Just a few weeks ago I took the plunge and bought myself a 1984 Fiero 4cyl with the 4 speed manual in it. I knew a friend of mine that at one time had it but since then he traded some tools for it and since it floated from backyard to backyard with an open title. After hunting around I ended up finding it under a pool cover and we shook hands for $500 After I got it home I started going through the car as well as getting the title signed to my name.
After poking around it appears that the car was last on the road around 2009 and it has about 78k miles on it. Remarkably underneath its very clean but the brake lines are rotted away and all the calipers are frozen solid. The gas tank is full of varnish and rust and has so far been removed from the car, drained and filled with a diluted mixture of muriatic acid and water. I just got back from the auto parts store with all new calipers all new brake hoses 3/16" brake line and all new brake pads. As well as a new fuel filter and air filter. Now I have done some research and I know that all the brake lines are metric with bubble flares but in my process of taking stuff apart I managed to lose my rear block that splits the brake line from the center line to the two brake hoses. The auto parts store says they cant help me order a new one but i'm kinda dead in the water without that part and iv torn my barn apart looking for that Tee fitting. Would anyone be able to point me towards ordering a replacement? Oh and here is a picture of said Fiero iv acquired!
I'm sure everyone will tell you, check for rust/rot... fieros rust out undercover. Before you stick a bunch of money into it, be sure its road worthy!
the fiero store will help with parts, but not the brake line block you mentioned. That may be a salvage yard part or someone here will likely have one. check the mall for the couple "part out" threads. https://www.fierostore.com/
Good find. what transmission ? Is the 5th digit in the VIN "E"? Tranny has a white decal on it with a bar code, there will be a part number on it with letters and numbers, if "NA or "DJ" are in the part number, it's probably a MY8 economy trans.
Let me know if it is. I can offer you an attractive upgrade.
Good luck on your find.
Spoon
------------------ "Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut
Fortunately, parts are readily available for the '84.
The gas tank has (and needs) plastic baffles in it. Be sure you don't damage them. If the brake lines are rusty, you should check the transmission lines. Likely, the clamps for the engine coolant lines are also rusty.
Regardless of how the car looks, I agree with checking it over carefully before putting any money into it. Even a running, driving Fiero can be badly rusted.
Oh another quick note about rust and all that. I did quite a bit of poking around the subframe, floor and engine cradle and other then the typical rust holes in the corners of the trunk it appears to be pretty clean. Iv done my fair share of auto repair and my dad has been in autobody for 40 years and remembers taking the class on how to work on Fiero's when they first came out in the 80s
I love to hear when somebody is resurrecting an almost forgotten Fiero back to life. Good luck on your project. Besides the rust issue, and you seem pretty comfident on that, check all the rubber stuff for dry rot, cracks, that kind of thing.
I really like the original rally wheels on your car, but here's the problem. Your tires are too old to be safe and new 13" tires are made for trailers, but very hard to find for cars. There were also 14" rally wheels, but yours look like the 13" in the photo.
[This message has been edited by Gall757 (edited 04-17-2018).]
Regals Pick and pull there in Howell had 2 84s straight back from the entrance a while back.
You can get stainless brake lines from Inline tube, pick them up right at the facility here in se Michigan. As I understand it, they will not coil them up making them easier to install.
[This message has been edited by Kirk (edited 04-18-2018).]
Alright I got a little bit done today. I found the brake block so that is a huge success. Also I currently have the car up on stands with the wheels off so I went around with a crobar and gave all the ball links a good wiggle test, testing for slop in the bushings, sway links and anything that feels off in the front wheel bearings. Checked the boots on the CV shafts and all the other things that tend to go wrong on any car and everything feels really good. The only other issue to crop up is the tires are pretty badly dry rotted and it likes to kill batteries if i leave it plugged in overnight. I'm not sure if I mentioned it yet but I have the engine running off a small lawnmower gas tank with an inline fuel pump so I can at least test things while the gas tank undergoes its acid treatment. I'm getting a plan together right now and I think my smartest move would be to do everything to get it back on the road and once I get that far I can start working on making it go faster and look nicer. i'll post more pictures as I go along.
