Hi from the UK (Page 2/2)
Patrick JUN 10, 06:12 PM

quote
Originally posted by Mich1958:

...any comments and advice would be greatly appreciated.



I gave you advice on posting images here... which it appears you missed.
Mike in Sydney JUN 11, 12:50 AM
Mich,

I've put my responses in the quote in bold text. Sounds like you are on top of things.


quote
Originally posted by Mich1958:


The first think was a good wash several times infact, mainly on the body, and she looks alot better already, surprising what a bit of soap and water will do.
She's come up a treat. Really looks like you scored a good example.

After a good wash and brush up I removed the battery to find that the battery tray was toast no surprise there I also found a little hole in the corner where I'm guessing the low water point would have been, so any battery run off would have ended up there leaving me with a hole about as big as my thumb in the sheet metal work.
Yep. Battery trays are known to rust. I've had to replace two on three of my Fieros.

Before the new battery arrived plugs out and I ran a boroscope down the cylinders all seemed good, I applied a little WD40 in each bore then checked all plugs tested cleaned and correctly gapped.

I checked the HT leads all ok just old same with the distributor cap servicable but will be replaced.

I emptied the old fuel from the tank and cleared it out with some fresh fuel then bled the system by removing the schrader valve on the fuel system and ran the pump to clear out fuel that smelt like varnish.

Schrader back in I pressured up the system made sure that the old oil was up to level along with the water system.

New battery on distributer cap disconected I turned the car over until i saw the oil pressure gauge flick up, cap back on I decided to go for it.

And happy day's she started almost instantly, odd legging a little 3 then 4 then 6 cyliders, oil pressure up to 80 psi.
I wish my SE coupe had been so lucky. Mine was more stubborn and still is at times. (Probably the cold start circuit playing up.)

I let her run for a minute while I did a walk around all seemed good, RPM was up a little i'm guessing cold start enrichment.

So while still monitoring everything 5 mins in she came off enrichment, I picked her up on revs she seems to pick up ok so then I let her run until i saw and felt the temperature climb, all good so far.

And that was it was it for this session I fueled her again and tried her again after she cooled, she started on the button, I was very pleased to say the least.

So what's gone wrong well nothing major, no leaks no oil no water that's a bonus, i chocked the car 3ft either side and tried the auto box she moved to the chock and returned several times, all the lights worked headlights came up heater fan worked all speeds and it blew hot when running. AC's a different story i can her the ac pump trying to engage but there is no cool so I'm guessing enough to allow the clutch to kick in but not enough in the system, hopefully its a pressure test and refill.

So what did go wrong well just the tacho as Ive found so far when warm and off enrichment it shows 2250 rpm at tickover im guessing it should read 500 hundred ish so thats on my list, also the brakes which have now arrived from the states full set back and front including E brake full set.
Not sure what you mean about the tach. Does it show 2250 before starting or when first started? When cold, my cars idle at 15-1700 rpm. When they come up to temp, they drop to around 800-850. If the tach is showing 2250 before starting, it may be an issue with the tachometer filter. If the relative motion seems OK, you may want to try repositioning the tach needle.

One of the things I'm going to have to change is the tyre profile from 215/60 14 there really expensive here in the UK with only one option.
14-inch tyres are getting hard to find everywhere. You may need to change wheel sizes. Any 5X100mm wheel with a 35mm offset and a 57mm bore should work. Depending on who is the manufacturer, you may need to use centering rings.

Also I have noticed what I think is an exhaust manifold gasket leak from the rear bank, I'm pretty sure its that it's ticky on cold start up and starts to disapear as the engine warms but you can still hear a whisper of air escaping.
Not unusual. The exhaust rear manifolds are prone to cracking. GM did a recall that removed the deck lid weather strip. After that, rain water could run down on the hot manifold cause cracks. Seldom do you find a Fiero V6 without manifold cracks. You can mig weld while the manifold is in place but it's best to remove them, bolt them to a rigid frame to ensure they keep their shape while welding, and mig or tig the cracks all around. Keep them bolted to the frame until they cool down.

So thats it for now, bodywork is ok from 20ft looks good 5ft not so much the gell coat has some crazing in it and the colour is washed out, plus someone has painted the bottom accents in a grey and after several washes the paint is coming off, it looks like its not been keyed properly to the silver, which I think i will return the car too. on the plus side i found the broken sail panels in several bits in the trunk, along with a full size spare tyre (but the rubber is toast shame) the sail panel is now repaired and I see no reason why a decent rattle can paint job wont bring them back to hallf decent condition.
Same with mine. I've a SIlver GT that's been stored inside and the paint and clearcoat is pretty good. My red SE coupe is pretty good from 10 feet but begins to show its age at 5 feet. It was stored outside in a carport that got lots of sun, hence the clearcoat is breaking down. My black GT is brilliant (below the belt line). From the belt line up the clear coat is lifting or like sand paper. It was stored outside under a tarp for 2-3 years by the previous owner. I'm refinishing it by sanding it back with 1200, 2000, and 3000 grit pads. It will then get a vinyl wrap.

I think thats all I have at the moment, any comments and advice would be greatly appreciated.
Keep us posted on the progress.

Thaks once again

Mich

[This message has been edited by Mike in Sydney (edited 06-11-2024).]

Mich1958 OCT 12, 05:47 PM
Hi all,

I'm getting close now to finally getting my car on the road, I have done most of the underside, brakes, suspension, etc etc.

I have tidied the engine bay and replaced the rusted out battery tray with a new one.

I have now turned my attention to the exterior the wheels have been acid stripped powder coated black then the fronts diamond cut along with new tyres it's starting to look pretty good,

The exterior paintwork is pretty naff but I'll clean it up as best as I can do.

So I've now turned myself to the interior, my worn and torn seats have been replaced with some Mazda MX5 black leather tombstones they look pretty cool, until I can come across a nice original driver or passenger seat to put back in again.

The Dew seals and all glass support pads have been replaced, the Interior mirror has been repaired and reinstated along with the cable operated door mirror and a repaired and reinforced door card, now all working.

Dash lights have all been replaced with LED's along with all exterior bulbs, and I have tried to do a sympathetic alteration to reinstate the rear reverse lights back to original and convert the red reflector to amber indicators, along with a much neater rear fog light.

So I'm getting there, BUT and there is always a But, the Tacho is not playing ball it was/ is readng at least 2k above what it should be, tickover is showing 3k plus, after reading this forum I decided to replace the tach filter making sure it was well earthed and conections all clean at the plug.

It didn't work.

So what is my next item to check ?? I'm sure I stumbled on something on this forum about a component behind the dash which may need replacing a capacitor or a resistor I can't remember which and now I can't seem to find the post.

If anyone could help it would be appreciated.

Cheers
Mich

PS I have aload of pictures to post and i will get around to adding them.
Mike in Sydney OCT 13, 06:45 PM

quote
Originally posted by Mich1958:

.....

So I'm getting there, BUT and there is always a But, the Tacho is not playing ball it was/ is readng at least 2k above what it should be, tickover is showing 3k plus, after reading this forum I decided to replace the tach filter making sure it was well earthed and conections all clean at the plug.

It didn't work.

So what is my next item to check ?? I'm sure I stumbled on something on this forum about a component behind the dash which may need replacing a capacitor or a resistor I can't remember which and now I can't seem to find the post.

If anyone could help it would be appreciated.





Not sure what you mean about the tach. Does it show 2250 before starting or when first started? Since you replace the tachometer filter, it could be that the relative position of the needle is off. I've seen Fieros where the tach registers 2000 rpm with the engine off. If the relative motion seems OK, you may want to try repositioning the tach needle. What I mean by that is when the car is at temperature and the check what the tach in the instrument cluster reads and compare it to a mechanic's external tach. Check the readings at various rpms. If the difference between the two reading is constant - always the same - then that would point to a needle in the wrong position. Keep us posted on your progress.

BTW, Mate, I should ship my '86 SE to you before bringing it to OZ. You have really notched up some serious work. Sounds like the finish on both of our cars is similar. The clear coat on mine is not lifting but no amount of cutting and buffing is ever going to get it right. Right now, it's a 15-footer finish. Anything closer and you begin to see the imperfections. I could probably have it painted from the mouldings up but If I go that far might as well have the whole thing painted. I'm leaning heavily towards a vinyl wrap. It's not going to be a daily driver and will always be stored indoors on a lift and used for club events. Also, $3500 AUD vs $15000 AUD for a show quality, panel off paint job is pretty attractive. A couple of pictures to show you what I'm working with...






(Edited for mispelled words & puntuation.)

[This message has been edited by Mike in Sydney (edited 10-13-2024).]