So I found this mess when taking a look under my fiero before starting my 4.3 swap and found "car cancer" it looks bad but I've taken a screw driver to it beating, stabbing, scratching and prying at it and all I'm getting is dust not flakes or chunks. I'm getting a quote for sand blasting and rust repair right now. I love this car, it's my first ever car I promised I'd never give up on it like it's past owners and give it a second chance, but I'm scared it's gonna be bad and I'll have no choice. Looks like surface rust on the frame. I wish that guy would've told me or let me check the VIN first. There was none shown in the listing when I saw it and no history or undercarriage pictures were provided.
Welcome to the Forum. The best source for information on the internet. You picked a good car but, if it is your first car, you are young. The Fiero is low to the ground and can be hard to inspect without a lift. A trusted shop* could have given you a insightful evaluation for a fair price. Money well spent.
No insult but you could have seen the VIN# before you handed him your cash. You, being in Arizona, most likely have nothing to worry about. No need for sand blasting. Wire brush the spots you are concerned about and repaint.
Your pictures are not viewable. Again, no insult. I can't post them and have been here for awhile.
I agree, if that is as bad as it is I would not sand blast. I would remove any parts that are in the way to gain access to the area that need to have the rust removed. Wire brush well, use a rust reformer, check Eastwood products or I like Pro 15 that will encapsulate the rust. Then use your chose of paint to go over that. Hope this helps.
Your biggest concern is behind the rear wheelwell covers. Remove the rear wheels, then loosen the wheel well liners so you can peek inside. Here are the bad and good examples. If your car looks like the first picture, the car is no good without serious reconstruction. If it looks like the 2nd pic, you're perfect. Your photos seem to only have surface rust but check the rear frame as I said before you do anything else.
Your biggest concern is behind the rear wheelwell covers... Your photos seem to only have surface rust but check the rear frame as I said before you do anything else.
I don't suppose the rear upper frame rails were checked for rust before purchasing this Fiero?
I'm not saying that this is necessarily going to be the situation here, but 30+/- year old cars often have frames and/or suspension that are completely rotted away.
Don't start putting money into this car until it's been determined that it was actually worthwhile buying. Not trying to be a buzz-killer, but so many people have come through here over the years and realized too late that they bought a fine "looking" Fiero (because the body panels don't rust) only to discover it's a basket-case under the pretty facade.
I don't suppose the rear upper frame rails were checked for rust before purchasing this Fiero?
I'm not saying that this is necessarily going to be the situation here, but 30+/- year old cars often have frames and/or suspension that are completely rotted away.
Don't start putting money into this car until it's been determined that it was actually worthwhile buying. Not trying to be a buzz-killer, but so many people have come through here over the years and realized too late that they bought a fine "looking" Fiero (because the body panels don't rust) only to discover it's a basket-case under the pretty facade.
[/QUOTE] Either way I'm fully prepared and ready to repair. I promised I'd fix this car. I'm going to fix it. Im gonna start sandblasting it soon after I strip the body panels off.
Either way I'm fully prepared and ready to repair. I promised I'd fix this car. I'm going to fix it. Im gonna start sandblasting it soon after I strip the body panels off.
Well then, kick some ass Just keep us up to date with the progress
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------------------ Original Owner of a Silver '88 GT Under 'Production Refurbishment' @ 136k Miles
The PFF server has a maximum width {1800 pixels} so please convert {edit} your images if they are bigger than that
Just to clarify, the maximum width allowed here is 1920 pixels, and the maximum file size for each image should be no larger than 2 MB.
The biggest problem with the images that the OP is trying to upload/post is that they're HEIC as opposed to JPG. The simplest solution for her is to change her phone's camera settings so that its images are stored as JPGs.
Holy crap... what am I looking at here? I know the upper frame-rail is completely gone... but it looks like the entire chassis as collapsed in on itself, and the spring perch is now like over a foot higher than the rest of the car, am I seeing that correctly?
What happened to the lower frame-rail, did that collapse too? There's a lower frame rail that also supports the spring perch, and should entirely prevent that from happening. That looks absolutely crazy.
There is a thread about rails and fabricating replacements in the archives which I used on an '87 GT I restored. It was quite the endeavor time wise but worth the effort IMO. I braced everything before removing anything so it would not 'settle' or move. I tacked the replacement rails in place and had a professional welder stop by and finish weld everything. If I can find the pictures I'll post them, it came out very nicely but over 70 hrs of labor was involved, albeit I'm very methodical and work slowly. Even with bracing I had to pull both sides inwards with a frame puller, it was off after welding. Last I checked the new owner had put over 20k miles on it without any issues and the alignment shop had no issues.
Holy crap... what am I looking at here? I know the upper frame-rail is completely gone... but it looks like the entire chassis as collapsed in on itself, and the spring perch is now like over a foot higher than the rest of the car, am I seeing that correctly?
What happened to the lower frame-rail, did that collapse too? There's a lower frame rail that also supports the spring perch, and should entirely prevent that from happening. That looks absolutely crazy.
The car got hit in a parking lot, and that was the straw that broke the camel's back, literally. The strut tower detached from the lower rail. I made a whole thread on the repair. After it was repaired, I drove the car from New Jersey back to northern Michigan, and shortly after that I did ~10 laps of Michigan International Speedway at a sustained speed of 94MPH without issue.
I don't suppose the rear upper frame rails were checked for rust before purchasing this Fiero?
I'm not saying that this is necessarily going to be the situation here, but 30+/- year old cars often have frames and/or suspension that are completely rotted away.
Don't start putting money into this car until it's been determined that it was actually worthwhile buying. Not trying to be a buzz-killer, but so many people have come through here over the years and realized too late that they bought a fine "looking" Fiero (because the body panels don't rust) only to discover it's a basket-case under the pretty facade.
[/QUOTE] Also the warning was really late I found the forum 3 days after the purchase.
The car got hit in a parking lot, and that was the straw that broke the camel's back, literally. The strut tower detached from the lower rail. I made a whole thread on the repair. After it was repaired, I drove the car from New Jersey back to northern Michigan, and shortly after that I did ~10 laps of Michigan International Speedway at a sustained speed of 94MPH without issue.
Man, that's some amazing work to bring it back up to the quality (better even) than what was originally there. I'm impressed you even went through the effort to fix that after that much rot. Very impressive.
quote
Originally posted by Vintage-Nut: Another old saying: “Where there is a will, there’s always a way!"
Shoot, there's a girl I dated once many years ago who kept saying that to me... in reference to affording trips and vacations for her. Haha...
Just keep us up to date with the progress
