Ok -

I went up to the northern side of Maryland to pick up a free hood from Tony (Rustyformula). It was a short visit, and uneventful. If you know our history, I bet you are surprised that I would go up there. Things have cooled off - and the free hood is a step in the right direction.

We've been talking on and off about the Fiero show he was going to organize in Williamsburg, but it looks like his household move will be in the way trying to make it happen this year, so maybe he will be back next year.

Anyway, I got the hood and cleaned her up so Lildevil can paint it up for me. The paint is chipped off in places, but there is practically no damage to the actual hood fibers/materials. In a couple of small places, the peeling paint is taking a very small amount of the fiber material with it, but there are no cracks that could flex later and cause a problem. So, the hood goes to Lildevil's shop tomorrow.

The Illinois registration should be here tomorrow or Friday, so I can take it to the alignment shop to get things straightened out. KissMySSFiero is selling me the front suspension parts (with poly installed) soon. My dad will bring the parts up from Florida with him early next month - possibly with some new(ish) Eibach shocks and struts if we work that deal out.

I guess I should think about delaying the alignment urtil I get the font susp installed, but as I have stated before - I am not very patient. I want to get this one on the road!

I went out to try o put in the Lambo hings struts yesterday, but those damn Fiero doors are HEAVY! I had to give up after 10 minutes, but I did finally figure out how to get them in - and it is definitely a two-man job.

Oh, I took out the dr side headlight assembly for a rebuild, but remembered that the 87 T-top waiting outside has good lights. I just switched them out. If I decide not to put a Fino/Finale kit on the T-top, I still have the rebuild kit that FieroRumor included in the Formula sale.

So, I'll jack her up to check everything under the front end (thanks Joseph), and once the registration comes in, I'll drive her for a while to make sure all is well with the heating system. If the front end looks good, then I'll probably get the alignment done. I know a local guy who used to work at Pontiac and seems to know Fieros well. He aligned the V8 Fino and it feels good to me.

I have a spare set of rims and old tires with good tread, so maybe I'll pop those on there until I get an alignment. We'll see.

I'll post some pics as soon as the bright red hood is on. I don't know how long it will take him to paint, so no guesses on a finished date yet.

Cheers!

I ruined a set of rear tires in about 400 miles before I had my alignment done. It shaves the tred off of the tires quick.
Joe

It was great reading this thread. Im glad to see fierorumors ole Formula come to life again. You did a great job !!! I actually went out to the garage and started pulling my engine apart for a rebuild after seeing this thread. I guess that POR-15 photo will follow me for the rest of my life..lol. That wasnt a good day. Congrads. John

quote Originally posted by fiero67: It was great reading this thread. Im glad to see fierorumors ole Formula come to life again. You did a great job !!! I actually went out to the garage and started pulling my engine apart for a rebuild after seeing this thread. I guess that POR-15 photo will follow me for the rest of my life..lol. That wasnt a good day. Congrads. John

That's right! That pic was a good lesson to everyone. I treat that stuff like nuclear materials when I deal with it now! Ha!

I have a 3800 N/A out in the garage - already mounted on a partial cradle. I'm thinking of throwing it in the T-top outside just to see if it goes.

Thanks again for hte lesson!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by FieroJimmy:


The quick way to tell if it's R-12 or R-134a is to look at the highside and lowside ports in the front compartment. If they are threaded on the outside, it's R-12, if they are stepped, but not threaded it's 134a.

Well i just find out that my A/C was updated with that info

[This message has been edited by Robert 2 (edited 03-27-2008).]

So, Lildevil has the hood and may be done with it by next weekend.

I'm expecting the registration tomorrow. Wahoo!

I got some 2" exhaust clamps for the tips. They will go on tomorrow. I did notice that the driver's side tips are against the bumper, so maybe that is where my noise is coming from.

More to come...

Well, no good news.

The engine appears to be bad afterall. Oil pressure sucks as you can see here.

https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/090516.html

Well, I went ahead and sealed a deal on a 1,000-mile Jasper 3.4 engine. The engine was installed on the guy's Camaro, then he turned around and put it in a ditch. I have to take the whole car. It's a salvage title. He is giving me receipts for the engine install.

He says it only has 1,000 miles since the dealer installed it. The car has been sitting for two years and still starts up.

I imagine I can sell some of the Camaro parts since just the front bumper appears to be ruined - and the bent radiator support brace is part of the reason for the salvage title. Repairs would have cost $6k. I think the tires/wheels are new, too.

Did I mention that I got the whole car for $500? Now to go buy a starter relocation kit at the Fiero Store!

Could add the 7730 and DIS while you have it out again.

quote Originally posted by mtownfiero: Could add the 7730 and DIS while you have it out again.

I tried doing a search on this. It sounds like a lot of work to get the DIS working. Does Darth FIero sell a kit yet?

That sucks

That's a lot of labor to throw away. On the up side, if you part the Camaro, you should make more than $500, so the 3.4 is sorta free.

Further up side, none of the cradle bolts should be rusted.

Do you know anyone who wants to do an F-Body interior?

quote Originally posted by FieroJimmy: That sucks That's a lot of labor to throw away. On the up side, if you part the Camaro, you should make more than $500, so the 3.4 is sorta free. Further up side, none of the cradle bolts should be rusted. Do you know anyone who wants to do an F-Body interior?

Yeah - that's how I got the wife to agree. We can make back most of the initial cost.

I'll have to look up F-body installs. That's an idea.

Yes - ha. The cradle bolts should nearly fall out this time! I'll be an expert before long!

darth doesnt make a kit yet and im not sure how hard the DIS is, could just do it and keep the distributor.

I'll pick up the Camaro tomorrow.

It sounds like he started it every two months or so to keep the seals moist. It's had the same oil for the last two years, so I will take a good look underneath while I have the oil pan off to be replaced with the Fiero oil pan.

I have too much going on to think about a Camaro interior install, so I have posted a thread for those parts for sale.

More to come!

I've been out of town and in bad weather, but the cars finally came out of their cave today. I posted some pics at https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/070851.html, but here are a couple shots.

I'll be at Carlisle on Saturday and NOPI Nationals at MIR on Sunday, so while this will be a car-weekend, I won't get to work on removing the 3.4 from the Camaro.

I've had two other people ride and listen to the Formula and we still believe that the knock is not the engine. I'll put some shims where the exhaust is close to the cradle and take her for a short ride to see if that is the problem. More to come!

The car looks great! Glad you were able to bring her back to life!

Glad to know that your engine is ok

It's not certain, but I'll let you know when I know for sure. I did drive it quite a bit the other day and the sound did not get louder.

Funny thing was that FieroRumor told me about the "88 Gas Gauge Problem" when I bought it but I forgot. When I took my nephew out for a drive on Sunday, we ran out of gas. When it happened, I immediately thought that I was wrong about the knock and it was about to blow through the block. When I realized that there was no smoke whatsoever, my dad suggested gas. I had already done the walk-of-shame to get home -- past my neighbor with the MR2's. Dohh!

At least I drove it back home before he got back in the house! How embarrassing! I don't think my nephew is conviced to buy a Fiero, though...

It's been a while, but I finally got the 1,500-mile Jasper remanufactured 3.4 out of this 94 Camaro in my garage. Wahoo! She looks sweet!

I'm still wondering about the Formula's engine knock because the car has been driven another 15-20 miles and the sound still only happens when the car is under load - in gear. When I was messing with the timing/distro cap and wires, I heard the knock while the car was in neutral, but when I replaced the cap/rotor (and used a set of old wires), the knock could only be produced under load again. (Time to replace the wires now, huh?)

Someone suggested checking the EGR - saying that it could cause a knock, but I need to figure out how to check it. Perhaps I should put a flat plate in place of the EGR and see what happens before I pull the engine...

Anyway, if I do end up replacing the engine, I will start a new thread and link it from here. At least I will have all the hard stuff done - like replacing the bad cradle/suspension and other crap in the back.

I am also buying KissMySSFiero's front poly'd suspension, so that is next.

More to come!

I got his seat covers Monday
Joe

Heh, Saxman! I just caught this thread and just finished reading and looking with awe and concern. After seeing your craddle in the beginning, I'm thinking damn mine probably looks like that now... I have an '88 GT and have owned it for 13 out it's 20 year existance. I'm the 2nd owner and it's always been a New England car (which is hell on any classic car). It was bought in RI new and I bought it from the previous owner in NH back in 1995. My original engine blew its bearings back in '96. I too replaced it with an '87 motor (62K miles on it). Then in 2001 I had antifreeze in my oil pan... I trashed that motor and put in a brand new block for it's 3rd and current motor. 2001 is also when it ceased to be my daily driver.

Here (1st motor swap) she is in intensive care at a dealership in Manchester, NH in July 1996 (thank god my uncle did the work):


After going through your thread, I'm afraid to even lift up my trunk carpet... But you have one HUGE advantage I don't; A GARAGE. Hard to be a car enthusist when you own a condo

Your Formula looks great! And great job!

------------------
=-Eric the Dread

1988 Fiero GT 2.8L V6
2001 Grand Prix GTP SC3.8L V6

Thanks, Eric! The reward comes when I can drive it 3-4 days a week!

3 engines for yours - I feel your pain. It's a good thing the labor is so theraputic or I would be an alcoholic by now

Enjoy the ride! I can't wait!

I just got the starter relocated on the 3.4 - you can see it at https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/092962.html

Things went very smooth. Now I need some gaskets (valve covers, water pump, timing cover and oil pan) and Rodney's 1988 A/C bracket so I can really get things moving!

quote Originally posted by Saxman: In MD, they don't even break out the JB Weld. They just tell you they fixed it without ever touching it! The Waldorfians don't even say, "Thank you." when they screw you over because their parents taught them that they are degrading themselves when they say that... I can't remember the last time I had great service anywhere in the Waldorf area. Oh yeah, in the last 5 years, there is 1 guy at Advance Auto and Gary Epp does excellent Pontiac work out of his own shop in La Plata. (sorry about the rant. I got cut off as the other "person" was looking right in my eyes yesterday. The people around here have gotten to me this week. I guess I should just stay in my garage - or form a club with bmwguru so we can sit around and complaing about how sh**ty peope treat others these days. )

i hear ya man, try working in parts in laurel....
id be happy getting a customer who speaks english let alone says thankyou...

quote Originally posted by hookdonspeed: i hear ya man, try working in parts in laurel.... id be happy getting a customer who speaks english let alone says thankyou...

Laural? That's not far at all. Let me know when you are working on your 3.4. Found any leads yet? I'll keep an eye out for ya...

Hey Saxman! E-mail some pics of the Interior at bluebird_of_fire@comcast.net My 86 GT could use a refresh. I'll be back in Maryland Aug 9th (Last time i'm over here!) I'll buy em' from you.

quote Originally posted by Saxman: Laural? That's not far at all. Let me know when you are working on your 3.4. Found any leads yet? I'll keep an eye out for ya...

we deal w/ glory days, beltsville, greenleaf, and brandywine salvage yards, not to mention atk, mid-atlantic, and RMP reman engine comapanys. i could probly buy a core block off any of our rebuilders or a cheap used from the yards, i just dont got the $ for it atm, and figuring i just got this fiero, theres some stuff i wana fix on it before i even think about any upgrades.

know anywhere thats highering in MD? i could realy use a better job... lol

quote Originally posted by SATX: Hey Saxman! E-mail some pics of the Interior at bluebird_of_fire@comcast.net My 86 GT could use a refresh. I'll be back in Maryland Aug 9th (Last time i'm over here!) I'll buy em' from you.

Sorry, SATX - I sold the rest of the Camaro for what I bought the ENTIRE car for - Wahoo!! I only have engine-related parts except for the hood scoops.

Hooked - I don't know of anyone hiring around here. I do know that Baretta is hiring machinist-type people to build guns. My neighbor is on the exec team over there. Just let me know your skills with metal and I may be able to get you in.

I think you have to be in the good-ol-boy club to get in at Ransom motors, but Brandywine seems to have some locals working there - it's bigger. Both are owned by the same company, but Ransom just has a different crowd behind the desk. They're also the only yard that has Fieros...

ah, i have no machinist skills, all ive ever done was IT and parts lol...
i could build you a linux server, or tell you the part number on ford starter selinoid without thinking :P

as for brandywine, i can just call the wholesale desk, they will goto their other yard for us. they want my companys buisness prettybad, were one of the only "parts" stores(we have 11 stores) that will get someone a used part if they ask for it.

aftermarket, dealer, used, body panels, engine, we wont tell anyone no...

[This message has been edited by hookdonspeed (edited 06-29-2008).]

quote Originally posted by hookdonspeed: aftermarket, dealer, used, body panels, engine, we wont tell anyone no...

Sounds like someone I know. At least that's how I got her to marry this ugly dude. Luckily, she still can't say, "No," to me, even after 13 years! (unless it is Fiero-related)

lol... nice, ask her to involve her sister, see if she says no to that? :P

quote Originally posted by hookdonspeed: lol... nice, ask her to involve her sister, see if she says no to that? :P

None of her sisters look as good as she does. Check out the first post on the "Girls without Fieros" page.

man, i wont be replaying for a while, i never seen that thread before, i got lots of peoples gf to ogle for a while... :X
lol j/k

Yeah - it should keep you busy for a while. Warning: watch out for Lyen Wong! She is incredible!

yea, totaly.... uhm, but i think we just compleatly hijacked your thread? lol
anyways, i did a post on the w/o fieros, and i think ima crash for 2night.

I got the rear up on jack stands and started loosening the exhaust clamps on the driver's side of the cat. converter. I remembered that the joint there was not a real tight one when I put her back together. I guess I am hoping against all odds that this is where the noise is coming from. I'll disconnect the bottom of the Y-pipe and see if I can wiggle it. I guess I really need to unbolt the Y-pipe at the manifolds to move it enough so I can really shove it back into the cat. converter.

Yes, I am hoping against hope that this is the source of my noise. I just wish there was something I could wrap around this area to see if it really is the problem - instead of trying to get to those damn exhaust bolts at the bottom of each manifold. Perhaps just wrapping some radiator hose around that joint, then clamping it down will be enough to find out if that's the real problem. I won't need to run it long to find out...

If that's not the problem, then I bought the gaskets I need to do the 3.4 install (except for the upper intake gasket). I just hope I can save that 3.4 for a car I want to keep forever! (Sorry, FieroRumor - the welded-in scissor doors are keeping me from wanting to keep this beautiful car. I just need more door swing to get these 76" in and out of the driver's seat!)

I set the timing around 8 below or so, but no change. So, I drained the oil and guess what? It is the most beautiful metallic textured oil I have ever seen! I took a vid of it out in the sunshine. Ain't she purty!?



Oh well. Time for that 3.4. Here we go again!!

So...

I started to remove the cradle tonight. I started at 8:30 and had everything disconnected and ready to set on the furniture dolly by 11. I even got the cradle bolts all loose - all in 2 1/2 hours. Not bad if I must say. Another half hour and I could have had it all rolled out from under the car!

I'll do that tomorrow and start pulling the engine off. I'm hoping that I can just pull the engine since it is a pain in the ass to get that auto trans back off - then on again. I imagine I'll find some reason that I have to take it off first, though...

More to come. Now that the Formula will have a new 3.4, I guess I might as well keep it. I'm also thinking of putting in the rebuilt Getrag since I have all the parts (except for the pedal and clutch cable). Might as well improve the mileage as much as I can.

If anyone has a thought on whether I should upgrade the cam and other inexpensive things, please let me know. I'd like as much umpff as possible, but the Fiero funds are limited. Thanks!

if your trying to pull a little more outa the 3.4, but dont want to "all out it" put a medium cam, and a set of rockers in it, maybe do a little porting, some headers, and get a chip tuned for the 3.4, should give u a few extra HP and the cam will give it a better sound