition, leaks, when driving are the temps and pressures and volts within range, is it reliable on long drives, brakes, idle, shakes and rattles, anything replaced- when -with what -and by who, etc.
Parked for many years? All bets are off.[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 05-07-2019).]
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Kitskaboodle
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MAY 13, 11:59 PM
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1) Hold out for an 88 5 speed Formula or Fastback.
2) Buy the best shape, lowest mile Fiero you can.
3) Anything less is a Fiero compromise.
Kit
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theogre
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MAY 14, 12:30 PM
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Just search rust to find many threads. search for "crush zones" and related terms too.
Missouri and states around can be heavy road salt users and Fiero often hides many rusty frames. Just look under a car may show rust damage or not often because of "rust protection" like Ziebart and other undercoating. For Fiero, You often have to look up under the car in between body and inner fender in front and behind each wheel to try to see upper frame.
Ignore most treads saying they "Fix" this problem because they have no clue about fixing a rusty frame and frame often fails to hold up to driving later or worse, fails in a wreck.
If you find frame repairs just walk away for most deals unless your buying a parts car.
Watching crash test videos means little to most because have no clue how crush zones work or how there built into a car.
Very Short story... Most of Entire front and rear of fame is a huge crush zone. Even the front hood folds up in a wreck because has safety features to do so on most cars not just Fiero.
Even if owner says car is only driven in summer, heavy salt in winter is still on most roads often months later and may never go away in many places. So you need to look harder to see if the owner is lying and hiding problems.
In fact If you look as plants next to roads in many places, you often find Snake Grass and other plants that only grow near the oceans normally because of the road salt.------------------
Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)
The Ogre's Fiero Cave
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hyperv6
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MAY 16, 09:51 PM
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The best thing to do is search for the lowest mike car you can afford. There is enough low mileage cars around at very reasonable prices.
Going low mile may cost more up front cut in the long run often ends up cheaper. No need for paint, no need to pay for expensive hard to find NOS parts. No need to worry on rust if it was stored properly like many have been.
Ev3n doing the work yourself often the cheaper path to the best car is to go for a original survivor.
Avoid any and all project cars you can not confirm the condition of. People who did it right will receipts and photo along with parts kits documentation. If they have this info you can access the works but with no documentation you could be buying someone’s time bomb[This message has been edited by hyperv6 (edited 05-16-2019).]
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