I brought this beast home just over two years ago to fix up and be a winter beater.

I drove this half running/sputtering little red thingy dingy through downtown Madison just a few months after getting my license to take it back to my home. I sure got a lot of looks, but I don't know if they saw a awesome car or saw some half baked kid that couldn't drive stick because the car barely ran! The manual trans was nothing new to me, as I had been driving tractors, dirtbikes, and the farm truck as long as I can remember. Anyways, the car somehow made it home, probably on pure adrenaline and excitement that was exploding out of me by now, and I got right to work. (under supervision)

I started with the engine and replaced..
-TPS
-Fuel Pump
-Fuel Filter
-Plugs/Wires
-Dist. Cap and Rotor
-O2 Sensor

Now the engine ran really smooth, and was getting really excited to get Duke ready to drive very soon! But when I took it out for a test drive something still wasn't right. It jerked really hard whenever I shifted, so back to the shop it went for all new engine and transmission mounts. (Recently had to replace these again, but used Rodneys poly strut)

Now I really thought I was good to go and was going to be able to start driving it soon! But I still had problems with a major component on the car.
Brakes!!!

I originally replaced only the front calipers because those were stuck very bad, but now I have redone everything
All new calipers
Flexible brake lines
Steel brake lines
Master cylinder


I also had another big problem with the car. The battery would die every night, and this was really pissing me off! But a lightbulb turned on in my head somewhere, and it ended up being that darn trunk light not shutting off!

Now winter came...


Don't ask..

With spring came new ideas to me, and I decided to upgrade the radio and refurbish the rims.
The rims were pitted really bad so I started with 200g sandpaper, and worked up to 1200g sandpaper, taking over four hours on each rim. I then polished the crap out of them and threw em on the car! Now I'm a firm believer in keeping a car stock or reversible modifications only, and these rims were waayyy to shiny, like holy crap I could use them for mirrors. Now I only do one coat of polish on them and they look great, but i'm hoping to clear the rims like they were originally so I don't need to polish them all the time.

They look way better than before!

Now onto the radio, I decided I wanted a fuller sound than what new speakers and a deck could give me, and pursued the sound I got out of my Camaro with a bose system. I knew that would not be easy, so I got a 10' sub and some fiberglass mats, and molded a box into the footwell, with a wooden face. I then took a spare floor mat that came with my car and covered the face with that, because I knew that would be very tough and durable carpet. It also acted as a gasket between the wood face and the subwoofer to prevent rattles, and also as insulation to get the quality sound I was after. I installed the amp behind the passenger seat so I could easily run the wiring from the new deck to the subwoofer and through the center armrest and to the battery. If I were to do this again, the amp would go behind the drivers seat, so the passenger seat can go as far back as possible to make up for the lost footwell.


Fast forward..

This past month has brought loads of repairs to Duke, I just replaced the front wheel bearings, my first experience with wheel bearings, they were a piece of cake! I also got a new radiator, 3 core all aluminum champion, which needed minor modifications. I had to take out the rubber bumpers on the top and bottom supports and cut them a bit shorter, then the radiator fit perfect! I also rebuilt a headlight relay with Rodney's metal gear, it came with a great set of directions that were very easy to follow. I also replaced the outer dew wipes, which were completely gone. using Rodney's tool, it took about 25 mins on each door.

Sadly, I diagnosed my car with cancer last year.
This is my project for next summer hopefully! I'm not sure that I am ready to tackle something that big yet!

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Red '84, 75,000 miles.. work in progress

quote Originally posted by Dukeiboy: Don't ask..

Sorry, that made me laugh.

Too bad about the "cancer" you've discovered in the frame rail(s). That's something that you learn to look for before buying a Fiero after you've been burned at least once. Yeah, I've got a "parts car" here which had suffered that fate as well.

Glad you're having fun with your Fiero. Nice reading about your ventures. The frame rails might not be as bad as it seems. You have to remove the notchback section of the car to get a good look. Many times they are repairable. Keep up the good work

Your off to a nice start, good job. I noticed you have a black interior, was that the previous owners doing? I'm assuming your going to keep her in the garage this winter, lol !

notwohorns - I'm hoping to get the rails done next summer, If i ever find the time. School come first unfortunately.

davylong86 - Unfortunately I have no other transportation during the winter, so it'll be out in the salt for another year.
when I had the wheel wells out last year, i spray painted the rails in an effort to at least slow down the rust. I also wash the car at least once a week when they spread the poison all over the roads, paying extra attention to the undercarriage and wheel wells.
The interior is all original, not black. Must be a bad picture.

Well be safe this winter. I had a lot of fun in the winters I drove my 84 in until I hit a snow bank and tore off the lower lip spoiler, it looks just like yours lol. I bought new in 84 and I still have it. Good idea on the weights.

[This message has been edited by davylong86 (edited 10-15-2014).]

Weight is good but above not so much.
weights above could be a big problem in a wreck, even minor driving off the road. Spare tire rod on left side metal is only attach to plastic. Rod isn't made for retaining extra mass.

Many keep bag of sand etc. Plus you can sand if you get stuck.

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Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)

The Ogre's Fiero Cave (It's also at the top and bottom of every forum page...)

quote Originally posted by theogre: weights could be a big problem in a wreck, even minor driving off the road.

Excellent point that most of us don't consider before it's too late.

That's a clean Lil '84!! It is exactly like the first one I ever owned. (20 years ago..wow..)
Good call on the weight up front, but Ogre and Patrick are correct..
Get yourself some tube sand and get a small racheting strap to buckle them in with.. the plus side to the sand? In the event you get stuck on a snowy or icy road you can cut into one for the sand for traction :-)

Enjoy your 84... makes me really want a four cyl/manual for a run-around car again!

Cheers!
Mark

Indyellowgt - It's definitely a fun little car for a daily driver. It had been through hell and back mechanically before I acquired it (a nun drove it for many years lol) and the older guy I bought it from was real nice but just didn't seem to know much about maintenance. The engine was overheated several times, not sure how much life is left in it. Clutch is slightly warped, trans mounts were gone for who knows how long. I'm just running it as is till I can restore it.

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Red '84, 75,000 miles.. work in progress

Well the other day I was trying to burp out what I thought was just an air bubble in the coolant. In the process I got sidetracked with my snowmobile, and left my thermostat and cap off. When I came back to it an hour later, there was no coolant in the neck. I filled it back up and then watched it slowly disappear again. I checked around for leaks, none. I also checked the radiator cap and made sure that it wasn't draining into the overflow bottle, and it wasn't. Again I filled it back up and capped it, started it and let it sit outside for a while, checking for leaks with it running. I didn't notice anything except water coming out of the exhaust, which froze on the ground. I am assuming this is a head gasket problem and will probably order one sometime this week. Any suggestions/advice on things to check before I dig into this project would be great. I need to get this resolved quickly before the snow comes.

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Red '84, 75,000 miles.. work in progress

If the water coming out of the exhaust froze on the ground, then it wasn't the coolant you had been adding. A little water coming out of the exhaust is normal. Do you see any coolant in your oil? Is it milky looking? Don't go tearing that head off until you're sure it's a problem. Do you have access to a coolant system pressure tester? Best way to check for leaks...

The oil on the dipstick looks fine to me, but i'm no expert. I can probably find a shop to pressure test it, but if it was leaking externally, it would drip on the ground right?

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Red '84, 75,000 miles.. work in progress

Even if you're no expert...yet...if it were coolant mixed with your oil, you'd know something was wrong...when my '84 was only a year or so old, I started seeing a milky build-up on the bottom side of the oil filler cap...Pontiac replaced the block under warranty...if you're losing coolant, it has to be going somewhere...have you checked the level since you ran it?

Have you checked the floor inside under the heater core on the passenger side?

Clean 84', once you get the mechanicals sorted, it would look great with white letter tires and lowered properly.

Thanks, I think I've narrowed it down to the head gasket. I want to check for leaks once more before diving in though.

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Red '84, 75,000 miles.. work in progress