Hello everyone. This post is going along with my post in The Mall. As I have mentioned in the post in The Mall, I have the opportunity to pick up 3 parts fieros for a good price. 2 of them are from 84 and the gt is from 85. The gt has 400 miles on it, but has rear end damage. Other than that, everything on the car is pretty much perfect (in terms of no rust). Is it possible/safe to cut the back-end off and weld on a new back-end? Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks.
I would say this is something not just anyone should attempt.
There are several panels that tie the upper & lower frame sections together.
If you're willing and got the skills and/or want to learn then go for it. Getting a shop to do this would cost a $$$$ and if you're like me then we'll where do do you start.
Hello everyone. This post is going along with my post in The Mall. As I have mentioned in the post in The Mall, I have the opportunity to pick up 3 parts fieros for a good price. 2 of them are from 84 and the gt is from 85. The gt has 400 miles on it, but has rear end damage. Other than that, everything on the car is pretty much perfect (in terms of no rust). Is it possible/safe to cut the back-end off and weld on a new back-end? Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks.
Can you send pictures? The most important part of the Fiero's frame is the lower frame rails. If these are damaged, then you're best bet is to swap everything over to one of the 84s.
But yeah, post some pictures, otherwise everything we say is just guessing and theoretical.
Unfortunately, I do not have any good pictures of the damage because I do not own the cars yet. From what I remember seeing when I looked at it, the damage is mainly in the trunk area. The engine bay seems to still be in good shape. As for swapping the engine to one of the other frames, I would not be able to do so because the two 84's are rusted beyond repair. The reason I wanted to see if the rear end could be repaired/replaced is because the frame itself has zero rust on it. Once I get the cars, I will post pictures to see if anyone thinks it is worth saving. If it can be saved, I want to repair it and keep it. If not, I'll probably swap the engine and everything else to my 87 SE.
[This message has been edited by 87FieroEnthusiast (edited 11-21-2025).]
If it's just the trunk, I believe the entire trunk compartment can be removed, and a new one welded between the frame rails - provided that the frame rails are not damaged beyond repair. All the body pieces are simply "bolt off / bolt on". The fact that it was "totaled" with 400 miles could be for a couple of reasons... Either it would have cost more than the car was worth to repair (which doesn't sound that likely) or someone refused to accept the idea of their brand new (400 miles) car being repaired, and living with it for the duration. Very possible scenario.
But yeah... please post up some pics when you can. Lots of people here with lots of rebuilding experience.
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 11-21-2025).]
I was able to get some pictures. Turns out it is an 86, not an 85. Anyway, here's the extent of the damage. From what I see (could be wrong), it seems to mainly be the trunk/rear bumper area that is damaged. Where the engine cradle bolts onto the bottom rail is still intact and the exhaust is still ok (not crushed).
[This message has been edited by 87FieroEnthusiast (edited 11-26-2025).]
The lower rails might be okay, but the upper rails were hacked off.
I actually noticed that as well. The bottom rail on the passenger side seems to be ok, but the driver side rail may need cut off and a new one welded on. It looked pretty crunched to me.
With it being hit hard in the rear, I would take a good look at where the upper frame rails attached to the center tub for the passenger compartment. It isn't uncommon for that area to get pushed in. If that it is the case, then likely everything behind the doors is out of alignment and likely not worth trying to repair.
With it being hit hard in the rear, I would take a good look at where the upper frame rails attached to the center tub for the passenger compartment. It isn't uncommon for that area to get pushed in. If that it is the case, then likely everything behind the doors is out of alignment and likely not worth trying to repair.
Thanks for the advice. I'll definitely check that out either when I bring it home or when I go to pick them up.
Thank you for the reference picture. Also yeah, the car is missing interior parts and the rear glass. If it turns out to be fixable, I am going to take parts from the other 2 cars to complete the GT.
I took another look at the whole back end of the GT. Unfortunately, it would not be very practical to save it. The back end is much worse than I thought. The whole back is crunched and smashed into the passenger cabin, not to mention the rear glass would never fit again with how bent the frame is. I would need to cut the car in half and weld on the back half of another frame to fix it. I talked to a guy who works in the auto collision business. We both took a look at the red 85 SE to see if it could be repaired (front end damage from running into something). He told me that the red 85 SE would be much easier to repair than the GT, so I am going to swap everything from the GT to the other frame and rebuild the red 85 into a GT.
[This message has been edited by 87FieroEnthusiast (edited 11-29-2025).]
I have the opportunity to pick up 3 parts Fieros for a good price. 2 of them are from 84 and the GT is from 85...it but has rear end damage. / The two 84's are rusted beyond repair. / Turns out it {GT} is an 86, not an 85. / I took another look at the whole back end of the GT. Unfortunately, it would not be very practical to save it. / I talked to a guy who works in the auto collision business. We both took a look at the red 85 SE to see if it could be repaired (front end damage from running into something). He told me that the red 85 SE would be much easier to repair than the GT, so I am going to swap everything from the GT to the other frame and rebuild the red 85 into a GT.
I'm very confused...
The story was two rusted 1984 and one 1985 GT with rear end damage
Then the story was two rusted 1984 and one 1986 GT with rear end damage
The story was two rusted 1984 and one 1985 GT with rear end damage
Then the story was two rusted 1984 and one 1986 GT with rear end damage
Now is a 1985 SE in the mix?
I was told that the red SE and the white SE were from 84 and the GT was from 85. I decided to run the vin numbers to see what they really are. It turns out that the red SE and the white SE are actually from 1985, which makes more sense considering that neither of them have the traditional 84 rear trunk lid. I looked inside the door on the GT and it was made in September of 1985, but that is about the time that Pontiac started making the early 86 GT. Also, I know it is an early 86 GT because it has the notchback rear clip, not the fastback. Here is the real story: I am getting a red 1985 SE (not as rusted as I thought), a white 1985 SE (really rusted), and an early 86 GT (entire back end smashed in). I'm sorry for all of the confusion. I hope this helps a little.
[This message has been edited by 87FieroEnthusiast (edited 11-30-2025).]
