I have been looking for a shop that does swaps and ran across these guys in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Anyone on here familiar with them? From their pictures they look to do good work.
I have been looking for a shop that does swaps and ran across these guys in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Anyone on here familiar with them? From their pictures they look to do good work.
They do great work! Ryan is the man, hooked me up with a tuned PCM like he does for a lot of people. You will see him post regularly as DarthFiero.
------------------ ===Always trying to find time to work on cars=== Louis Duet Baldwin, Long Island, NY "My mind spins like helicopter blades." -G. Rossdale ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Blue" <= '85 Fiero GT 3800sc series 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Boo" <= '81 Delorean DMC-12 VIN #5835 Stock PRV engine Peugot 604 Intake manifold Exhaust headers Anti-3rd brake light
Apparently I have nothing to worry about! I had him place me on his wait list.. which is 2+ years. Just gives me more time to put back money and from the replies here sounds like he is worth the wait.
Not to hi-jack but does Ryan make 3800 harnesses with tuning ECM for the swap?
I seen his work on his web-site...nice, clean swaps. I like his mounts that he custom makes. It has a big rubber bushing. I think its a front 84-87 cradle bushing. Totally a great idea.
Not to hi-jack but does Ryan make 3800 harnesses with tuning ECM for the swap?
Negative. Ryan does not make swap harnesses and I do not see this changing anytime soon. Honestly though, I don't blame him for NOT doing it. Providing a product like that opens you up to support nightmares. He will help you get your ECU tuned though so it's ready to rock and roll.
------------------ -Chris '85 V6 SE 4sp (SOLD) '88 GT - Series 3 SC3800 w/ 3.5" pulley, 1.8" rockers, 3" exhaust, 3.5" intake, 3.29 gearing. Installed and tuned by Sinister Performance '99 Kawasaki Vulcan 500, owned since new '09 G37x Sedan w/ Premium & Nav (wife's car) '13 G37xS Sedan (new daily driver) '14 Yamaha FJR - 0-60 in 2.8s w/ 34MPG!!!
Apparently I have nothing to worry about! I had him place me on his wait list.. which is 2+ years. Just gives me more time to put back money and from the replies here sounds like he is worth the wait.
If I recall correctly, my turn came after being on the list for about 18 months. I chose Ryan after watching his career from when he very first began doing swaps a LONG time ago (look at when my user ID was registered). There were other vendors I could have gone with (and I'll leave there names out this discussing) and am extremely glad I waited. When I got my car back it was FAR more reliable than when I dropped it off and the install looks professional. IMHO, one of the reasons why it takes a while and why there is a long waiting list is because he doesn't appear to take on more work than he can handle. When you and Ryan are both ready I would also recommend getting your transmission rebuilt by Triple Edge Performance.
The only thing I would change if I were to go back and do it all over would be to use the Magnaflow muffler instead. Now that the Fiero is transitioning to be my daily driver and not just a toy car, the exhaust drone can really start to wear you down. I'll change that over when I have Ryan take me the Turbo route.
------------------ -Chris '85 V6 SE 4sp (SOLD) '88 GT - Series 3 SC3800 w/ 3.5" pulley, 1.8" rockers, 3" exhaust, 3.5" intake, 3.29 gearing. Installed and tuned by Sinister Performance '99 Kawasaki Vulcan 500, owned since new '09 G37x Sedan w/ Premium & Nav (wife's car) '13 G37xS Sedan (new daily driver) '14 Yamaha FJR - 0-60 in 2.8s w/ 34MPG!!!
The only negatives I've heard is that he is booked up with work, which I guess speaks well for demand of his service.
I have met him several times , I wanted him to do a swap for me but the line was long and my cash was short. I have seen the work he does and it is first rate. great guy , great work!
I like his mounts that he custom makes. It has a big rubber bushing. I think its a front 84-87 cradle bushing. Totally a great idea.
The OEM replacement 84-87 cradle front rubber bushings worked great for motor and trans mount use. However, they have long since been discontinued and The Fiero Store has ignored my repeated requests for reproducing them. So those are no longer available.
I've tried various other rubber control arm bushings for motor mount use but the rubber used in all the control arm bushings I've tried are made of a much harder compound than the Fiero cradle bushing so they don't isolate engine vibrations or noise nearly as well. I'm still searching for an alternative...
-ryan
------------------ More is more. Less is not enough. Custom GM OBD1 & OBD2 Tuning | Engine Conversions & more | www.gmtuners.com
The only thing I would change if I were to go back and do it all over would be to use the Magnaflow muffler instead. Now that the Fiero is transitioning to be my daily driver and not just a toy car, the exhaust drone can really start to wear you down. I'll change that over when I have Ryan take me the Turbo route.
Chris, I had another customer I did a swap for years ago complain about the drone noise as well. However, he came up with an innovative solution: He had his exhaust shop weld one of those compact "spun" catalytic converters into the inlet of his chambered muffler (so most all of it was actually contained within the muffler so it didn't add to the size of the exhaust system). You should be able to do the same to yours. However, you may pay a small flow restriction penalty by adding the cat which could hurt engine performance, so keep this in mind.
You can also have some small bullet type resonators (look like short cherry bomb mufflers) welded onto the outlets of your muffler, and this might also help combat the drone frequencies.
[This message has been edited by Darth Fiero (edited 07-21-2015).]
Ryan is a talented technician that has been a tremendous asset to the car hobby. He has completed some great swaps; regularly reaches out to the Fiero community, provides technical assistance, advise and conducts himself with integrity. Over the years, he has helped me out with PCM program related info, publishes free wiring diagrams, info for swaps and shares his knowledge freely. Ryan is top notch, First Class all the way.
------------------ " THE BLACK PARALYZER" -87GT 3800SC Series III engine, custom ZZP /Frozen Boost Intercooler setup, 3.4" Pulley, Northstar TB, LS1 MAF, 3" Spintech/Hedman Exhaust, Autolite 104's, MSD wires, Custom CAI, 4T65eHD w. custom axles, HP Tuners VCM Suite. "THE COLUSSUS" 87GT - ALL OUT 3.4L Turbocharged engine, Garrett Hybrid Turbo, MSD ign., modified TH125H " ON THE LOOSE WITHOUT THE JUICE "
Thanks for all of the responses guys! And I've always noticed that darth fiero always gave excellent advice in the forums but never knew he was the owner of Sinister Performance. He has already been a huge help and has been very responsive to my emails. These next few years will most likely drag by, like Christmas Eve does for children haha.
I've met Ryan personally and really get a good vibe from him. He's like me; Loves to make everything mechanically sound first and aesthetics secondary. It's all about keeping our old Fieros running right?
I have met him several times , I wanted him to do a swap for me but the line was long and my cash was short.
