It's an 88 Western Edition coupe. Comes with tilt, delay, and air, and not much else. Has 153 K on the odo, and drives about like you'd expect a 150K base coupe to drive. (It pretty much wallows.) The headlight motors need rebuilt, the parking brakes need adjustment, it has the usual "Duke drip", and the fuel pump sounds like a Cessna. But it's mechanically quiet. No funny sounds. Clutch is good. Shifts like buttah!
Now the fun begins...
------------------ Raydar 88 Formula IMSA Fastback. 4.9, NVG T550 Praise the Lowered!
Actually, it was an option on 88 coupes, available only in western states. (This one came from Nevada. Originally from California.) The package includes a wing, and body colored rockers and lower rear fascia. (They only came in red or white.) Even has its own RPO code - which is present on mine - W02.
Not that it makes the car much - or any - more valuable. Just an uncommon option.
Actually, it was an option on 88 coupes, available only in western states. (This one came from Nevada. Originally from California.) The package includes a wing, and body colored rockers and lower rear fascia. (They only came in red or white.) Even has its own RPO code - which is present on mine - WO2.
Not that it makes the car much - or any - more valuable. Just an uncommon option.
Huh, interesting. I never knew that. I like the body-color rockers.
I haven't made up my mind what I'm going to do with the rockers. The left one is all scuffed up. The rear valence looks bad, though. It really calls attention to the gap where the right pipe would be on a Formula. But I've got a fix for that.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 03-28-2016).]
I haven't made up my mind what I'm going to do with the rockers. The left one is all scuffed up.
I never liked the look of black rockers (and/or of black aero trim) on Fieros, so I painted the rockers on my red Formula silver/aluminum to match the wheels. Don't know about on a white Fiero, but I like this look on a red one. Compared to how the car looked with black rockers, from the side the Formula now looks "lower".
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-28-2016).]
That's a great looking car. What changes do you plan to make?
Thanks! Got to tighten up the suspension a bit. Have a 12" brake kit under my bench. Have a set of 17s in the back room. Need to touch up the cosmetics (the paint is mostly really good) and replace some interior pieces and maybe install GT gauges. Need to fix a few things to make it driveable and reliable. I've been given "dibs" on an Indy exhaust system that a friend is getting as part of a pile of spare parts. (He will have two others to choose from.)
Future plans include an LZ9 or LFX swap (it's specifically why I was looking for a car) through a Beretta Getrag, or maybe an F23. I'm leaning toward the Getrag. I have one in my 4.9 car, and really like it. (There is another LFX thread in "tech". It's got me thinking.) I really hate to remove the Isuzu, though. It shifts like butter. Although, with either of those engines, it would probably remove itself, in fairly short order.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 03-28-2016).]
Actually, it was an option on 88 coupes, available only in western states. (This one came from Nevada. Originally from California.) The package includes a wing, and body colored rockers and lower rear fascia. (They only came in red or white.) Even has its own RPO code - which is present on mine - W02.
Not that it makes the car much - or any - more valuable. Just an uncommon option.
Update... The suspension rebuild is essentially completed. SensaTracs on all four corners. New lower ball joints. Poly everywhere except the sway bars and trailing links. Also did the Corvette brake rotors on the front. Still have to do the rear, and tighten up the parking brake, but that's not a big deal. All the strange thumps and tail wagging are essentially gone. It still needs an alignment, but that's just "a thing". I have a rear sway bar, but apparently a lot of the "fast" builders are doing without. Haven't made up my mind. We shall see... Also added my spare set of 17s. Next I need to address some minor cosmetics, and swap in the V6 gauge setup I acquired.
Looks good. I really like that style of wheel. I've become quite fond of white on these cars. That's probably what my bright red will become when I get around to paint.
Thanks Ed. I have another tube that's significantly less "smushed" than this one. I'll probably just tweak it a bit and then swap it out. I may recycle the other one though. i know someone else who has an 88 who needs one.
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Originally posted by Fiero 88:
Looks good. I really like that style of wheel. I've become quite fond of white on these cars. That's probably what my bright red will become when I get around to paint.
Bright red looks great on a Fiero. But I don't need another ticket magnet vehicle. I went 15+ years without a ticket, and then bought a red Silverado. BAM! <grumble>
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 07-26-2016).]
Originally posted by 2.5: Do you plan to put poly on the sway bars? That's the first place I put it on most cars.
It's a thought. I don't have poly on my other car's sway bars either.
I'm not going to put poly on the sways on this car, unless I add the rear bar. Based upon "conventional wisdom" tightening up just the front would bias the car towards more understeer. My 17s are already biased in that direction (narrower fronts) anyway. That is, compared to stock.
Check out Steven Snyder's 88 notchie track car. Everything I've seen leads me to believe that it's quite well sorted. Unless I'm badly mistaken, he isn't running a rear bar. (He's invested a lot of time and money getting it "right". - Tubular control arms and fieroguru's camber correction kit immediately come to mind. - I have to assume that the absence of a rear bar is not based upon financial considerations.)
Not like this car will ever be anywhere near that. I don't intend it to be. Just that the "rear bar" thing is not cast in stone. I'm in no hurry. I'll probably play with it both ways.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 07-28-2016).]
Check out Steven Snyder's 88 notchie track car. Everything I've seen leads me to believe that it's quite well sorted. Unless I'm badly mistaken, he isn't running a rear bar. (He's invested a lot of time and money getting it "right". - Tubular control arms and fieroguru's camber correction kit immediately come to mind. - I have to assume that the absence of a rear bar is not based upon financial considerations.)
I certainly have respect for Steven's Fiero. I suspect he's accomplished through other means what a rear sway bar more or less does, but this is well beyond my knowledge level.
Are there any other track driven '88 Fieros of this caliber you're aware of here at PFF that have also dispensed with the rear sway bar?
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 04-08-2017).]
Originally posted by Patrick: I certainly have respect for Steven's Fiero. I suspect he's accomplished though other means what a rear sway bar more or less does, but this is well beyond my knowledge level.
And mine as well, but it's always fun to speculate.
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Are there any other track driven '88 Fieros of this caliber you're aware of here at PFF that have also dispensed with the rear sway bar?
Not as far as I know. But it appears that the cradle has to at least drop down in order to add the bar, anyway, so it's not going to happen quickly, either way. It's way down the list.
An observation... The base coupe has four matched tires, and no rear bar. The GTs and Formulas have staggered tire sizes, and a bar. I won't go so far as to suppose that's all there is to it, but on the face of it, it would seem to make sense.
I wonder what size tires Steven is running, front to rear.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 07-28-2016).]
...it appears that the cradle has to at least drop down in order to add the bar
Nope!
The reason I'm so sure of myself is that I pulled a rear sway bar off an '88 GT at a wrecking yard. It was tricky, it reminded me of one of those Chinese ring puzzles to get it out... but it can be done!
Yes. But did you then install it on your car, without dropping the cradle, or breaking anything? What has to come off? I'm guessing the struts are in the way.
Yes. But did you then install it on your car, without dropping the cradle, or breaking anything?
I grabbed the rear sway bar (and mounts) to compliment an extra cradle I had earlier salvaged from an '88 coupe parts car... so I haven't had to install it.
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Originally posted by Raydar:
What has to come off? I'm guessing the struts are in the way.
This was three years ago... but if I remember correctly, it was just the struts that may have been necessary to remove. I didn't need to force or damage anything getting it out, so I suspect to install it would be the same in reverse order.
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 07-28-2016).]
To address the sway bar topic... With one strut removed from my coupe, I almost could have tossed the sway bar through the car, and had it fall into place. Took only a couple of minutes, and I was being really careful not to damage the CV boots. It may have even been possible with both struts in place, but the right one was still off the car from some other stuff I was doing.
Ran a quick compression test on the old Duke, this weekend.
1 - 140 2 - 135 3 - 142 4 - 135
Test was run dry, with a cold engine. All plugs removed, and the throttle blocked open. (Well... dry, not counting however much Liquid Wrench dripped in, from when I removed the spark plugs.) All in all, I was happy.
Still strange that it still doesn't have enough compression to stop it from trying to roll down my driveway, unless the parking brake is on.
Did you do lowering ball joints? Or just replace the ball joints? How did you lower it if not with ball joints? Just curious. That doesn't look like the stock height in the front. if you used lowering ball joints, did you have issues with the corvette rotors interfering with the lower control arm?
I just replaced the ball joints with stock height (Rodney's) pieces. The front springs were cut by one turn. (I also installed front springs in the rear, also cut by one turn. Had to have a sleeve welded to the "hats" to keep them centered.) I've got 12" C4 brakes. I had to "dress" the tips of the control arms, for the rotor interference issue.
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