Hey guys,

I've always known about this, but I've never personally seen them. So, as far as I know, the Fieros that came WITHOUT A/C, had floor vents. I don't know if that was ALL of them, or if it was just the 1984 model. For those who don't know, it was a vent that opened up in the passenger floor-board that allowed air to come through and cool the inside the car.

Would anyone here happen to have a car that has this option, and if you do... can you take a picture of it? I've never personally seen it before and I'm just very curious. I've seen close to 800+ Fieros in the junkyard over the past 15 years in South Florida, and I've never seen a single one with those vents.

I'd be interested in seeing pictures of the vents, the cables that opened the vents (apparently just above your right knee?) etc...


Thanks!

I've never seen them either, but the ginormous holes in the front firewall are there in my '88, so it looks like they can be put on any car if they can be found.

I've never seen a Fiero without a/c before.

My first had them. A white 84 without air. I completely forgot about that. Heck, it has been 20 years since I owned her.

Tony

So have they all rusted? I have never heard of the option.

quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: So, as far as I know, the Fieros that came WITHOUT A/C, had floor vents. I don't know if that was ALL of them, or if it was just the 1984 model. For those who don't know, it was a vent that opened up in the passenger floor-board that allowed air to come through and cool the inside the car.

Just the 84's have operational vents. Kind of a throwback to the old days.

I wouldn't really call them "floor" vents. The holes through to the passenger area are basically behind the dash. I believe all Fieros have the holes, but the '85-'88 Fieros have plates in place over them (and obviously no cables or controls).

You can see them just below the windshield on the right edge of the photo, and behind where the steering column should be. The levers to operate them are between the steering column and radio housing (partially blocked by the wire harness).

quote Originally posted by Patrick: Just the 84's have operational vents. Kind of a throwback to the old days. I wouldn't really call them "floor" vents. The holes through to the passenger area are basically behind the dash. I believe all Fieros have the holes, but the '85-'88 Fieros have plates in place over them (and obviously no cables or controls).

OOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooohhhhh... ok... I was totally confused. I was CERTAIN that these vents were actually located in the foot-wells, like right behind the little kick panels on the side. I wonder where the hell I got that idea from. Maybe on the old 2nd generation TransAms???

quote Originally posted by CowsPatoot: You can see them just below the windshield on the right edge of the photo, and behind where the steering column should be. The levers to operate them are between the steering column and radio housing (partially blocked by the wire harness).

Oh my God... that is the awesomest thing in the world. I MUST have that "option" in my car!!! I have A/C, but that would be like the coolest feature to have, especially if you're trying to save gas while cruising on the highway and you want cooler air, but don't want to turn your A/C or fan on... thanks for the picture, I really appreciate it.

I installed the vent on the drivers side of my convertible to get som additional airflow in the cabin. It works ok but is not a hurricane by any means. If your car has A/C the hole on the passenger side is not present. The A/C evaporator housing blocks the space where the hole would be.

Rolland

I can tell you that the holes were still there in my 86 when I had the dash out (they probably are in all cars as GM probably didn't remake the tooling for this part) - I did get some vents from a fellow parting out a 84 to install in mine, but never got around to it before selling the car.

quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I'm looking at pictures that I have on my website, and I just realized that I don't actually see those plates anywhere. I'm assuming it's because I have that jute / cardboard padding that's installed.

Keep in mind that the image posted above does not show the "plates". That's the actual housing that the flapper valves are in. The opening points down.

On the '85-'88 Fieros, the actual plates are far less noticeable (and yes, they may indeed be hiding under the "padding" stuff).

On my '84 I keep those vents open 12 months of the year. To tell the truth, I never notice the air coming through them. Poor design? Perhaps that's why Pontiac didn't bother with them after '84.

[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 10-25-2012).]

quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: Cowspatoot, that picture you have, is that your car? Do you still have that stuff... I'd be interested in taking the stuff off your hands if you're willing to take an offer.

Yeah, that is the convertible...the pic was taken while I was redoing the interior a couple months ago: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/F...L/079675-3.html#p113
They are currently still in the car, and I wouldn't consider pulling them out until I put AC in the car (planning to in a few months when I do an engine swap). I do have another 84 with them in it that I am parting out (if I can get back out and work on it more)...but never considered the idea that they might be worth something. I will definitely pull them out before I scrap it.

I don't notice whether they are open or not in the convertible...but that may be because the car has a constant draft in it even with the top on. Even in previous coupes I have had with the vents (the one I am parting used to be my DD), I have only really noticed they were open in the winter when I couldn't get the car to heat up well enough. Personally, I wouldn't bother to put them in...but I also wouldn't bother to pull them out if they are already there.

quote Originally posted by 87convert: I installed the vent on the drivers side of my convertible to get som additional airflow in the cabin. It works ok but is not a hurricane by any means. If your car has A/C the hole on the passenger side is not present. The A/C evaporator housing blocks the space where the hole would be. Rolland

That makes sense... I was wondering how it would even be possible for them to be in there. At the very least though, the drivers side would certainly add a bit more air-flow for the driver. I remember like... gosh, 17-18 years ago when I was driving back from Florida to Northern Virginia for Christmas... the black-top is so hot on I-95 in some places that the foot-well of my Fiero became so hot that I couldn't really keep my feet down there... (I was wearing converse). I'm sure that probably would have helped. Still, it would be neat to get the drivers side one installed.

quote Originally posted by Mickey_Moose: I can tell you that the holes were still there in my 86 when I had the dash out (they probably are in all cars as GM probably didn't remake the tooling for this part) - I did get some vents from a fellow parting out a 84 to install in mine, but never got around to it before selling the car.

That's awesome... I'm kind of dissapointed that I never even noticed that when I was rebuilding / restoring the inside of my car. Under the dash was so clean that, other than adding a few electrical options and doing some wiring, I pretty much left everything there, just cleaned it up a bit. I had no idea there were plates back there.

quote Originally posted by Patrick: Keep in mind that the image posted above does not show the "plates". That's the actual housing that the flapper valves are in. The opening points down. On the '85-'88 Fieros, the actual plates are far less noticeable (and yes, they may indeed be hiding under the "padding" stuff). On my '84 I keep those vents open 12 months of the year. To tell the truth, I never notice the air coming through them. Poor design? Perhaps that's why Pontiac didn't bother with them after '84.

Thanks Patrick, I'm the same way... I would probably keep that vent open throughout the year too... there's nothing like fresh air, and also... you can have your sunroof open and get decent air flow while not killing your fuel economy like you would if you had your windows open.

quote Originally posted by CowsPatoot: Yeah, that is the convertible...the pic was taken while I was redoing the interior a couple months ago: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/F...L/079675-3.html#p113 They are currently still in the car, and I wouldn't consider pulling them out until I put AC in the car (planning to in a few months when I do an engine swap). I do have another 84 with them in it that I am parting out (if I can get back out and work on it more)...but never considered the idea that they might be worth something. I will definitely pull them out before I scrap it. I don't notice whether they are open or not in the convertible...but that may be because the car has a constant draft in it even with the top on. Even in previous coupes I have had with the vents (the one I am parting used to be my DD), I have only really noticed they were open in the winter when I couldn't get the car to heat up well enough. Personally, I wouldn't bother to put them in...but I also wouldn't bother to pull them out if they are already there.

Well, let me know if you (or anyone on here) decides that they want to sell the set, cables, flaps, etc... I'm definitely interested. I'm going to have to check out the junkyards up here in the DC Metro area... the only thing that sucks is that I don't have any tools here!!!

quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: Well, let me know if you (or anyone on here) decides that they want to sell the set, cables, flaps, etc... I'm definitely interested.

Same here.