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Fiero??? Does it handle?


hpfiend

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Hey all,

 

My parents swear the porsche 914 is the best handling car in stock form they have ever driven due to its mid engined layout. They have had audis, 924, 911s, vettes, and autoxed in the porsche club for years... however as they have such a rust problem I am afraid of them...

 

the fiero also has a mid-engined layout but read on wiki that it had chevette parts on it and it was not engineered to take advantage of its layout?

 

I know there are a few of you on here that have them or have had them- just curious as to how they feel in stock form with fresh parts...

 

Thanks!

Andrew

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Check It, I bought a Fiero Formula in 88, back then it would handle with anything. 88 was the best year for Fiero handling due to some chassis tweaks, including longer control arms on the front. Keep an eye for this on the front wheels of the 88 GT's and Formula's. They had a more positive offset than the previous years. These cars were pretty heavy on the understeer, but could be rotated with a little drop throttle oversteer. This car was a great trainer car for future Porsche 911 owners. Their handling traits were almost identical.
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cool- so an 88 fiero gt or formula will run with a porsche 914 eh?

 

Are they problematic cars? Rust issues? Don't see very many at the scca classes is why I ask--- bunch of 914s.

 

Spaceghost - was your 88gt suspension stock to take cloverleafs like that?

 

v8fiero what have you done with the suspension on your 85?

 

hmm- I am intrigued.

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Hey all,

 

My parents swear the porsche 914 is the best handling car in stock form they have ever driven due to its mid engined layout.

Incorrect, it is the best handling car they've ever had because:

-It weighs nothing

-Its balanced

-Its suspension is properly designed.

All the things that a Fiero is not. :p

The Fiero was a "Parts bin" car meant for marketing and not for handling. You have to get lucky to find a good GT. If you want something that drives like a 914 that isn't a Porsche, get a Toyota MR2 Spyder:

http://www.motorsportscenter.com/uploads/mr2_a.jpg

Available under $10g. I think they're ugly, but I don't care about that when I'm driving them.

Turbo it if you want to go faster.

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Incorrect, it is the best handling car they've ever had because:

-It weighs nothing

-Its balanced

-Its suspension is properly designed.

All the things that a Fiero is not. :p

The Fiero was a "Parts bin" car meant for marketing and not for handling. You have to get lucky to find a good GT. If you want something that drives like a 914 that isn't a Porsche, get a Toyota MR2 Spyder:

http://www.motorsportscenter.com/uploads/mr2_a.jpg

Available under $10g. I think they're ugly, but I don't care about that when I'm driving them.

Turbo it if you want to go faster.

 

My best friend has one a silver MR2 Spyder (but the one that's a bit older than the one you have pictured - the front end looks much better on the earlier Spyders). Anyway, he has a 2zz swap (same motor in the Lotus), PowerFC, supercharger going on in Feb, lowered, etc. Freakin thing is an absolute blast to drive. Revs to just about 9grand and without the supercharger runs low 13's. Even I fit in it without being snug and I'm over 6' tall and a big guy. It's an adult gokart and people are always asking him about his "Porsche". lol Obviously, not an cheap as a Fiero, but I'd choose the MR2 anyday and I've owned a Fiero (a very, very long time ago.) Basically, the mr2 spyder is the poor man's Elise.

 

As far as the 1st and 2nd gens go, the first gen, if you can find one, was also an absolute blast. Especially, the supercharged one. The second one grew quite a bit in size and weight and though still fun and having quite a capable motor, was nowhere as nimble as the 1st and 3rd gens.

 

ON another note, there's been a yellow/blk rimmed Fiero near my house in decent condition for a very long time. If anyone's interested, I believe it's on Klondike Rd, E/NE of Delaware or about. I can get an address the next time I roll through there.

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sweet- I am getting excited now-

 

please let me know how far off 36 on klondike- my parents live out that way.

 

I may have found my next project. Maybe not the most practical approach but between the two cars (my 5.0 and a mr2) I would have an awesome straight line car and an awesome car for the twists as well- or I still could get the c5z and have both in one but almost 30 grand used is tough to swallow when I am used to no car payments. dunno what the wife will think though of 3 maybe 4 cars (with a xj cherokee) with a two car garage- may end up with the Z after all...

 

-

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hah benz guy- yeah I have looked that way as well- thats actually how we found out about renegade hybrids and who we bought the conversion kit from to put the 4.3L Vortec V6 into our 1977 924. The "kit" was an absolute POS and we basically had to start from scratch- Turned out alright but all of the "fun" was gone. No more swaps for me- I can hotrod what was factory designed to be in there. I have looked at a few LS1 240SXs that are already done and ls1 rx7s to boot but there is almost always some compromise with a swapped engine.

 

That said, I would like to put a 3.2L or even one of the newer 3.6 or 3.8L flat sixes in a 914 using the factory 911S parts they did with the 914-6 but it would cost a fortune in a car that rusts faster than you can drive it and would be harder to recover costs in than my highly modified 5.0 mustang. The 914 my parents had, the torsion bar broke sitting in the garage as it rusted all the way through- this was in 1976 and it was only a few years old. Don't even try to jack it up without some spare parts on hand.

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my 85 is really alot of stock replacement suspension, aside from poly cradle bushings and engine bushings poly sway bar links and bushings front and rear. Monroe struts and shocks. and eibach springs. I like the car and how is handles, now saying that I have driven some badass cars and this is not that great compared to them. However for what the car is and how much they sold for new, Id say they rock!
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I've had our 88GT down in hocking several times.

The car handles wonderfully. However, I don't possess the nerves (nor skill) to drive it anywhere near its limit. The car has done a few unexpected 180's + and I was very lucky. It doesn't get tail happy, it gets tail stupid and just seems like it swings like a pendulum regardless of what I do. I felt much more stable in the talon ect.

 

Definitely not a car to corner hard on public streets with without LOTS of time behind the wheel.

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As the recovering owner of several Fieros - both street cars and a race prepared ITB car - I can tell you the Fiero has many shortcomings. It's fun to drive on the street, but as a race car, or at the limit, there are many cars that are much better. THe 914 is a neat car, but old German Porsche parts are still expensive, and go to the 6cyl set up and the price can get very high, very fast.

 

Crossle has the MKII MR2, I drove it at the last autocross last year - very nice handling on less than optimal tires. The car has some serious potential that the SCCA has recognized as, if I recall, it is specifically excluded from some of the Street Mod/Street Touring classes. Toyota stuff is relatively cheap and plentiful. Some people seem to think these cars are made of gold - but there are still a few deals to be found if you shop.

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Andrew,

 

My best friends Dad had a 914 in the back of the garage when I was in High School. That thing handled like a GoKart, and we did things in it that would have gotten us killed in any other car.

 

I had another friend who did a Renegade Hybrid V8 swap into a 914, and it was fairly straight forward. That car was Sick.

 

I really regret not buying my friends parents car when they finally sold it a couple of years ago. Even with their flaws, 914's are a hoot.

 

The same friends sister had a first gen MR2. We flogged the shit out of it, and it was just like reliving the days in the 914.

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