So, let me start off by saying I'm new to the Fiero world. I've always been excited every time I've seen one, whether its ragged out or showroom fresh. Well after a random decision to search the CL, I stumble upon an ad for a Fiero for a whopping 750 beans. The picture depicts a complete vehicle with a solid, damage free body. The paint seems to be oxidized. Oh, and T-tops! I'm a sucker for T-tops all day. The ad states that it needs a fuel pump. I thought, not bad. So I decided to go have a look in person. It turns out that the pics told a pretty much true story. There is one small damaged area on the corner of the frunk lid[im just calling it that] and a small crack under the tail light. The T-tops have been caulked shut so I am assuming it was leaking. It did not seem to have any rust on any of the metal parts of the frame worth worrying about. Also, as advertised, the engine fired right up after gas being dumped into the carb. The interior was pushing decent. The seats are worn and have some holes and some of the vinyl has shrunk and started peeling. It is an automatic, Iron Duke, 126k and a previous owner put the GT body on it. I have decided that I am going out this week to put a fuel pump on it and take it for a drive. If I like it, should I go for it? Also, is there anything specific to the Fiero that I should be looking for such as hidden areas prone to rusting?
I have been lurking around the web a bit the past few days and have decided that this is most certainly the place to be! I think opinions expressed on this site are well worth consideration. Will post a few pics upon request.
Side note: If I'm in the wrong section I'm a dummy so feel free to call me out and send me where I need to be.
[This message has been edited by virtuetovice (edited 09-29-2014).]
Welcome to the forum, and glad to have another Fiero enthusiast.
As far as rust, check around the battery tray, and look under the carpet in the trunk, around the corners.
Replacing the fuel pump means dropping the tank. I hope they don't raise the price after you do this. Best to fix the sending unit and strainer while you're in there. There's another page you can find using search that explains how to do this. If you buy the car, you'll want to replace the fuel filter also. Check the tank area for rust. Oh, and make sure the fuel isn't bad.
The Iron Duke was a solid engine, but the auto was a bit sad. Check the RPO sticker sheet (on the top left fender in the front compartment) for the code CJB to see of the T-Tops are original.
If they did a fastback conversion, did they swap out the instrument cluster (120MPH), steering wheel (3-spoke), the aero package, and the rounded trim? Check the tail lights for delamination. Also, check the quarter windows for chips, cracking, and/or hazing.
Check the headlight motors for function.
A conversion with 126K, 2.5 auto in this condition seems a bit high. See prices here. You didn't specify the year.
[This message has been edited by tshark (edited 09-29-2014).]
If anything, it's probably worth $750 just for the t-tops. And that is not a GT body. It's an 87 SE. All 86 and 87 SEs had the aero body package. The 86-88 GT body was the fastback.
But unless you want a project car, or the t-tops for an existing car, I'd probably avoid it.
EDIT: Welcome to the forum. Have you joined the local club too? Lots of local knowledge here. http://vafieros.com/
[This message has been edited by dobey (edited 09-29-2014).]
Unless you are set on the T-Tops, which can be expensive to repair properly. I would keep looking. You can find better deals for 6 cyl's and even GTs out there. There is a nice Fiero club in Virginia Beach. You should link up with them and they might be able to help you in your search. Best of luck to you.
Odd. It looks like the rounded molding. Clearly no fastback conversion, if the link above is the same car. The tail lights look to have had some work. I don't know what happened to the ground effects on the doors. Odd that it has bumperpads on the rear, but aero up front with the GT emblem.
[This message has been edited by tshark (edited 09-29-2014).]
Not bumper pad rear. It is 4-cyl SE, not very common. If you're wanting to fix up and LIKE T-tops, looks good but I'd offer $500 and drag it home before doing repairs. Get ready to put a lot of money into it.
Odd. It looks like the rounded molding. Clearly no fastback conversion, if the link above is the same car. The tail lights look to have had some work. I don't know what happened to the ground effects on the doors. Odd that it has bumperpads on the rear, but aero up front with the GT emblem.
It looks like it's a 4-cyl, probably a coupe. If it's an 87, then the rounded trim and rear bumper were probably original. Looks like he added the aero nose (from an earlier year), and ground effects. It's got grooved trim on the nose only, and the mentioned missing ground effects on the doors. The rear bumper is the 87/88 coupe style.
Looks like the bottom door molding is missing. The car will be pretty slow with the automatic, and unless you are only driving the car on sunny days and storing it inside I would avoid the T-tops. If it was me I would hold out for a running and driving manual trans car. You will have to put $1000 to 1500 in mechanical repairs in that car and that's if you do the repairs yourself.
The picture of the car in the craigslist link is likely an 87 base coupe. Not an SE. I say that because the rear fascia and the doors aren't aero. It's possible that the rear fascia could have been damaged and replaced with the coupe fascia, but then when you toss in the missing aero trim on BOTH doors, I'd say they did a conversion with the other pieces added. The T-tops would be aftermarkets. CJB tops were only offered on the 88's.
Yes the link above is indeed the same car. It's an 86, and I was considering offering around 500 for it. It's quite interesting to see the differences in opinions. Yes, it would be a project[swap, probably L67] and I would prefer to get the car running and drive it home, mainly to get a good feel for any other work that might need to be done. I have to ask, why are some of you saying a lot of money would be needed? Are we automatically assuming that a swap is gonna happen?
Also, the person selling it just wants to get rid of it. He owns a tuner shop and has a lot of other projects. There's an NSX in the garage, and the car is sitting in a lot with an older porsche and a 1st gen MR2. I think its safe to say he's not worried about doing anything with the Fiero haha. I've discussed doing the fuel pump there and it has been agreed that price will not be affected. Basically, I put the fuel pump in, take it for a drive, and make an offer after. Supposedly he has no money in the car so he's entertaining all reasonable offers. If he doesn't sell he's scrapping it.
As far as the T-tops go, is it difficult to find replacement seals? Or is there another reason they are expensive to repair?
[This message has been edited by virtuetovice (edited 09-29-2014).]
have you checked the price on a fuel pump? A new one is going to cost you at least $200 most likely, plus the time and energy to put it in the car. Do you really want to spend that much on a car you might not even buy after you do it?
And yes, finding seals for the T-tops is hard to do. And even when you do, they might still leak.
My two cents on T-Tops....love em! However, if you plan on driving that car rain or shine then stay away from them and stick to the sunroof or hardtop.
The car you are looking at, let's add up some costs so we can get an kind of idea how much we are talking: $500 purchase $60 4 cyl fuel pump $10 fuel pump strainer $145 Dew Wipes set $1000 Paint $250 Tires/mount/balance $40 Brake Pads $125 Brake Rotors $7 Brake Fluid $25 Oil Change $100 AC Service $100 plugs, wires, cap, rotor $100 Misc. parts fasteners ashtrays and anything else that needs to be found.
That's $2462 and that is on the very cheap end of things. We have no idea how the frame or subframe are. Further, start adding in costs if a caliper is bad ($45 each), seat covers, headliners, a headlight motor rebuild, CV joints, a few gaskets for leaks...now we are starting to add up the dollars and tons of time. Want you to go in eyes wide open on it. I don't believe any Fiero is a bad choice as long as folks know what they are getting into.
My two cents on T-Tops....love em! However, if you plan on driving that car rain or shine then stay away from them and stick to the sunroof or hardtop.
The car you are looking at, let's add up some costs so we can get an kind of idea how much we are talking: $500 purchase $60 4 cyl fuel pump $10 fuel pump strainer $145 Dew Wipes set $1000 Paint $250 Tires/mount/balance $40 Brake Pads $125 Brake Rotors $7 Brake Fluid $25 Oil Change $100 AC Service $100 plugs, wires, cap, rotor $100 Misc. parts fasteners ashtrays and anything else that needs to be found.
That's $2462 and that is on the very cheap end of things. We have no idea how the frame or subframe are. Further, start adding in costs if a caliper is bad ($45 each), seat covers, headliners, a headlight motor rebuild, CV joints, a few gaskets for leaks...now we are starting to add up the dollars and tons of time. Want you to go in eyes wide open on it. I don't believe any Fiero is a bad choice as long as folks know what they are getting into.
I agree totally, hey part of the reason we buy em is the fun of working on them. I wouldn't bother driving it before purchase as long as its not a rust bucket because you are going to be replacing a lot of parts anyway.
True that. I'm not exactly buying it expecting a DD right off the bat. If I was, I'd buy something 15 or so years newer. The Regal is a fine DD for now haha. All I wanna know is if the trans shifts. Sure it doesn't exactly matter if it shifts or not, as the swap is gonna happen eventually anyway. However if it DOESNT, that means I can make a much lower offer. Priced a new fuel pump and it's $50. I'm not afraid of the install work by any means.
Also, I will NOT be spending a grand on paint. I am probably gonna go the black Rustoleum route. It looks good, done it once before and it came out great :P
[This message has been edited by virtuetovice (edited 09-29-2014).]
Is there an RPO code for factory T-tops? From what I gathered, T Tops from the factory was an 88 only thing.
That is correct. They could be a dealer-added option on earlier cars but factory was 88 only. I don't have personal experience with non-88 T-tops so I can't comment on if this makes a difference in quality. ~ Jennifer
------------------ Silver 1988 GT Cobalt Blue 85 GT 3.4 MAFOA Newsletter Director
/restart thread, if anyone is interested in an update for my Fiero hunt...
dobey hooked me up with his black 85 V6 GT, 65k miles. Aside from needing a front bumper cover, one headlight assembly, drivers side door interior panel, one caliper, one rotor, a little love and a bath, its a solid car. Everything else is in good shape. I'm excited to spend my next day off getting it road worthy and taking it on my first drive in a Fiero.
The only real issue with it is, when I turn the key, I do not hear a fuel pump. So it's safe to say it needs a fuel pump or just a relay. Either way, this is gonna be fun \m/
Originally posted by virtuetovice: The only real issue with it is, when I turn the key, I do not hear a fuel pump. So it's safe to say it needs a fuel pump or just a relay. Either way, this is gonna be fun \m/
Could just be the fuse under the dash too. Check it first. Will be nice to see it get back on the road.
Thanks. I checked and sure enough, there was no fuse in the fuse box. Put a fuse in and still no fuel so I will be dropping somewhere to get a pump this evening. I read somewhere that a Bosch pump is recommended, is this true? Is there another brand that is preferred?
Originally posted by virtuetovice: ... I read somewhere that a Bosch pump is recommended, is this true? Is there another brand that is preferred?
Seems like I went to the extra expense of buying my pumps from the dealer. This was not a job I wanted to repeat any time soon. Bosch stuff is usually pretty good, IMHO. Since it's been a long time since mine was replaced, I don't really have any recommendations. I would go for a name brand as opposed to a "parts store" brand, however. What ever you do, don't buy one from eBay. They are frequently counterfeit, or at least grossly misrepresented. One guy here was burned by a "knock off" that was represented as "Genuine GM".
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 10-12-2014).]
What ever you do, don't buy one from eBay. They are frequently counterfeit, or at least grossly misrepresented. One guy here was burned by a "knock off" that was represented as "Genuine GM".
/restart thread, if anyone is interested in an update for my Fiero hunt...
dobey hooked me up with his black 85 V6 GT, 65k miles. Aside from needing a front bumper cover, one headlight assembly, drivers side door interior panel, one caliper, one rotor, a little love and a bath, its a solid car. Everything else is in good shape. I'm excited to spend my next day off getting it road worthy and taking it on my first drive in a Fiero.
The only real issue with it is, when I turn the key, I do not hear a fuel pump. So it's safe to say it needs a fuel pump or just a relay. Either way, this is gonna be fun \m/
1G2PG3792FP256290 is the VIN.
With any fiero issue I always start with looking at the fuse block for burnt fuses. There is an override you can do to hotwire the pump ti bypass the relay. That will isolate the problem. Did you find all the parts you need?
dobey found the drivers side door panel and the other headlight assembly minus the motor. Still in the market for a GT bumper cover
I gave her a shot of starting fluid last night and she fired right up. I'll look into the bypass thing when i get home. Honestly I wanna replace the pump anyway since it's been sitting for so long.
Honestly I wanna replace the pump anyway since it's been sitting for so long.
You might wish to re-think that if your pump turns out to be okay. After having done this several times myself, I can think of other better ways of spending my time.