Page 14 of the build thread. Mid April 2021
Yes, I know it's been a while since I've done a proper update. Mike has been busy with other projects, and now that race season has started here again, he's also been busy working on a pit crew now and then.

Mike really enjoys doing electrical stuff. So he had me buy everything we'll need to wire up the FAST modules and the rest of the car (theoretically at least): 40 feet each of 9 different colors of high quality automotive wire, Deutsch connectors for the bulkheads (he dislikes the term 'firewall', from back when he was an engineer), terminators, some spiffy wire sleeving, etc etc.

So the last few weeks was him building a bracket for FAST modules, and the fuse/relay box for the intercooler water pump, fans, the FAST and the EHPS pump. Ironically, the auto parts store only had three of the 'standard' automotive relays on the shelf, so we had to get one 'micro' relay. As you'll see, it actually worked out for mockup. The normal sized one wouldn't have cleared the booster.





We tested the radiator fans and power steering pump, all worked. We were both very happy with the assist in steering from the EHPS. Once a little more wiring is done (one of us had to stand there jumping a connection for the power to get to the fusebox), I'll get a video of it working.

Speaking of the FAST modules, Mike came up with a really clever 'container' for all the fast components to fit into! There are three units here, the XFI, XIM, and TCU. Can you spot them all? Serviceability is something Mike has tried to keep in mind, so though it's tightly packaged; breaking it down to get to any one of the modules is straight forward. Hopefully that won't need to happy anytime soon though.



I also brought out one of my Z06 wheels for a test fit and visual check. In theory, we both knew it would fit since the suspension setup with the control arms is mimicing the C5, but it was good to test. With the arms fully dropped, there was still clearance between the upper control arm and the wheel. Same with it raised up to what should be it's maximum height.





Last update for now GLASS!!
I did manage to find a company that has some PGW Fiero Windshields left, they bought what they could back when PGW told them production was going to stop. They also have door glass, in bronze/smoke and OEM green. I bought a set of the bronze. Once I get another windshield and set of glass (or two), I'll post up where I got them from and the prices.

A few people said I should hold off on the windshield until I had the body work done, the problem is the glass that was in there was looking AWFUL. I mean, look at this!







So I couldn't wait. I figure the car will on the road for a while before it goes down for bodywork, and that lousy glass was going to bug the heck out of me. So here's some shots of the new glass!









The door glass will go in later, before the door interiors are reassembled. Semi-related. I'm looking at this "smart tint" stuff for the door glass. They have a 'test kit' for 100 bucks, I think I'm going to get it and play with it. If I don't go with that, I'll get the Suntek Carbon XP 80 put on the glass. I had it on my Town Car, great stuff, very low 'tint' factor, but blocks 99% UV, so still helps keep the temp down and from the UVs baking the interior.

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 03-24-2023).]

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 03-26-2023).]

So we started wiring up terminals/connectors. I emailed a few wiring places to ask about them doing stripes/spiral colors and find out minimums I need to buy. We're trying to make the wiring harnesses as close to matching the FAST wiring diagram to make any future troubleshooting easier, and they have 5 white-with-stripe wires in one of the harnesses.

AND!! I got the fiberglass cowls from Pisa!



Yes, I did say cowls (I am aware I sometimes have typos or leave out words when I'm trying to quickly punch out a post late at night). I got two of them. The second is a combo "just in case" / "might give it to a friend in need as a gift if they need it" situation. If it becomes the latter, I'll probably get another to go back into the "just in case" category.

I did read that some folks had good luck taking their old cowls and using wood blocks, clamps, etc. in conjunction with a heatgun to reshape them. I might try that with mind as it isn't damaged, just warped.

Next Sunday Mike is delivering another customers Grand National, and he's got one other one he's been working on as well. Once that one is done, he said he will not be taking any other jobs (I suspect he means big, whole day/multi-day stuff) until my car is running. Having those two Grand Nationals done should also let us move the Fiero into a garage bay to work on it, since he's focusing on wiring right now, and that will let us continue to work even when the weather isn't cooperating.

I also started bringing home some of the stuff that's been taking up room there that we don't need for a while. I feel bad that I'm taking up a lot of room at his place with a variety of parts and pieces.

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 03-26-2023).]

Okay!


Here is where I ordered my windshield and door glass from:

https://koolkatzautoglass.com/

I called them today and ordered their last set of smoked door glass and two more sets of the green tinted door glass. I asked if they had anymore PGW Windshields, they did not, unfortunately. They do have other Fiero Windshields - Tri-Valve - which is the brand name of Pilkington Classics, they've never had any issues with them. They believe the glass is produced in China, but held to a higher Q.C., since Pilkington has a reputation to protect.

Kool Katz is FLAT RATE for shipping. It cost me $513 per pair of door glass, shipped. I don't think it's on their website yet. They do have the windshield prices there.

I buy American when I can, one common misconception is that "everything from China is garbage". The trick is that they only make it to the tolerances/QC the client is willing to pay. And in the US, a lot of retailers want to win your business, and find that 'sweet spot' between some 'bad product noise' and maximum profits. I don't agree with it, but that's how it works out. And of course there are standard deviations, so as you go one way on the scale, you get companies that pay for the better QC, and charge appropriately (and/or might have narrower profit margins), and then you have the "milk 'em and vanish" companies on the other side, that don't care if the reputation goes down the tube, they're in for a quick cash grab.

I learned that when reading up on manufacturers that make suspension parts, and found a massive amount (for many, many companies, of all sorts of reputations) are all sourced from one company. Read up on them... and then read more in general, and sure enough, tolerances and QC was the biggest factor in the production price per unit!

Anyhow! Kool Katz has been great to deal with. Get your new glass while you can! Or before I buy more

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 03-26-2023).]

Sunroof rebuild! May 2021
Okay! So the sunroof replacement went okay. It was still very time consuming because of some obstacles!




That really nice sealing crash tape we used to keep water out? Yeeeaaaah. Also likes to take paint up when you peel it off! LOL, thankfully the car will be repainted. I guess I'll get some brush on "touch up" paint for now. Any recommendations on which white is the right one? Brand/part numbers appreciated!






The sunroof was removed. Look at all that dirt! And that dried out seal! The drain holes were there. Thankfully.






Next was finding a way to get the old rivets out. I even put in a call to CowsPatoot, who said he didn't know of a way shy of taking the roof panel off!!

Well, that gave Mike an idea. Since the interior was all out of the car anway, he did this (very slowly and carefully)




This let us fish the base of the rivets out, and get the clips that hold the sunroof tabs out, so they could be cleaned up.





Mike hit them with the wirewheel and then used the epoxy etching primer on them. I didn't get a picture of it, when riveting those back into place, he used a curved pick to hold the tabs up with enough pressure to get the rivet through the tab and held in place while starting the rivet. We wasted a rivet before thinking of it.




Looks like we found part of the reason for the leak!




Okay, all rivets out, all seal and that OEM double sided tape stuff and everything else we could reasonably clean out is gone!






All of the new stainless steel rails needed a little massaging to meet the curve of the roof. Obviously the driver and passenger side ones were a little easier, since they are a shorter distance and only curved up/down. Mike was careful, using wood blocks and a rubber mallet, lightly tapping the rails.




We used the 3M Super Weatherstrip sealant, one of the many things I got from the FieroStore for this. I got this shot after Mike laid the bead down for the rear rail.




The rear rail took a little more gentle work to meet the curve as close as we could. I think Mike was happy after the 3rd adjustment.






The front rail was the most challenging. Mike asked me if I had started marking anything, I said no. There were sharpie marks on the bottom of the rail that were very close to where his drill marks were on the top of the rail. He noticed them when he flipped it over after drilling a few of the holes.

The misfit you see up there was much worse at first. That was after the first or second adjustment. Thankfully Mike had the tools/technique to improve the front-to-back curve as well as the up/down curve. It was a slow process. I don't know if this is a rail that was returned when the PO realized how bad the fit was and returned them, then Rich accidently put them in the wrong bin or what. We made them work, that is the important part!




When putting the nuts on the rails, because of the adjustments in the bends, Mike came up with the solution of using vice grips and a large nut to make sure the rail was sitting flush before putting on the fastener. This was to limit the stress on the threads, as well as have confidence it was seated fully.




Last was getting the new 'tabs' on the sunroof itself. Unfortunately, the screw started to spin with the fastener after a half turn. Mike worked his magic, using a lot of tape, a blanket, and a grinding disk, to get the head off the old screws.




New sunroof hardware installed, you can see there is a gap there at the moment. The pieces are made to slip into one-another for a watertight fit. The powdercoating on the tabs made it a little too tight here (the plastic was deforming). Mike used a hand file to lightly clean things up, and it all fit together snugly - we still had to do some gentle persuasion.




Finally, Mike got out the soft/rounded plastic tools for installing the new gasket. Unsurprisingly, in the time it took him to do as much as he could reach, I was just finishing up the short side on my end.






Glass is back in! We had to nudge it back and forth a little to get it centered and clamped down.

[This message has been edited by Trinten (edited 03-26-2023).]

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--- 86 GT, my pride and joy (currently undergoing turbo 3.8 swap)