Ok so (as you may have read before) i found a Formula with an AT on CL for 500 and it has T-Tops. GREAT i though at first and told the guy SOLD but after talking with him a few times i'm starting to wonder....first it's at a junk yard, strike 1, second while on the phone with me he pulled the carpet and "oh ya, there's some rust, but no too bad" Strike 2, and then after i thought about it i called him back and asked what exactly was "not to bad" and he said it's a $500 car, he doesn't know much about Fieros, people are interested in it from FL to CA, it is what it is, have a nice day and hung up on me!!!!!! I called back and said we must have gotten disconected (knowing full well he hung up on me) and asked again about the rust and overall condition of the car. I said i'm not trying to be a jerk but don't want to drive 300 miles one way for a rotted out parts car with no title, i want a driver. Basically what i've gotten from the 3 conversations is...the trunk is rusty on each end 5" x 1" strips more or less, First he said rusty but then after asking again it sounds like just plain rotted out holes (5" x 1"++) it may run "(ran a few months ago)" but not sure, windshield is broken, looks good from a distance, it's been repainted turquoise (yuck), grey interior, mostly complete AND no title. Would you drive 6 hours 1 way to pay 500 for this??? I'm more pissed that he hung up on me than anything. I know the T-Top parts are worth 500+/- but the rest is a crap shoot especially if i want to drive it, not part it out. I've always wanted a Formula with T-Tops but this is starting to make me wonder what to do. My gut is saying RUN, RUN AWAY! but that little dude on my shoulder always looking for a deal just reserved an auto transport trailer. What is your opinion? Am i just blindly going after it because it's what i've always wanted and over looking the bad things or is it a real deal and i should go for it???? Please give me your honest opinions.

[This message has been edited by DLCLK87GT (edited 06-17-2010).]

IMHO if you want it for a daily driver doesn't sound like a good match for you. If it doesnt have a title how you gonna title it and get plates? Sounds to me like the scrap yard needs to get rid of it because they dont have a title. They are required to have a title for every car on their property until is is crushed. Now if you wanted to part it out sounds like you could get your money back and then some. Lots of people want T-tops. But, you could buy it and save those T-tops for your own ride later on if you can find one that is actually drivable. Good luck with it regarless. Wish I had found a t-top car for $500!

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Sad to say this is the best looking part of the car so far!

//www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/080998.html

Donnie

For a daily driver I would run away. Title issues are a pita to work out, especially if you are going across state lines. Not to mention how much it is going to cost to get it running and driving SAFELY to be a daily. For a parts car, I would jump all over it. You can make your money back and then some. I'd keep looking. I found me a 84 SE for $550 and all I had to do was drive it, passed city inspection and everything works like it should. A/C is ice cold. I had to put in a fuel pump due to my own stupidity. The good ones for cheap are still out there....

Thats not a daily driver. If you want a car to drive and keep a long time, stay away from chassis rot! I bet it is bad too based on your description of what he said.

That said, if you wanted to part it, then it might be worth it. You could always take it for the $500, cut the T-tops out of it and hold onto them for when you find a driver Formula to install. You could then recover the bulk if not all of the $500 investment by parting it out. If the front wheel hubs are good, you are going to go a long way to recovering the investment right there. Once stripped remaining metal would probably be worth a couple hundred to a scrap metal recycler. You certainly would recover the investment if you sold the t-tops out of it.

However, for a daily, run. I just picked up a new Formula T-top for $3000. Not $500 of course, but it could easily be a DD. Professional repaint job (factory red), brand new front bearings, brakes, calipers, hoses, and ball joints, new rear brakes and hoses, not a spec of rust underneath. Runs perfect. All it needed was a little TLC in the interior.

PS, with DD T-tops, the biggest challenge is going to be leaks. Mine leaks bad. I am working on it, and have a few new seals but they are pricey! However, I am not too torn up about it, as it isn't a DD for me.

Just be patient, good t-tops are out there. Good luck!

well that blows we both jumped on it. and both knew somehow it wassn't going to be good. well you could always part out i guess.

NH cars don't require a tilte so buying a car out of NH with no titel is not a problem. I wasn't worried about that part of it but more the rot. My 87 had no holes in the trunk but when i pulled the rear plastic wheel wells, there wasn't much left to the upper frame rail. I was surprised it had been on the road and not folded in half. I can only imagine what that one looks like. I'm going to tell him no thanks and sorry backing out of the deal ...I hate when people do that to me! I think he'll make out OK selling it as a parts car so i don't feel too terrible.