Definitely want to make sure the front wheel bearings are not worn out... they're hard to come by.
Also wiggle the rear wheels while holding them at the 3 and 9 o'clock positions to make sure the lower lateral link hole in the knuckle isn't worn out of round.
That car looks good, definitely a good deal if it isn't rotten. I saw the ad on Kijiji. Check the cradle, suspension, frame rails. If it has been winter driven, then it may be very rotten, so be careful. Check things that are unique to the 88, such as steering rack, as well, as they are hard to find and can get expensive. Look at the radiator supports, coolant tubes as well. Hard to find and often damaged. Don't get too hung up on the odometer reading- this means very little on a 26 year old car. It takes 20 minutes to roll back an odometer or change a dash in a Fiero. It takes seconds to unplug a speed sensor and you can drive the car 15 years with no speedo/odometer and keep the mileage down. The car's condition is far more important than the odometer reading. Good luck
[This message has been edited by cam-a-lot (edited 01-02-2014).]
The guy selling it seems to be very nice. And stated that he purchased it of a old senior and she stored it during winters. The car was standing outside, so i couldn't take a look underneath. But from the body, there was no rust. Mileage seems realistic, because there's only one owner to the title. He didn't transfer the title to his name. Also mentioned it passed safety. Brakes,calipers,struts were replaced. Said ball joint maybe need to be replaced but it passed safety at the time. For the price does it seem, like a good deal.
[This message has been edited by jon2009 (edited 01-02-2014).]
......... But from the body, there was no rust...........
Beware that the entire outside body is plastic/fiberglass!!! At a minimum, open the rear trunk and peel back the trunk liner and look at the sheet metal underneath the liner-a lot of northern cars rust out in this area.
------------------ Rod Schneider, Ball Ground, Ga. "You can't have too many toys!" 1988 Fiero GT 1987 Porsche 944S 1987 Corvette 1966 Porsche 911 2001 Chrysler 300M Van's RV-6 airplane
Beware that the entire outside body is plastic/fiberglass!!! At a minimum, open the rear trunk and peel back the trunk liner and look at the sheet metal underneath the liner-a lot of northern cars rust out in this area.
Stick your hand in towards the rear strut on each side and reach up if you find a lot of rust or the upper frame rail not there then you know it is very bad. Trunk rust and battery tray area are easy to check with the deck lid opened as well as the engine cradle if you lay on the ground. If the car is covered with snow take the time to uncover it and dig around it before even considering buying it as you are better of taking the time before purchasing then to get stuck with a rust bucket. Best is to take some one along who knows these cars to help check it over with you as two sets of eyes are better then one. I have checked some cars before and found holes so large in the trunk sides you could put your head through which can be fixed but is a lot of work and not some thing you want to deal with if you don't have to. Dan
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DARN Cars now open with Over 30 years wiring experience between cars and trade as an avionics technician in both Canadian Air Force and civilian aviation. Over 25 years experience building and modifying cars. Over 10 years of full Fiero engine swaps and harnesses building and still going.
thanks for the advice guys, i will check in the spots directed like shown above. Anywhere else i can check for rust? if it passed safety i assume there's no major holes underneath the car.
You can't assume that because the wheel well liners hide all the typically damaged areas from the outside, and the carpet hides some of the areas from the inside. The wheel well liners take about 5 minutes to remove with just a 7mm socket wrench, a Philips screwdriver, and a pair of pliers. Most of this damage was hidden on this car and it had a valid inspection sticker as well:
It's been said already, but bears repeating: the body can hide a lot of rust. The Fiero's body is made of composite materials, which don't rust. Plus, the wheel wells have plastic liners. The car could have a spotless exterior, and still be rotting away underneath.
The main areas to look for are the frame rails and floorboards. As mentioned above, the rear frame rails can be viewed by lifting up the trunk carpet, and pulling back the wheel well liners. The front frame rails can be viewed by looking up from underneath, looking down through the gap behind the radiator, and by pulling back the wheel well liners. The floorboards can be inspected from underneath.
