I've been a long time lurker on these forums, but I now have a Fiero of my own and felt it was time to join up!
So Hi! I'm Dave. I live in Oregon with my wife and two daughters. We have a dog, three cats, a bunch of fish... and now, after a long time waiting, an '88 GT T-Top!
I've been a Fiero lover since 1988 when I was dating a girl whose father drove a T-Top Formula. He loved to take us for drives, but never let either of us drive it ourselves. Still that was all it took and I was hooked! About three years ago both of our girls were in school and we were able to start saving away the money that had been spent on day-care. For two years I made near daily visits to Craigslist and was searching up and down the Oregon and Washington I-5 corridor. I was very picky only wanting an '88, 5-spd, low'ish miles, and very well cared for/garaged condition. I visited only six cars during that time (2 in Seattle, 3 Portland, and 1 in Eugene), but none of them was the right combination of price and wish-list items. About a week ago my Fiero was listed on Craigslist by a guy who had acquired it in a part trade for an awesome, vintage Ducati motorcycle he was parting with. The price was attractive, the car looked really clean, and the guy selling it was a gentleman and pleasure to deal with. After crawling all over it and a 45 minute test-drive I made him an offer we were both pleased with and now it's mine!
Some details on my car:
5spd and 2.8 w/ 96K miles.
"True" T-top car.
Original Ruby Red paint and the clear coat is in good shape. Wing appears to have been repainted, but I can't be sure.
Bought at Jim Link Pontiac (Google can't find anything on this dealer, but I think that I remember commercials for this dealer during my Oregon raised childhood and mistaking "Link's" for Lynx and thinking that was cool!).
...and the Needs:
A front-end alignment (or maybe more!)
New speakers
Leaks windshield washer fluid a tablespoon'ish a day
Tires nearly show the top of Abe's head
Even the Oregon weather cooperated to make this a great 24 hours!
------------------ 1988 GT T-Top TTop #941 of 1,252 Fiero #22,196 of 26,402
[This message has been edited by 88TTOP_Dave (edited 11-19-2014).]
That is one of my favorite combinations, I absolutely adore your car. I'll own one like that when I'm older as it's one of my dream cars. Welcome to the forum and enjoy your stay!
Dave, you are a lucky guy. I was the first one to make the trip to look at that car. We agreed on a price and everything, and for some reason I just couldn"t pull the trigger on the buy. For once, I thought I should consult my wife of 31 years, and she was not in agreement, thinking I have enough Fiero's (3) for now. That is a very sound car and ran and drove well. The seller said it would wander some on the freeway, but new tires may be the issue instead of an alignment. The car had some road rash, but in my opinion it can be spot painted and it will look nearly new. The interior was nice for 96K miles. Very little bolster wear. Started good, ran well, no smoke, good oil pressure, even the air works. You and your family should get a great deal of enjoyment from your purchase. And it was priced pretty well for an 88 t top without huge mileage. Again congratulations on your Fiero, I will always be envious about the one that got away!
@rbell2915 -- Hang in there! It took me 25 years :P
@AutoMarshal -- I'll keep you in mind should my wife decides that since I got my dream car she needs to buy a herd of cattle (her crazy dream!)
@bjc 350 -- Thank you for the validation. Beyond those six test drives in the past two years I don't have enough experience to "feel" a sound Fiero from a sketchy one so your kind and expert words mean a lot. I don't have shop space so it was important to get one that didn't need a lot of tinkering. I'm pretty sure I saw you list up one of yours (an '88 GT w/ AT) several months ago. Looked like a nice car, I just couldn't compromise on my desire to own a 5spd so I never called.
------------------ 1988 GT T-Top TTop #941 of 1,252 Fiero #22,196 of 26,402
welcome with your T-tops!--your daughters will love it! (mine do) go to this link http://fierottop.com/registry/ you enter your vin and it will tell you when yours was made and other info--really neat also update 88 database guy--he likes to collect information https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/074587.html you will find this forum very helpful to keep your fiero going---
Congrats and welcome to your official 1st thread! She sure is a beauty. How did you get your pictures to come out so three dimensional looking and feeling?
Dave, a big plus. I pulled the trunk carpet corners up and there is NO rust and I could not see any under the car either. Some weekend detailing and that car will look like you paid $2K more than you likely did! I'm still upset with myself. I can PM you with what I observed if you would like my opinion. The 88 that I sold for $4600 had more miles and slightly more bolster wear than your car, otherwise very similar but with better paint. No t tops, it was a sunroof car, automatic. Man you should be a happy camper!
@johnyrottin -- That 3D look is an optical illusion created by blurring the background of the photo and making the subject (in this case the Fiero) in sharp focus. I actually snapped these shots on my iPhone and then doctored the blur in with Photoshop. If you're interested you can google "Depth of Field" and find A TON of info on this photographic technique.
@88FieroGT TTops -- I registered it on fierottop.com, but I'll be sure to update the 88 database guy like you mentioned. As far as my daughters go the oldest loves it and my youngest things that it looks like a "gross bug" with the headlights up
Hey I should have clicked on this thread earlier! I came here after seeing the vanity license plate thread. Looks good!
That's almost a twin of mine! Except mine has no T-tops or spoiler. Medium red metallic, gray interior, black wheels... That was the most common color a year earlier, but not real numerous in 1988.
