i tried searching but it turned up useless without a specific search topic. anyway, i'm wondering what kind of things are known to be common problems on fieros, especially ones that have been stored. things like rust, and body damage i'm pretty confident with, but when it comes to listening to a car run and deciding whether it's a ok or not i'm not great. i understand what valve tick, knocking, misfireing etc sound like, but which should i be worried about, as well what other sounds should tell me to stay away. i have no way of finding the history or talking to the owner of this vehicle, i must be able to find out as much as possible about it tomorrow so any and all help will be greatly appreciated. thank you
IP: Logged
09:42 PM
PFF
System Bot
sardonyx247 Member
Posts: 5032 From: Nevada, USA Registered: Jun 2003
sorry this was the second time i typed it, computer froze first time, and i left out some info it's an 86 se, v6 auto. one headlight motor is bum, but i'm not worried about it. i'm worried about stuff that isn't pretty obvious. i'm assuming that if the fuel pump is buggered the thing won't run right? i'll have the keys in my hands for a good hour tomorrow i hope. for ball joints i can test that without disconnecting the the controls arm? and where would the best place to check vacuum lines be. i'd guess the engine bay would show the most and easily visable symptoms? thank you guys so far, any more? thinking what may cause it NOT to pass a safety?
IP: Logged
10:01 PM
Gridlock Member
Posts: 2874 From: New Westminster, BC Canada Registered: Apr 2002
Where to begin? Its 20 years old. Anything less than 3K, be happy it runs. Especially if you live in the rust belt.
thanks, i guess... i'm not being ignorant here am i? i fully understand that there will be problems. what i need to know is what those problems likely will be so i can base my offer accordingly. what i really need is a car that will run strong for a few years virtually maintenance free. if i need to tweak a few things from time to time that's cool and expected. if i need to replace a motor or tranny than i'm flat out screwed as this car's sole purpose is to give me something to drive while i swap a motor in my current fiero. well not sole purpose, but it's VERY important that it will run. i'm sure there must be some early signs of dried seals or whatnot that may cause me problems a couple months down the road
oh, and just to justify myself, not that i really need to(and i'm not offended by that quoted comment just to be clear, and don't mean to offend either) i've purchase both my fieros for under 3grand cdn and after everythign was said and down was never over about 3700 to get it safetied on the road. i wouldn't touch a non runner for more than 500, nor should one expect more than that for a stock car imo.
IP: Logged
10:16 PM
86GT3.4DOHC Member
Posts: 10007 From: Marion Ohio Registered: Apr 2004
Main things Rust: check the battery tray, if its there, its golden, it not, no biggie. Check under the carpet on the drivers side of the trunk, thats where it usualy starts Headlights: obvious Seats get torn dash corners "knee breakers" get cracked coolant tubes get crushed from ignorant garages Make sure the check engine light comes on with key on engine off. If not, its a good bet its been disabled for a reason The front exaust manifold tends to crack Sunroofs like to leak, though its never happened to me tilt colums lossen up pretty bad. make sure the oil pressure is still high after it warms up.
IP: Logged
10:25 PM
fierce_gt Member
Posts: 1517 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Oct 2002
awesome, that's a good list, and half of it i've already looked after. never had any troubles with tilt columns though, how should i check that? just wiggle it?
IP: Logged
10:32 PM
sardonyx247 Member
Posts: 5032 From: Nevada, USA Registered: Jun 2003
Also check for codes. If you have time do a compresion test, or pull a couple of spark plugs and check the condition, they can tell you alot about the motor. Haynes manual has color pics to compare. Check for smoke. Check for water/coolent in the oil. EGR tubes also tend to crack.
these are all great, now i guess the only question left is which of these are major concerns, and which of them are things that can fixed in your driveway? again, focusing mainly on drivetrain. i just need this car to run. and for what it's worth, it looks about a 7.5 out of 10 to me. has small cracks in dash corners, crack on a fender, bumper sits low like it was rearended, and there's a small hole in the driver seat cover. other than that it certainly looks the mileage it has(under 80k kms)
IP: Logged
12:16 AM
Paul Prince Member
Posts: 2935 From: Kansas City, MO Registered: Dec 2002
Most everything can be replaced mechanically on the car, interior parts are sometines hard to find. RUST, take the front and rear fender liners off and look for rust in the unibody rails that support the cradle and front control arms. I have seen some really bad ones. One had so much rust on the rear cradle supports that you could push the metal through with your fingers. You could fix it with the proper equipment, but it could get very involved and expensive...................Paul
IP: Logged
09:01 AM
PFF
System Bot
jetman Member
Posts: 7799 From: Sterling Heights Mich Registered: Dec 2002
Take a small mirror so that you can see behind the engine on the firewall side for the above mentioned cracked manifold and also look for snapped bolts on it where someone may have tried to repair. (from my bad expierience) Safety checks in your state/provence? Check the E-brake for operation, that is not too hard to fix with decent calipers, just did mine by myself, just took time and bad words. Check for a thermostat, unscrupulous folks will remove it to keep car from overheating during a short test run. Codes, good idea, just went and checked for you, take a 7MM nut driver and paperclip to ground out ADL, you knew that already. Catalytic converter or straight pipe? Take a rubber mallet to tap the cat to check for loose material inside. Bring a floor jack and safety stands to look underneath, check the wheels for unusual movement while up off ground, oil leaks, bent parts and etc. Couple more dumb ideas; Can you beg, borrow or rent a pressure tester for the cooling system, presurize the system and check for leaks? Can you beg, borrow or rent a load tester for the battery and charging system? Can you beg, borrow or rent a good mechanical oil pressure gauge? If you had some time, pour some ultraviolet dye in the crank case and use an ultraviolet light to check for leaks.
Thats all I have for now, good luck with the inspection. jet
------------------ jetman Silver 86 SE 2M6 4-speed, with "check wallet light"
IP: Logged
10:19 AM
fierce_gt Member
Posts: 1517 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Oct 2002
Codes, good idea, just went and checked for you, take a 7MM nut driver and paperclip to ground out ADL, you knew that already.
Uh, the part over the ALDL connector should be held on with torx screws. A torx tool with all the bit sizes and a 7mm nut driver can take apart half the car
IP: Logged
12:21 PM
Eclipse Member
Posts: 2040 From: Woodstock, Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 2004
Fierce_gt, I live near London Ontario. I bought an old 85 SE back in April for $300 and have been working on it with full intention of using it as my daily driver. It was running when I bought it (106,000 km) but then the fuel pump went. here's the list of things that I did, all working in my gravel driveway in front of my house.
Edit: Thanks to Arn, Oscar and PBJ who came out to help.
So far on my car...
New Slave cylinder I rebuilt both headlamp assemblies A-arm bushings (these are a real bugger to get out! Don't bend the arms) front upper balljoints Front pads, rotors, bearings rebuilt rear calipers with new seals.(Be careful here. the area around the flexline bolt is often pitted and will leak when you reattach. I've tried 2 sets. I recommend new calipers. $82 each at Bob Jones.) read pads complete set of steel brake lines (custom bent) new fuel tank New fuel pump Oxygen sensor Air, Fuel, Oil filters New PCV Valve New Valve cover gasket (painted intake and valve cover blue while apart) New door handle and Quarter panel Rims from 88 Beretta and new tires New Radio fascia and Blaupunkt Cancun Stereo New battery New plugs and wires Thinking about a new high-perf ignition coil New bracket for Vapor Canister (was rusted) New muffler and catalytic convertor (Have it but, need to install)
Also, with the sand and salt we see during our canadian winters, check the floor plugs under the car. Mine are rusted through. It's easy to make new ones with some thin sheet metal, tin snips, and some sealer or tar.
It's been a fun project!
------------------ Jay Brintnell Owner / Design Lead WordMark.ca Communications
[This message has been edited by Eclipse (edited 08-19-2004).]
IP: Logged
12:51 PM
Black-Azz-GT Member
Posts: 2326 From: Florida Keys Registered: Oct 2003
it's looking not too bad. starts and runs beautifully. didn't throw any codes and there weren't any stored. underbody is ok, some rust starting, but up here there ALWAYS is some rust. trunk is spotless under the blower motor. a/c seems to work, but it was a cold day so i'm not sure about it. the headlight motors actually DO work, they were ghetto rigged to a separate switch. the egr valve is attached with coat hangers though, looks like the bolts are broken. the wiper switch has broken off the column. i'll post the pics i took in a few minutes, see what you guys think it's worth. it's an auction and i have a good idea of what the owner would like, i know a guy who works at the auction, he tipped me off about it, and i have a good idea of what i'd like to pay. there's a couple hundred bux difference, but as long as i win the auction i can barter with the owner to lower the reserve. but it does seem to be what i'm looking for, a real strong runner. other than the wiper arm, there really nothing i can see that NEEDS to be fixed.
Main things Rust: check the battery tray, if its there, its golden, it not, no biggie. Check under the carpet on the drivers side of the trunk, thats where it usualy starts Headlights: obvious Seats get torn dash corners "knee breakers" get cracked coolant tubes get crushed from ignorant garages Make sure the check engine light comes on with key on engine off. If not, its a good bet its been disabled for a reason The front exaust manifold tends to crack Sunroofs like to leak, though its never happened to me tilt colums lossen up pretty bad. make sure the oil pressure is still high after it warms up.
you missed the wiper arm, but it wasn't loaded up yet. yeah i've got extra tail lights, but those stripes look like stickers so they can come off, if not it's paint and i can get that off as well. the ding up front isn't too bad, it's just cracked, so i'm thinking a little glass in behind instead of the clear duct tape on top will do for now, and fenders are cheap anyway. the only real concern with the body is the rear bumper, it sits low, which is what mine did after i was rearended, and it was well over a grand in work to fix(and it's still not that great). so should i ever need to fix that it could be quite costly. auction starts in 5 hours, getting a little excited
IP: Logged
02:56 PM
Black-Azz-GT Member
Posts: 2326 From: Florida Keys Registered: Oct 2003
That EGR bolt is an easy fix. I broke one of mine off in it. All you need to do is get a brass drill bit started in the broken of bolt about half way down then put the drill in reverse. It backed mine rite out.
IP: Logged
03:10 PM
fierce_gt Member
Posts: 1517 From: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Registered: Oct 2002
Get it I would, you need to save her from the end! Anyway good find, nice car, the turn signal is not an issue. Just put in a new one and you are good to go. We can help you here if you need it. I also have spare parts sitting around for your needs if you want. Free is good.
Talk to you soon and we want more pictures of her and you as the owner!
