I have an 87GT 5-speed., that I was totally restoring. Last night I finally took off the rear bumper and to my disappointment, I found the frame rails were past the point of me wanting to repair them (yes, I started the restoration in the front., lesson learned).
Since I only have one GT...I want to pull the entire car apart and put it on one of my others( Everything ) . Before I actually start the transfer, the donor car will be stripped to nothing and rebuilt. That way it will be perfect!
The other 3 fieros that may become the donor are

1) 1984SE 2m4 converted 5-speed, totally rust free! Im not sure what will fit and what wont fit on this one. Having the rust free body would make a great starting point. If I can use this one, the doors will stay on it, because I heard they are different than the 87GTs, also they have power windows. Will I have a problem attaching a cradle from either an 86 2.5 or 87GT to the 84SE

2) 1986 2m4 5-speed. More than likely , the easiest to swap...but only if I have conflicts with the other two.

3) 1988 2m4 auto. This is the one Id rather use because of the upgrades to the suspension and brakes. Will I have a problem putting in the 2.8, where it now only has the 2.5 ?

So.....this has been bugging me since I found the severe rust problem. I really need help, pros and cons....the good and the bad... what would you people do?
Time is not a factor. One last question...I dont like the looks of the cradle in the GT either...I have a spare 86 cradle that had a 2.5 on it...what does it take to bolt on the 2.8.

Thanks for the help....in advance and a picture porfolio on the rebuild will be posted...and the rust!

John

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Personally I'd build on the 88 for several reasons.

The first being the better suspension / brakes like you mentioned.
The second is the 87 electrical system is the most compatible with the 88 electrical system ( your 87 engine harness will plug right in and work.)
The third it's an 88

Your 87 fuel tank with theV6 pump in it is a direct swap in the 88, the cruise wiring is the same, just use the jumper ( from the 87) under the shift / console skeleton and plug it in the 88.

The v6 coolant hoses will match up perfectly to the 88's undercar coolant tubes. You do not need to swap out the fuel lines from the tank to the motor on the 88 as they are the same as V6 cars.

You will need to make 2 simple modifications to use the V6 in your 88 . The first is that you will need to cut off the automatic transaxle mounting plate on the 88 cradle, the second is you will have to move 1 pin in the C-500 connector for the starter solenoid.

The body and interior is a direct swap on which ever car you use.

Hopefully your 88 is rust free.

If you do the swap on the 88 and need any help, LMK, there are a few other things you need to swap from the 87 onto the 88, but these will apply to which ever chassis you use also.

My 88 T-Top GT 5 spd is built from a 87 GT on a 88 4 banger auto.

I did my swap in 3 days, but I tend to work a lil quicker than most.

[This message has been edited by jelly2m8 (edited 02-11-2004).]

Yup. Do the 88. For all the reasons that Jelly said.

If you're going to retain your A/C, be sure to get the pressure switch and associated wiring from the front compartment of the GT. The pressure switch is screwed to one of the shrader valves on the side of the dryer canister. The switch wiring is part of the windshield wiper/heater fan harness. Just grab the whole harness.
88 coupes had a different type of A/C system that replaced the switch with a wire jumper. That jumper will allow the V-6 compressor to run even if there is no refrigerant in the system, turning your compressor into a doorstop in short order. Don't ask how I know this.

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Raydar
88 3.4 coupe.

Coming soon...
88 Formula, presently under the knife.

Alright, with that said..I will use the 88 as a donor, now I can get into a little more detail about the swap. The 88 already has AC in it, but my 87GT did not. So I wont have to swap that in. I do however want to learn more about the pressure switch Raydar spoke about...

quote be sure to get the pressure switch and associated wiring from the front compartment of the GT. The pressure switch is screwed to one of the shrader valves on the side of the dryer canister. The switch wiring is part of the windshield wiper/heater fan harness. Just grab the whole harness. 88 coupes had a different type of A/C system that replaced the switch with a wire jumper. That jumper will allow the V-6 compressor to run even if there is no refrigerant in the system, turning your compressor into a doorstop in short order.

Maybe when the time comes I can find one here.

The 88 will start stripped. i will strip the chassis down. no rust on the 88 that cant be cut and a new peice welded in. I am going to repaint everything...including everything that you cant see. Might as well go for perfection.

jelly2m8 How perfect can this be..you did the same thing as I am doing minus the T-Top install. I will be asking alot of questions. I hope you can help me, but since I dont want to flood my brain with knowledge, Ill wait till the time comes. Thank you for that option.

In the last two days ,after work mind you, Ive stripped every body panel off the GT and proceeded to remove as much as I can remember...getting them prepped for repaint.

quote you will have to move 1 pin in the C-500 connector for the starter solenoid.

when the time comes, I'll ask for more info on this, If you dont mind.

Ill post some pictures in a bit. John aka...someone starting one heck of a new project!

[This message has been edited by fiero67 (edited 02-11-2004).]

You can PM me or email me anytime you need help John, I have both the 87 and 88 helms manuals when you need to know exactly any wiring.

BTW, my 88 coupe had T-Tops in it, musta been the weirdest optioned Fiero I've seen, all it had was an automatic transaxle, Air conditioning, and T-Tops.

Thank You Jelly! Cant give you another + .

So here is the horror I faced when i removed the rear facia...

You can see the frame rail damage...The holes are there from my hand! Just pushed on through.
Here is a side shot...

I went and checked the 88 today after jelly asked me if it was rust free...and to my surprise..there isnt any rust on it.....anywhere, besides surface rust...the battery box is also all there....go figure.
So ill start a rebuild and try to update it as the work progresses! I hope some of my knowledge will help others or at least amuse someone.
Here is my donor...

I know the picture is a little dark, but the next few months the outlook may look the same....
Cant wait till spring!!!

John,

My swap was not nearly as elaborate as Jelly's. All I did was swap an 88 V-6 automatic into an 88 automatic coupe, but if I can help with anything, let me know.

You donor looks good!
Silver or white would have been my first two choices, if I had had an option. Therefore, my cars are bright red and black.

[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 02-12-2004).]

Thank you Radar, I will be needing to talk to you about the AC stuff and maybe a few other things. Thanks for that option as well. By the way you write, you probaly could do alot more than you have.
I wont be able to do this complete swap and rebuild if it werent for people like you guys....and for all of the people that didnt respond, I sure could use your advice as well. I am doing a total swap so if anyone knows of anything they might want to share with me, please do. I will continue to update when i can..so keep checking back.

This will be my official thread of my progress....
Here is a mod I think Im the only one that has it...gotta love the dremil !!!

I dremiled out a slot on the inside of the door handle area and installed this light . Its from the door panel off my 92 olds 98 Regency.It lights up the back side of the door handle! This is the beginning to a complete relighting of the interior.

I'd suggest stripping your 88, meaning removing the body, stripping the interior and dropping the drivetrain , and cleaning and doing anything to your chassis/ suspension before you start swapping, from there I'd part out the 87. At that point you should be familiar with both the similarities and differences between the 2 cars.

With having the 88 stripped and ready for swapping, you can remove any wiring and components directly from the 87 and put them right in the 88, this will aid in knowing exactly where something goes.

I'd do the interior work such as any electricial changes ( sub woofer, cruise wiring,shift cables, adding the clutch and brake pedals, etc ) first.

Once I had had those systems in place I would work on the external systems, such as swapping the radiator, adding the clutch line, swapping gas tanks, etc.

From there I would do the engine / transaxle swap, at this point, I'd have it ready to drop in, hook up and get it running.

Then I'd add the fastback rear light wiring, the filler panels for the trunk area, and then finish off with putting the body on and installing the interior last.

Thats basically the method I use. I believe the best plan of attack is to build the car from the inside out.

[This message has been edited by jelly2m8 (edited 02-12-2004).]

That is the way Im doing it...
So, now I must start the dissassembly of the 88... This should be fun. After everything is removed...my dad has a car spinner that mounts to the frame rails so that I can spin the car to work on all sides. Its quite nice.
Wish me luck! John

While skimming anoher post, I had another thought.

The decklid tension springs on the 88 coupe will not hold up a fastback decklid with a wing on it. So you will have to swap those out. Good time to do that is when the engine is out of the car, and you can get in there and man handle those 'mofos in place.

[This message has been edited by jelly2m8 (edited 02-15-2004).]

Jelly, thanks for hanging on ...
Im lucky in that way, neither cars have a spoiler. Im going to get one when money allows, so I can buy that and struggle with it at that time.
What im trying to figure out basically, is the cross referencing the wiring harness.

I have to replace all of the engine harness and the rear tailight harness, right?

As far as electrical...The 88 is strickly optionless except it has AC and its an auto (two things that my GT doesnt have)... the radiator fan looks the same except the shroud for the fan on the 88...
Im thinking of pulling my entire harness from the 87GT and re wiring in the AC.

The reason im thinking this way...is because of all the Auto stuff on the 88.

The GT has power windows and soon to be locks and then also power mirrors. I know this harness is seperate.... and the aux guage kit.
Do you think it would be easier to splice in the AC into the GT harness or splice into the 88 harness everything else. I hope Im making myself clear...Im having a hard time explaining myself. Thanks for any help.

All the accessories, such as pwr windows, mirrorsand door locks, aux guages, cruise, factory sub are an add on the the interior harness in either car, so those accessiories will just plug into the 88 interior harness.

You defenitly can install the 87 interior harness in the 88, but that will require you to wire in the AC wiring to the 87 harness to keep from having to swap out the heater box to the non-AC one.

One other thing that is missing on the automatic interior wiring harness is the neutral start switch, this requires splicing 2 wires in the 88 harness.

I believe it is quicker and easier to just make the modifications to the 88 harness. If you do, there will be only the neutral start switch to add to the interior harness. You will have to move the starter solenoid switch wire in the C500 connector of the engine harness ( 1 wire ) also.
I think this will be faster and quicker than stripping the interior harness from both cars, and installing the 87 harness in the 88, and then having to wire in the AC wiring.

Raydar mentioned having to add 2 wires to the front compartment wiring harness for the pressure clycling switch on the accumulator/dryer. This is correct for to use AC with a V6 in your 88 car. You could do that, or just swap front compartment harnesses to take care of that issue. You will have to find a HR6 compressor, compressor brackets and the oil pressure switch relocation piping to have AC on your V6. You will also need to add the AC wiring to the engine harness.

You can go either route with the wiring, there's no right or wrong, I'd say go with what ever you feel comfortable with.

I have done the V6 5spd with AC swap into a 88 4 banger auto with AC using a 87 Non AC motor. I can help you wire for wire and be 100% sure it will work. I haven't added AC wiring to any Non AC wired fiero, so I'm not sure exactly what needs to be done there. Either way, I'll help which ever way I can.

The only difference when I did with my swap was that I had a 88 engine compartment harness for a V6 5spd with AC to use.

I have converted several Fiero's from 4 banger to a V6, several from a automatic to a 4 or 5 spd ( or a combination of both ), and I've also added the AC compressor wiring to an existing V6 non-AC engine harness, so I can walk you through any of those scenerios.

I'm going to be down your way ( I think you live in north- eastern Maine ) twice in the spring, I'd like to drop by and check your project out.

Yeah, I live in Blue Hill...that would be near Bar Harbor....you know..where all the folks come from to visite your Island on "the Cat"....lol...all those strap hangers as we like to call them.You are most welcomed to stop in any time you'd like...then I can also give you a tour of my dads rides...he does 50 and 60s car and I do Fieros.
Sounds to me like I will be using the interior harness and just wiring in the rest. Since the 88 is the only one with AC and it is on a 4 banger ,Ill have to cross refernece wiring codes or try to find a harness for a 6 cyl Ac engine harness. whew.....this is fun! Crap, gotta go to work!!!! John