My DIY rear Coil-over conversion (84 model)... play by play (Warning many pics) (Page 9/11)
fierofool MAY 07, 09:49 AM
The struts, themselves are the same. Stock springs and the tophats where the strut mounts into the strut tower, are different. I'm running a set of 88 struts on my 87.
redraif MAY 10, 02:15 PM
Thank you for the interjection! I have not messed with the 88 set up, so I couldn't comment on the changes
fierofool MAY 10, 05:21 PM
Sorry. It's been 7 months since you last posted and we at the club haven't heard from you in about a year, so I didn't know if you were still active. We sure would like to see you and Tinkerbell again.
redraif MAY 18, 10:44 AM
Wow... I figured my thread was dead forever... finally photobucket has released my photos... think its time I steal them back and find a new hosting site!

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Please forgive my typos, I'm typically posting via cell.

1984 Indy Fiero SE Pace Car Replica #770
"SE" Stormtrooper Edition
Rescued, resuscitated and reversibly modified! (I'm so not done yet!)

Poly all round & Black Drag DR-34s
Frt: 225/45 on 18x8 (47 offset w/ 8-9mm spacer) 1.5 coils cut off 1984 WS6 springs
Rear: 265/35 on 18x8.5 (45 offset) Coil-overs w/ 10 inch 300lb springs & 7 inch sleeve

Everything is the previous owners fault!

pmbrunelle JAN 18, 10:07 PM
I'm thinking of building coilovers for my Fiero (84-87) and my friend's Fiero (88), and he insisted on dust boots, which led me to doing some internet searches.

I found this forum post:
https://www.norotors.com/index.php?topic=11370.0

It lists two KYB part numbers:
KYB SB108
KYB SB104

I think I will buy both of them to play around with the parts. On Rockauto, they ship from the same warehouse as the Excel-G struts, so we won't have to pay shipping to get them.

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Looking at the KYB strut plate, why are there two hole patterns?
Is one hole pattern used for 84-87, and the other set of holes for 88?
fieroguru JAN 19, 07:33 AM

quote
Originally posted by pmbrunelle:
Looking at the KYB strut plate, why are there two hole patterns?
Is one hole pattern used for 84-87, and the other set of holes for 88?



Yes. The inner set of holes is for the 88, the outer set is for the 84-87.
pmbrunelle FEB 13, 11:27 AM
No news on the boots, as we didn't try them yet.

I measured the stud lengths on the 84-87 spring perch like this, but using a slide caliper:



Two outboard studs: 0.865"
Inboard stud: 1.255"

Spring perch metal thickness: 0.090" (this is useful to know the underhead length of the stud that was used)

Measurement confidence: +/- 0.010" (good enough for the purpose of buying screws/bolts)

What are the equivalent measurements on an 88 Fiero? I'm trying to duplicate the function of the stock spring perch, but with a coilover spring.
pmbrunelle FEB 13, 07:17 PM

quote
Originally posted by pmbrunelle:
What are the equivalent measurements on an 88 Fiero? I'm trying to duplicate the function of the stock spring perch, but with a coilover spring.



I got the information through another channel.

Just a hair under 7/8"



pmbrunelle FEB 14, 05:18 PM
I tried the Allstar ALL64143 sleeves, and they didn't come with any wire ring to lock the sleeve to the shock.

I am mostly interested in locking the sleeve so it doesn't turn on the shock when I try turning the large nut.

I might use solid copper wire shoved into end, not really sure yet.
pmbrunelle JUL 23, 12:24 AM

quote
Originally posted by pmbrunelle:

I tried the Allstar ALL64143 sleeves, and they didn't come with any wire ring to lock the sleeve to the shock.

I am mostly interested in locking the sleeve so it doesn't turn on the shock when I try turning the large nut.

I might use solid copper wire shoved into end, not really sure yet.



I ended up shoving 14 AWG solid copper wire into the gap:



quote
Originally posted by pmbrunelle:
It lists two KYB part numbers:
KYB SB108
KYB SB104

I think I will buy both of them to play around with the parts. On Rockauto, they ship from the same warehouse as the Excel-G struts, so we won't have to pay shipping to get them.



These KYB bellows were no good (OD too large for the spring).

We ended up getting bumpstops+bellows from BC Racing. BR Racing sells bumpstops and bellows separately as spare parts. The nice thing about the BC Racing bellows is that they're meant for aftermarket coilovers, so they're slim enough to fit inside a 2.5" ID spring.

The bumpstops and bellows are sized based on the shock rod diameter they're meant to go on. I measured the KYB strut rod at 0.786" dia, so we ordered the 20 mm nominal parts from BC Racing. The 20 mm parts slid onto the KYB strut rods with some friction.
BC Racing PN: DST-BT-20
https://shop.bcracing-na.co...-dust-boot-dst-bt-20
BC Racing PN: BMP-STP-20
https://shop.bcracing-na.co...top-front-bmp-stp-20

BC Racing also offers other diameters, so if you have another shock for which you want to find a compatible bumpstop+bellows, they might have something for you:


Their North America website has become difficult to navigate since a recent update. You either have to enter random car models to find the spare parts, or try replacing the nominal diameter with the diameter you're looking for in the URL.

I had to capture the above screenshot from bcracing.com.au.

Bumpstop:


Bellows:


The bellows is kind of short, but at normal ride height I think it will be long enough to cover most of the shock rod.

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For the upper spring perches, here's how I did things.

I took a new strut plate (KYB), I cut out the center section (containing the rubber bushing), I welded the centering sleeve, and I tack-welded the three M8 mounting screws:


The three M8 screws need to be centered within their holes. I wrapped strips of paper around the screws to take up the space.

In retrospect, it may have been easier to simply get some custom plates laser-cut, but I decided to modify the KYB parts instead.

Initially, the 11-gauge 2.5" exhaust pipe wouldn't fit inside the springs.
Initial diameter: 2.505"
After turning: 2.480"
Sleeve length: 3/4"

The centering sleeve is welded with a bead on its inside diameter:


An unmodified strut plate is dropped onto the custom upper spring perch:


I decided to keep these two parts separate as in a stock Fiero. This way, when the rubber bushing wears out, my friend isn't married to me; he can simply buy an off-the-shelf replacement strut plate.

Here is the assembled unit:


We have yet to put these coilovers on his car; that is the next step.

[This message has been edited by pmbrunelle (edited 07-23-2021).]