I'm going to get one or the other, but I'm completly stuped as to which I really want. I'm 17, handling is almost everything to me, I want a car I can do anything to but it also be a "high milage" car (ie, I want to keep it as a daily driver/sports/slight racing car for a while). I know you all will say fiero....and that'll help me none...I need justification or something! please help!

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<>{RazorWing}<>

Hoboy....

If other peoples opinions are what you rely on to pick a car, get a Honda.

I'm going to get flamed for this but I feel stock for stock the MR2 is better BUT if you plan on modding it the Fiero comes out WAY ON TOP!

I have owned both and I would never get rid of the Fiero.

Let me elaborate... this is a list of why each car, IMO, wins out (comparing the Fiero to an 80s 1st gen MR2)

Fiero:
-Looks
-Part cost
-Aftermarket
-Ease of labor

MR2:
-Speed (if supercharged)
-Build Quality (AFAIK, they are reliable)
-Gas Mileage (28MPG N/A)

Handling I don't know, but I personally think the Gen1 MR2s are good looking... but not as attractive as a Fastback Fiero. Also, if a Fiero part breaks, go rip it off a Chevy Celebrity in a junkyard with a pair of plyers nice and cheap, but breaks more often. I don't know much about them, but then again, you asked for our opinions.

I think your choice should be

I wouldn't even consider a MkI MR2. I think the MK2 turbo's look good. I'd still prefer a Fiero.

I'm sure the MR2 board will tell you Fieros suck and that you can make MR2s fast as hell and they are as reliable as the maintenance you put into them.

Well, you can make Fieros fast as hell and they are as reliable as the maintenance you put into them.

If you're really concerned about what other people think, buy the MR2. If you're going to buy the car because it's what you want, regardless of what other people say, then test drive both and buy the one you like better.

Buy what you want, not what others want you to buy.

If you have the time and money one car is just as good as the other. I can give you dozens of reasons why I own a Fiero. Ultimately it's your money and your decision, buy what you want.

Earl R.

being 16 i understand the delema you are going through right now. Heres what i think. The Fiero is a car that is easily modified, has high support and low costs. My has been dead reliable up untill when the transmission blew out, but that is obviously an exception. I hate the looks of the gen 1 MR2's so they were out of the question. When i got to looking at the gen. 2 MR2's i was sticker shocked at the price. The parts for them are expensive as well. I love the Fiero because there are so many mods that you can do to them its like being a kid in a candy store. Right now i am getting ready to do a 3800 SC series 2 swap in my Fiero and for the I am very happy that i bought a Fiero. Its not that difficult to find a Fiero that is a fixer-upper, so if you have the know-how to do it, and the time, buy Fiero. I dont consider imports that seriously as parts are so expensive, just a general rule (hits himself for buying a BMW)

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REMEMBER: If you cant win the race you loose the argument!!

www.geocities.com/j_depies
step into the fiero kingdom

Well, for what its worth, if you're planning on having the car as a driver/long term project, the aftermarket for the fiero is unsyrpassed. You can literally make the car into anything you want too. If you are just looking for the best bang for the buck out of the box, (in my opinion) the stock fiero suspension, and brakes have some serious limitations. On the '88s, the suspension is better, and the brakes are better...but I still think they have a way to go before they can be considered good.

I also always really liked the look of the 2nd generation MR2.

The reasons I own a fiero: 1) Its American 2) They are cheap to buy. 3) If you are willing to drop large amounts of money on them, they can becoome frighteningly close to super-cars and still be backyard projects.

-FD

Why do you say reliablity is an issue with the fiero? Mine sat for 6 years in the previous owners driveway , boguht it got a saftey a cleaned it up,never left me stranded once! drove it everywhere until i screwed up my tranny.Around here there is more fieros left on the road then MR2s.

WE have the:

Looks
Torque
dent resistant body panels
a sweet lineup of other GM engine swaps

The list goes on

forbidden: The aftermarket is unsurpassed? Are you smoking the same stuff I'm smoking?! THere are about 3-5 people who make aftermarket stuff for the Fiero.. The MR2 has a much better aftermarket..

quote Originally posted by JohnnyK: forbidden: The aftermarket is unsurpassed? Are you smoking the same stuff I'm smoking?! THere are about 3-5 people who make aftermarket stuff for the Fiero.. The MR2 has a much better aftermarket..

is this the part where im supposed to ask you what your smokin?? Do a nice search on the internet for fiero and just about every website that you run into about the fiero is about custom parts for a fiero or has custom parts for a Fiero

I can think of at least 40 websites that i have visited that have custom Fiero stuff, AND IM NOT SMOKING (nor drinking, mind you) ANYTHING! The Fiero may not have an un-surpassed market but its a hellavua lot better than you are saying! Do us a favor and look in the Fiero Parts Vendors section on the PFF homepage then tell me there are 3 people making aftermarket parts for the Fiero, PLEASE!

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REMEMBER: If you cant win the race you loose the argument!!

www.geocities.com/j_depies
step into the fiero kingdom

Trust me, this is something you can't explain. What I can say is, go and check out both. Sit in one and look at it, take them both for spins. What happened with me is, I was 16, and couldn't drive standard. Went with my dad. Looked, sat, and test drove it. This fiero was a 84 2m4...probably the lowest fiero...but there was just something about it. I loved it!!! check them both out...whicheve ru like more...buy...good luck...and hopefully we will see u on here...

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Aftermarket? I'd say the Fiero has it very well for a car made so few years. As a stock car the Fiero is an interesting vehicle and is very sharp looking. The Fiero is more inovative by design even if it used existing driveline which keeps it easy to get parts for. Aftermarket support is in favor of the Fiero because its driveline is available. I'd be intersted in knowing if safety/insurance plays well for a 17 year old MR2 VS Fiero. As for repairing, I'd say an old MR2 is as reliable as any old car including a Fiero.

go with the Fiero for the simple fact that ITS AMERICAN!!!! of course i could just be saying that cause i work for the UAW but anyway

Tyler

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85 LT4 GT
Custom Everything
in progress

Want to know the BEST reason to buy a Fiero?

Here it is....

https://www.fiero.nl/cgi-bin/fiero/Ultimate.cgi?action=intro

[This message has been edited by MAD MAZ (edited 05-16-2003).]

Hey man, being 18 myself, there is no doubt about it, you should go for the fiero! It attract lots of girls. An mr2 will not have that same effect, only a high reving engine. That's not that cool!

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Willem Sanders
willemvespa@hotmail.com

I have read ALL of your remarks, there are a fiew things I want to say real qucick though:

1. When I said I want a long time driver or whatever, I was'nt saying the fiero is'nt one! I was simply saying what I want in a car!

2. I do somewhat care what people think, but not how it looks or it's history, but what they think and say when I beat them arround a windy road or anywhere else by a long shot...

3. I did not in ANY WAY insult either car!

You Guys have convinced me...Fiero...now I just need to narrow it down to what I want...lol... Plus, has any of you guys noticed...there are no really old jap cars on the road except rust buckets and the people dirving them would trade them in for bottle of water or a bycyle(sp?)?? lol
LONG LIVE AMERICAN TECHNOLOGY!!!

Just one thing I'm still a little worried about, does the MR2 have more potential for handeling then a Fiero?

I plan on modding the suspension, what would you reccomend (which fiero)? The one with the most potential. Don't think I have'nt been researching on the Fiero, I have for a long time, I've loved them for a while, and I know 88 has the best, but what has the best potential? Like 84-87 have the HMS Slolm fron suspension, etc.

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<>{RazorWing}<>

Fiero's are comfy. I felt like I had to steer with my chin in an MR2

1988, Formula or GT with a 5 speed are the best starting points.

quote Originally posted by JohnnyK: forbidden: The aftermarket is unsurpassed? Are you smoking the same stuff I'm smoking?! THere are about 3-5 people who make aftermarket stuff for the Fiero.. The MR2 has a much better aftermarket..

WTF are you talking about? JohnnyK you bash the fiero every chance you get,why are you here if you don't like the car so much?

Fiero, Fiero, Oh and did I say Fiero! If I was you bro I would go with the Fiero. I love going to the street races on Fri, Sat nights and kids coming over asking what that is. Out of 100-150 cars that show up, over half of the kids never seen one before. Now I wanna see that happen with a MR2. Its totally different and you really don't see a lot of these cars on the road. The choice is yours and hopefully we see you back on the forum with pics of you fiero!

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86 Fiero 2M6 SE
3.4L Coming Very Soon

while the 88 GT's and formulas are the best stock I think there is more room for improvement in the 84-87's all you need is a bump steer correction kit and a rear sway bar to be on par with the 88's plaus the price markup of 88 parts is enough alone to go with an 84-87. thats just my $.02 worth

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85 LT4 GT
Custom Everything
in progress

It's a personal opinion... Go to an MR2 forum and ask them, you'll get a different response.. Hell, go to a Lada forum, and you'll get a different response..

i had a '87 MR2 and I loved it.
i have a '88 fiero and I love it.

i paid $2400 for the mr2 with 98k miles (i changed the engine 10k miles later)

i paid $700 for the fiero with 93k miles (i'm up to about $1700 after heater core, struts, water pump, valve cover gasket, a few interior parts, etc)

drive em both and buy whichever you can get a good deal on. Most mkI MR2's around here are rusty as heck - maybe theyre better where you are.

The mkII MR2 is too big and too expensive IMO. I drove several when i had my mkI. For the same $$ you can have a V8 fiero.

If you want a blast to drive and you wanna pick up chicks, dont rule out a miata. But do read up on thrust bearing issues. And dont get into any accidents.

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88 4cyl auto Fiero, AC, sunroof
"And isn't sanity really just a one-trick pony anyway? I mean all you get is one trick, rational thinking, but when you're good and crazy, oooh, oooh, oooh, the sky is the limit!" - The Tick

MR2...

Mad maz,

You don't belong here with assh*le comments like that!!!

Achually motorweek did a segment compairing the MR2 to the Fiero. There was a copy of it on the internet awhile back. The MR2 was faster in 0-60 but it was also noiser. Motorweek ended up saying that theyd perfer the Fiero better.

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'85 SE 4 Speed
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No Cat
Holley Scoup
Holley Throttle Body

Has anyone said anything about rust. I have an 86 GT and I swear it has no rust on it. It is like pontiac put dent and rustproof panels all over the car. Its over 15 years old and it still looks great. Hey if you buy an MR2 I've got plenty of bondo that I have no use for. You on the other hand may be needing it. Unless you get a Fiero good luck with your decision. Really if you hate rust Fieros are second to none.

On the outside fiero's don't rust.. But my old fiero, and all the other ones I've seen, still have major rust problems underneath, where it counts.. So rust isn't really an issue..

Every fiero i have owned or looked at never had any major rust problems,I have never seen a fiero with rotten floors and the usual place they go is the upper frame rails/trunk which are cheap and easy to fix.I would rather be welding up a frame then plugging my exterior sheet metal with bondo.

"MR2:
-Speed (if supercharged)
-Build Quality (AFAIK, they are reliable)
-Gas Mileage (28MPG N/A)..."

The MR2 is clunky looking, little, and distressingly angular in appearance.

My '85 SE gets better mileage to boot.

If you work on your own Fiero, parts are cheaper, more available, even getting total parts cars are cheap.

Something to think about... which car will be more collectable in the USA in 25 years? FIERO.

Gary Sconce - yosemitefieros

The only MR2s around here that are of the same age as the Fiero (IE: the Mk1s) are terribly rusted out and driven by people who look like escaped convicts. They're all beaters. I can't even remember the last time I've seen a really clean, nice early MR2. Maybe the car's design just didn't weather well in a Chicago winter, who knows.

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88 Fiero GT 90K miles
91 Beretta 301K miles

Number 1 reason: You can't make a 1st generation mr2 look this good

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Real Sports Cars, Dont Have Cup Holders!

tabs, your right on!

Rust shouldnt be a problem for him since hes from the south. I bought a GT from that state a year ago, its 100 buble or rust free on the chasis. SO, get cracking on some local dealers/newspapers, we got a Fiero to find!

Oh yeah, almost forgot, I prefer the 84-87 setup just because parts are cheap and abundant, plus there are more mods for the 84-87 suspensions. That is just my opinion though.

Oh yeah, about suspension handling: http://www.heldmotorsports.com/suspen.htm

ahh.. yeah, gotta love that

[quote]Number 1 reason: You can't make a 1st generation mr2 look this good /[quote]

While I think that you have a realy nice car, I have seen plenty of mr2s that look a bit nicer.
As for Razor_wing I think you should go to http://www.board.mr2faq.com and get their response, I myself have had a fiero and currently have two mr2s and Im looking for a fiero but I am also not as narrow minded as most people and I have a love for both cars for what they truly are. I find it really amazing how people on this forum get so pissed when someone calls this car a fire trap and everything else and when someone on the forum gets a huge flame war started on a corvette forum because someone made a comment against the fiero without knowing the facts, but in reality anymore most people on this forum are the exact same way, whereas the bash another car just cause they dont know or understand it.

Here is a good link to check out for a comparison. http://www.mr2faq.com/mk1/articles/fiero_vs_sc/fiero_vs_sc.htm

[This message has been edited by phreakboy4 (edited 05-17-2003).]

[This message has been edited by phreakboy4 (edited 05-17-2003).]

[This message has been edited by phreakboy4 (edited 05-17-2003).]

quote I find it really amazing how people on this forum get so pissed when someone calls this car a fire trap

It bothers me when people refer to the Fiero as a fire trap or a car-b-que. The 84's did have problems, but most of it was due to bad connecting rods and a lower oil capacity than other cars that used the Duke. True, some of the Fiero design creates a higher risk, but ANY car can catch fire without proper maintenance.

If people don't like my car that's fine, to each his/her own. I don't like it when people who don't know what they are talking about give me crap when they find out I drive a Fiero.

As for the thread's original question, it's just a matter of your preference. My current GT is the third Fiero I've owned. I looked at 2nd gen MR2s before I bought this one. They are very nice cars, and fun to drive. They just didn't have that special Fiero charm . That combined with the Toyota's much higher price, made the decision easy.

Edit: my spelling...again
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Brad
86 GT 5 speed
Aren't all Fieros project cars?

[This message has been edited by GT86 (edited 05-17-2003).]

gt86 just so you realize I wasnt actually calling it a fire trap, personally I know/understand why it got the bad rap. Basically I was just pointing how everyone gets pissed off when people make comments about what they dont understand, but then they turn around and do it everytime someone mentions the mr2.

Why is it that about once a month we get a thread with someone asking us to talk them into buying a Fiero. Most Fiero owners are not talked into buying the car. The just love them. The look, how it rides, and how fun it is to drive. I think maybe when you register you should have to register your car's VIN. Razor if you have never rode in a Fiero find someone who has one. Get a ride. If you don't fall in love with it after the first ride go buy a Honda or something else. (Really doesn't matter none of them compare to a Fiero.) Also mabye we can get a FAQ page.

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If you find my advice useful please rate me.
87 GT
------------------------
88 4cyl 5spd
Home Page

quote Originally posted by phreakboy4: Here is a good link to check out for a comparison. http://www.mr2faq.com/mk1/articles/fiero_vs_sc/fiero_vs_sc.htm

First, Let me say that the evaluation done by Road and Track was Toyota biased. Every time the Fiero MR2 thing comes up, They show this article. Just by how the writer describes things you can tell HE liked the MR2 better than the Fiero.
Second, I have sat in and driven a few MR2's, From my personal experience, I don't like them. It has nothing to do with any "spec" It's a personal observation based on my experience of driving both MKI's and MKII's. (I haven't driven the new ones so I can't comment on them.)
Finally, I'd have to agree with ls3mach,
If you need to be convinced o buy a Fiero, Then you obviously haven't driven either of the cars your comparing. Go test drive both cars and decide for yourself which vehicle you want.

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Happiness isn't around the corner...
Happiness IS the corner.