Also, a local club member hooked me up with a set of notchback sail panel scoops. I had considered building something similar, to pump some air into the void behind the rear window, and hopefully reduce aero drag a bit. So this was a windfall for me. I should be installing those soon.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 08-24-2017).]
Also, a local club member hooked me up with a set of notchback sail panel scoops. I had considered building something similar, to pump some air into the void behind the rear window, and hopefully reduce aero drag a bit.
You have to get a pic of the back of those up... I'm trying to figure out what you mean - wouldn't that increase drag?
On an otherwise stock Fiero, the sail panel scoops won't be functional. But I modified the rear clip to reduce weight (see Page 2 for details). And I deleted the black triangular panels above the engine grates. So when the scoops are glassed in, there will be a clear pathway through the scoops and the rear clip, into the rear window area. I'd like to think the extra airflow into the rear window area will reduce aero drag a bit. And maybe the extra airflow across the decklid will make the rear spoiler a little more effective. But there are no guarantees.
I haven't settled on a color scheme yet. Although, I'm pretty sure it will be some shade of silver or metallic gray, with black trim. There's an open discussion on the subject in this thread.
I've started installing the sail panel scoops. I ran into a little problem, though. You see, the Fiero's sail panels have a slight curve from top to bottom. But the scoops were flat. So I had to bend them. That involved cutting slits in the outer edges of the scoops, and using clamps to bend them. I then laid down some fiberglass to hold the shape. See photos below.
The next step will be to remove the rear clip, and put in some fiberglass on the underside of the panel, to reinforce the seams where the scoops meet the rear clip.
BTW, I used glass mat with epoxy resin on the outside, but will be using glass cloth (also with epoxy resin) on the underside. The mat on the outside won't cause "print-through" in the surface finish. And the cloth on the underside will reinforce the panel. The epoxy resin adheres to SMC better than polyester resin.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Over the last couple days, I've been laying up fiberglass on the rear clip. The epoxy resin takes a while to harden. So progress is slow.
Meanwhile, I took the opportunity to clean up and paint the frame rails. I also re-routed some of the wiring that crossed over top of the frame rails. The wiring now goes through the frame rail on the driver's side, and underneath it on the passenger side. And all that crummy foam rubber stuff is gone.
oops, I forgot one of the photos
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
The sail panel scoops are done, for the most part. They still have a few minor imperfections, but I'll deal with that soon enough. Here's the "victory shot":
I'm so used to seeing the black sail panels there, that the primer gray looks "wrong". Hmm... maybe I'll paint the scoops black.
Anyway, here are some shots of the backside of the panel. First, you see the scoops shortly after attaching them to the rear clip. I haven't started the fiberglass work on the backside yet.
The rear clip has a bevel molded into it, where the sail panels fit. But with the scoops, that bevel just gets in the way. It also blocks some of the airflow. So I chopped it out. I also chopped out some of the structure underneath, which originally supported the sail panels and trim pieces and stuff. When I was done, the rear clip was basically just a skin. Below, you see the final result.
The air coming in the scoops now has a clear, unobstructed path back to the rear deck. See photo below.
Now if you don't mind, I'm going to relax for a little bit.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Remember those dual hood scoops I talked about on Page 7? Well, I'm finally getting around to installing them. But, there's a twist. I decided to make one modification. Instead of the scoops aiming straight back, I built an angle into them. With both scoops sitting side-by-side, there's a V-shaped notch between them. See photos below.
Here's one last shot of the old hood vent. It's about to go bye-bye.
BYE-BYE!
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
I got the vent scoops glued in. As mentioned earlier, there is a v-shaped gap between them. I had to fill that in with fiberglass. To accomplish that, I attached a piece of thin aluminum sheet to the hood using double-sided tape. Then I laid up fiberglass on the underside.
Here's the top view:
And the underside:
Getting the scoops onto the hood was the easy part. Now everything needs to be blended in and smoothed out.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
I host the photos from a spare computer in my house. But our internet connection has been spotty for the last several months. I think I'll just dump them all into my Photobucket account.
I'll let you all know when the transfer is complete. Sorry for the trouble.
More progress on the dual hood vents. First of all, I fiberglassed them in from the underside. The scoops are blended into the hood. I also built a ledge for the trunk weatherstrip.
Here's another shot, with a fresh coat of primer.
After finishing with the underside, I went to work on the topside. Unfortunately, the Sun set before I could do much. But I at least got some sanding done.
I should be able to finish up the topside tomorrow. *fingers crossed*
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Unfortunately, the matte primer finish is "camouflaging" the contours. Next time I wash the car, I'll try to get a shot of it wet. That should do the trick.
Edit to add: Now I'm thinking of making a split grille in the nose, to match the hood vents. Hmm...
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Actually, I have a piece of hex mesh that I want to use to make some grilles for the hood vents. I'm sick of vacuuming leaves out of the radiator fan housing.
Today, I performed the $100 Brake Upgrade. It actually cost me about $140, though. The upgrade involves replacing the Fiero brake booster with one from a Chevy S10. My Fiero has the Grand Am brakes front and rear, along with the Blazer master cylinder. And while I like the brake setup, the pedal effort is a little too much. The bigger brake booster should remedy that.
Since the pushrod on the Fiero booster is much longer than the one on the S10 booster, it's necessary to chop off part of the Fiero booster's pushrod and attach it to the S10 booster. Below, you see the Fiero booster, with the pushrod chopped.
And here's a shot of the eyelet chopped off the S10 booster. Also notice that I cut threads on the rod, so I could attach the rod from the Fiero booster to it.
Below, you see the rod from the Fiero booster attached to the S10 booster. I cut threads on both rods, and used a coupling nut with jam nuts to hold them together.
The S10 booster is bigger than the Fiero booster, so I had to make some room for it. I had to re-route the clutch hydraulic line, and beat on a small section of the chassis with a hammer to make the necessary space. The photo below shows the area that needed to be pounded in (outlined in green).
And last but not least, here's a shot of the S10 booster installed.
I'm also happy to report that the S10 booster did exactly what I hoped. The brakes are more powerful now. And I don't need to stand on the brake pedal to make a panic stop.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
There isn't much clearance along the side, where I had to beat on the chassis... maybe 1/16" at the smallest point. I know the booster canister deflects under vacuum, but haven't yet had a chance to see what the clearances are like under vacuum.
I decided to do some more work on the fiberglass rear fascia. I had to correct one problem, though. The fiberglass piece was made to fit a fastback, but my Fiero is a notchback. On my Fiero, the tail light section is angled, whereas on the fastback, the tail lights are almost vertical. If I put the fastback fascia on my Fiero, it would look funny.See photo below.
To correct this problem, I made a casting of my original rear fascia, and used it to mold the correct profile into the fiberglass one.
Here you see the top section cut out of the fiberglass fascia.
And finally, the notchback profile molded in.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
THIS is a cool project you've got going on, nice work too! I'll enjoy watching this one and thanks for the tips on the brakes upgrade, I need to do the same. Positive for you!
The old diffuser fascia came off last night. It won't be going back on my Fiero. Say goodbye to the old diffuser fascia, everyone!
Today, I test-fitted the modified rear end ( I don't think I can just call it the decklid anymore ). It took longer than expected, due to interference with the plastic energy absorber. I really did not want to remove the energy absorber, but it caused so many interference issues that I eventually threw in the towel and removed it.
I also had to re-route some of the wiring for the rear lights. For example, the license plate lights swing up with the rear end now. So their wiring had to be routed through the decklid. I also deleted the rear side markers, and mounted the reverse lights (fog lights) to the rear impact beam. Here are a couple photos:
I didn't have enough time to install the lower (diffuser) section. I'll have to do that tomorrow.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Installing the bottom section took longer than expected. But I was able to engineer a mounting arrangement that works to my satisfaction. There's a bracket mounting it to the bottom of the trunk (near the muffler), another mounting it to the impact beam (behind the license plate), and a couple rods holding up the outer ends. I also decided to add a couple alignment pins, to help keep the top and bottom sections lined up with each other. In the photo below, you can see one of the rods holding up the side, with the alignment pin sticking up (it's actually a bolt). The top section has matching holes, with brass bushings.
Here are a couple shots with the rear lid open. If you look closely, you can see the brass bushings in the bottom lip of the lid.
And lastly, a shot of the lid closed. As you can see, there is still plenty of finish work left to do. But at least the body panels are installed and fitted.
I need to make some fins to put in the diffuser, too.
[This message has been edited by Blacktree (edited 09-02-2017).]
Thanks, dude... both for the compliment and the reminder.
Yeah, it is a lot of work. But it's worth every bit.
I may be getting a little ahead of myself here, but I'd like to do something similar to the front end. In other words, the ground effects will be stationary, but everything else will swing up. But... we'll have to see about that.
Nothing really exciting happened today... just a lot of sanding... and filling pinholes... and more sanding.
I did get a prop rod, though. Specifically, I got a hood prop from a mid-80s T-Bird in the salvage yard. The rear end is too heavy for the gas struts I was using to hold up the decklid. And if I get stronger gas struts, they'll probably bend the firewall. Hence the prop rod.
Did I miss somewhere or have you decided what color to paint it?
