Some of you may have read my posting on planning to bring a 1988 Fiero T-Top from Calif. to Texas that has been sitting for a couple of years. //www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/129000.html One of the variables is a 1988 Coupe parts car I bought up there also. It has everything except an engine and transmission. Rather than fly up there and try to fix the T-Top and drive it back, a better option may be to drive up there with a trailer and trailer it back along with parts stripped from the Coupe parts car. I plan on stripping the car of the panels, the whole doors, hood, lights, seats, console, dash components, (suspension if I have to junk it and can not sell the chassis)
How long do you think it would take for one person to do this? I will be taking all the manual tools with me but no air tools. The car will be in the open and I think I can do it in 3 days time.
Not that it'll help much, but I'd say that the time to tear one of these down is very hand in hand with how many times you've done it before. Mostly just because some of the parts you are gonna be stripping off the car... kinda make ya scratch your head the first time you do it. Like I said, not any help.. but I'm sure you'll see many different responses, and I believe this would explain why. Good luck with everything.
Originally posted by hcforde: I plan on stripping the car of the panels, the whole doors, hood, lights, seats, console, dash components, (suspension if I have to junk it and can not sell the chassis)
I stripped down my 86 GT parts car for the buyer in about 8 hours total. That was the complete body (not the roof) and the complete interior, no suspension. I have a battery powered impact (Sears) and the rocker panels where garbage so I didn't have to deal with drilling out all the pop rivets.
My recommendation on the doors: 1. Remove the body first. Having the fenders off gets you access to 3 of the 4 bolts 2. Remove the interior second (including disconnecting the power options in the door). That gets you that inside bolt access. 3. Make sure to put the windows down with a battery before you take the doors off to minimize breaking the glass. 4. Remove the 4 bolts and pull the door with the hinges.
I have parted a few Fiero's though. Bring zip lock bags and a marker to organize nuts/bolts.
If it is the first time it is coming apart... expect a while. I took mine apart last summer, and the seat nuts were totally fused and almost gone, and those alone took me a day to get off. Your best friend will be crc freeze off, it is different from every other penetrating oil because you spray it on the frozen part for around 30 seconds to actually freeze and break the bond between the two parts. Cradle bolts are tough too usually... Metal rivets on the body panels can take some time... I know what I am doing, and because I stripped the car down before, there are no frozen bolts, and I would estimate around 6- 10 hours to totally strip it down. A stuck bolt can take up to an hour so for a never stripped down car that number could vary a lot.
I (with help where needed) have stripped an 88 to the frame (as in, nothing on/in it) in a long weekend. It was a parts car that had been in an accident, but was all there.
A question I have is: Is it worth it for the body parts/doors from an 88 coupe? Front/rear suspension, yes. Headlight assembly with harness, yes. All other parts would be depending on condition (mainly interior). W/o engine/Trans WAY less than an 8 hour day. Just saying, body panels for 88 coupe are readily available here in Texas. Might consider a thread selling the parts and what you can't sell, let them go to scrap. If seats are excellent, pull covers off to save space. Just my $0.02 and it probably isn't worth that.
Not that it'll help much, but I'd say that the time to tear one of these down is very hand in hand with how many times you've done it before. Mostly just because some of the parts you are gonna be stripping off the car... kinda make ya scratch your head the first time you do it. Like I said, not any help.. but I'm sure you'll see many different responses, and I believe this would explain why. Good luck with everything.
~James
Not an exact answer, but the correct answer. It all depends on experience level. I might could do it in day, if I got up early, stayed up late, and didn't take any food, or potty breaks. I had a friend who could do it in just a couple of hours though.
Not an exact answer, but the correct answer. It all depends on experience level. I might could do it in day, if I got up early, stayed up late, and didn't take any food, or potty breaks. I had a friend who could do it in just a couple of hours though.
Jim
And air tools would be a big help with the speed of disassembly.
Kevin87FieroGT That is funny, but sadly true. I lived in Bloomingdale and Hartford MI the first 16 years of my life then moved to the Kalamazoo area. I was afraid to go to Detroit but did not mind going to Chicago. Now I don’t want to go to either when I go back to the area.
MulletproofMonk Thanks, I can get a battery powered impact from Harbor Freight for a one off job and should be OK then. I will probably have to double the time. I was thinking 3 days but a power impact wrench and a couple of batteries should help me along.
Zkhennings This will be a California car. The kind of rust you have will not be on this car. PB might just do the job and a household propane torch.
Khw That would probably exceed the weight limitations on the Sequoia I will be pulling with and the gas consumption will be much higher. I do not need the chassis(So I am thinking right now). Yes the thought has crossed my mind before how can I get them both back here, ECONOMICALLY!, can’t be done.
Fierocarparts If I can not sell the chassis there in Calif. I will have to remove or put a hole in the fuel tank, remove the wheels, & remove the seats and then get a junk permit before I can sell it to a metal recycler. It is still up in the air if I will have to ‘pay’ back non-operational vehicle fees. Since I am out of state I sure hope not. I currently have 2 working cars here and 2 that have minor problems that I can fix and sell. One of them looks like the door was hit. So I can use the part. I bought the California parts car for $100. So I might as well reap all the parts I can while I am out there if I decide to drive and bring the other car back.
Concerning California scrap metal/auto Laws. It is not like here where you just show up and show proof of ownership or a bill of sale and the recycler lifts it off your trailer and does his thing. We are talking about California, !!LOL!! That is why the majority of the 200+ people moving to Austin a DAY are from there.
We have our own special illegal immigrant problem. LOL (Sorry Gov. Perry)
jimbolaya Does your friend live in Detroit? just kidding!!!
Lambo nut I have air tools at home but will have to rely on electric where I will be going, and the good graces of the people there to allow me to use there property and electricity to tear the car down.
[This message has been edited by hcforde (edited 06-24-2013).]
Without air tools, I've done it in about 17 hours of actual work. (Doesn't mean it took only 17 hours. There were breaks, naps, first aid stops, expletive-laden stops, stops to look at the manual, etc.)
That was about my third time though. My first time, I had help, air tools, a lift and air conditioning. So, I really can't weigh in other than that.
The funny thing is they want to escape California and its political ways. So... they move to another area and then want to make it like California, LOL. (but not really funny)
The funny thing is they want to escape California and its political ways. So... they move to another area and then want to make it like California, LOL. (but not really funny)
Some of you may have read my posting on planning to bring a 1988 Fiero T-Top from Calif. to Texas that has been sitting for a couple of years. //www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/129000.html One of the variables is a 1988 Coupe parts car I bought up there also. It has everything except an engine and transmission. Rather than fly up there and try to fix the T-Top and drive it back, a better option may be to drive up there with a trailer and trailer it back along with parts stripped from the Coupe parts car. I plan on stripping the car of the panels, the whole doors, hood, lights, seats, console, dash components, (suspension if I have to junk it and can not sell the chassis)
How long do you think it would take for one person to do this? I will be taking all the manual tools with me but no air tools. The car will be in the open and I think I can do it in 3 days time.
What are you going to be pulling it with?
Honestly, you might be better off just putting both of them on a long trailer and hauling it back.
When I was restoring my 1987 Pontiac Fiero SE / V6, it was really helpful to have a spare 1987 Fiero SE / V6 parts car. Although my car was generally in better shape, the parts car was ALSO totally rust free, and some of the parts ended up being in slightly better shape than the ones on my car... things like steel vacuum tubes, etc...
If you CAN get both cars, and you have the space, I would get both of them.
I would love to bring them both back, I would transfer the guts of my 1985 into it, and use the '85 as a parts car, HOWEVER
1.) I own a trailer and it will only fit one of them. 2.) I am towing with a 2004 Toyota Sequoia with a 4.7 Liter engine. 3.) A trailer that will fit 2 cars would be too big to go where I have to go, too heavy to pull especially for that distance, and especially returning. 4.) To rent a trailer that can accomodate 2 cars would be too expensive. It would be a gooseneck connection which would require a truck with that kind of connection and drivetrain to pull it. A goosneck trailer with just one car on it would be over my towing capacity even if I could hook it up.
My '85 is also a California car that has been garaged most of its life. I am the 3rd owner and it has original paint and great interior.
[This message has been edited by hcforde (edited 06-26-2013).]
I have been getting a lot of tools together. The big ones are an electric impact wrench & sockets, inverter strong enough to run it off of the battery in my truck, another battery, and a battery starter/charger. I am finding out that Advanced Auto and others will loan out certain tools. I can use those to assist me in stripping the car. I think I will be stripping the car while it is still on the trailer. This has numerous advantages. When I am done just take it to salvage. I am giving my self a couple of days to strip the thing totally down.
The one Fiero already has the engine and trans removed. I WAS contemplating removing the front facia from that one and hooking it up to a towbar if I could attach a hitch to my trailer. 1. don't know how the state police would like that in all the states I have to go through 2. don't think my Sequoia with a 4.7 litre engine & transmission could handle it 3. it would be a problem to backup if I ever needed to 4. I do not see a place where I could put a hitch on my trailer to safely tow it back.
I would love to get that1988 chassis back to Texas and transfer one of my current drive trains into this car.
[This message has been edited by hcforde (edited 07-06-2013).]
I wish that were true. I wanted to take a couple of things off of the car back in June when I bought it that would have just requires a screwdriver but they were not going to allow it. I am thinking about parking it at an auto parts store 'renting" a tool from them and do dis-assembly there, behind the store. If I get run off, find another auto parts store. But a lot of people that buy car parts work on the cars in the store's parking lot.
I began stripping an 87 GT I have here in my garage so I can get a feel for doing it when I get to Calif. This car has been sitting outside since 1999. The biggest advantage I see in doing first is taking the doors off as soon as possible. That releives a lot of hassle in opening/closing, going around when open, etc. It just increases work flow. by removing an encumbrance. My biggest challenge was the drivers seat, the 2 back bolts are a pain. Any way of attacking this from the bottom?
Bring a saw-zall, good pair of mech's gloves, plastic totes or boxes, trash bags. Lets see jack stands or blocks.
I started by pulling the doors as you recommend, it does make life much easier. Dropped the cradle et al., cut rear cross members off, then roof and pillars. After that it was pretty much hack and slash. Made sure I put my stands and blocks toward the center. Work smart and safe. Dust pan and fox tail for periodic clean up.
I pulled a body off (my first time) in about 8-10 hours total. I went affter work for 2 days. Make sure you have a drill for the rivets. Also, like he said above, a sawzall would be great. If you're also doing the cradle, steering etc, I'd figure 2 days if you work straight through and don't have too many issues.
