WHY FIERO'S SUCK AND THEIR OWNERS HATE US. - Page 8

wagonis · 11-03-2009, 11:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fazed Out

I street raced a dinosaur (I think it was a velociraptor) and beat it because its clutch went out. Therefore, all Fieros need to run a skidpad in tandem with a Ferrari until the music stops. The last one that can't find a space has to drive cross country with the OP riding shotgun for more stories of amazement.

LeePeyton · 11-04-2009, 12:21 AM

and enjoy the fire. last i checked from my best friends dad that sold cars said the fiero was known to catch on fire from bad wiring. sooooo, what evers.

wagonis · 11-04-2009, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeePeyton

and enjoy the fire. last i checked from my best friends dad that sold cars said the fiero was known to catch on fire from bad wiring. sooooo, what evers.

Seriously? I've actually known 5 Fiero owners and while they all complained about constant issues and unreliability, none have ever complained about their cars going on fire. Does your best friends dad who sold cars knows this for a fact or is that an assumption? I've heard of Pintos and F150s catching on fire from getting hit, but never of Fieros going up in flames just for the hell of it.

LeePeyton · 11-04-2009, 06:58 AM

"Officially, production ended because of an internal GM forecast of insufficient future profits due to an expected decrease in overall demand for two-seater sports cars, however this decision was commensurate with heavy media coverage of Fiero engine fires."

Pontiac Fiero - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here's the whole spill if you don't want to click the URL.

Engine fire reputation

Total production of the Pontiac Fiero over all 5 years was 370,168.[4] Out of these numbers, as many as 260 are reported to have had engine fires of some type, depending on the source used.

The Associated Press quoted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as saying it had "...received 148 complaints regarding Pontiac Fieros catching fire including reports of six injuries.... Low levels of engine oil may cause a connecting rod to break, allowing oil to escape and come into contact with engine parts. The oil would catch fire when it contacted the exhaust manifold or hot exhaust components.... David Hudgens, a GM spokesman in Detroit... said, 'If you ran out of oil, and then that coupled with some aggressive driving, perhaps, and maybe not changing the oil very often, you end up with a broken rod, and that's where the connecting rod came in; it is still the owner's responsibility to check the oil.' "[5]

The Pontiac division claimed in a 1988 press release that "GM tests have shown that running these 1984 cars with low engine oil level can cause connecting rod failure which may lead to an engine compartment fire.... Pontiac is aware of 260 fires attributable to the condition, along with ten reported minor injuries."[6]

The larger of the two reported numbers of cars with fires (260) amounts to 0.07% of Fieros produced. The fires affected the 2.5 L engine almost exclusively, and mostly 1984 models (although there may have been additional occurrences after the above reports were published).

There are several possible contributors to Fiero engines catching fire. The primary cause is thought to be a batch of poorly cast connecting rods, produced in GM's Saginaw plant, which failed when the oil level became too low. One theory is that the sports car styling attracted buyers who would drive the car hard, most notably by over-revving the engine. Another factor was the incorrectly listed three-quart oil capacity; the actual oil capacity was 4.5 quarts, but a misprint on dipsticks and in the owner's manuals led to owners using only three quarts, perhaps resulting in a leaky valve cover gasket[clarification needed] which would allow the oil level to decline over time to a dangerously low level. If the proper oil level was not maintained, the bearings could seize, snapping the porous castings of the connecting rods. This could result in a hole being punched in the engine block, allowing oil to spray onto hot exhaust components where it could ignite.

Alternatively, some fires may have been due to the engine wiring harness being located in the center of the engine bay above the exhaust manifold, where the heat could possibly melt and ignite the wiring. The 1984 model had a magnesium grille over this area. In later models, this was improved to some degree with better heat shielding wrapped around the wiring harness.

A third cause might be cracks in the engine block from overtightenening of the head bolts. Some engines developed cracks in the block that would leak coolant and/or oil, sometimes accompanied by broken head bolts directly above the crack. The leak would spray coolant or oil, the latter resulting in fire if sprayed onto the hot catalytic converter or exhaust manifold at the front of the engine compartment.

Most vehicles existing today have been serviced by GM during one of the safety recalls on the car.[citation needed] For the fire-related recall, shields and drip-trays were added to prevent leaking fluids from contacting hot surfaces. The presence of drip shields between the engine block and the exhaust manifold are a clue that the car has been retrofitted. The addition of the longer AC Delco PF51 oil filter and a recalibrated dipstick added extra oil capacity to the oiling system, and enabled running four quarts of oil in the crankcase instead of three, to help prevent oil starvation to the rods. Certain vehicles also had their connecting rods or entire block replaced.

RePete · 11-04-2009, 08:50 AM

I owned a Fiero GT and I would regularly stomp MK1s (never went up against an SC though, that one would have probably kicked my ass as I owned an '89 SC later on & I knew its potential). I knew right away that the engine fires were with the Iron Duke 4 cyclinder junkbox engine (later renamed to the euphemistic Tech IV). But most enthusiasts heard this news word-of-mouth and not from a reliable source. So every time I heard that I just looked at the person delivering the statement as just another unfortunate, ignorant puppet of the media, spreading more urban legend around with their hot air. Such idiots...

The original poster of this thread has misdirected his bile on the Fiero. Yes, it was not a very reliable car (mine had zero problems in the 2 years I owned it though), the interior was strangely laid-out with cheap material, it had a missing 4th gear (1,2,3 were short, then a long 4th gear which was really 5th), one sat on the floor when they drove, it was constructed w/ a lot of Chevette parts until the last model year and the paint on the plastic panels was cheap and cracked easily.

But I learned to drift in that car, it was very neutral handling and was smokin' fast too w/ that sweet revving, torquey V6. The poster should have set his sites on the Cavalier, the Chevette or a dozen other miserable crap cars that GM was selling, not this one. Can anyone imagine an affordable mid-engine attempt from GM these days? Never again, like ever.

And my best bud owned an '85 N/A MK1, I didn't hate him or his ride (though I regularly humiliated him w/ V6 power), I loved his car and bought one not too long after I ditched my Fiero.

LeePeyton · 11-04-2009, 11:03 PM

The last couple of years they made it I think it looked alright. I wasn't trying to out right diss it. Hell, a buddy of mine wants a v6 88 or so. Was just stating

traintech86 · 11-04-2009, 11:51 PM

i am gonna be honest, i look at fiero's as rivals. imho, there are plenty of cars out there that are far worse then the fiero. who knows, if the fiero didn't exist, maybe toyota would have never worked on improving the mk1...

scottohno · 11-09-2009, 12:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyler H

Oh snapz!111!!111! A FULL tank of gas?

So much hate. Don't you know that the MR2 is just a ripoff of the Fiero? The Fiero was out in 84. Plus...I've yet to see a V8 SUCCESSFULLY installed in an MR2. PLUS the Fiero has a composite body. Duh, it's a superior vehicle in every way..

so youre bragging that your pontiac is made out of a lighter material that isnt anywhere near as strong as steel and is still somehow 500lbs heavier? a fiero gt is kinda like a ford taurus SHO... its just a little faster than the grocery getter with 2 more cylinders. same modification. if you want proof of why the mr2 is better consult youtube... here, ill do it for you, side by side comparison

YouTube - MR2 vs Fiero

the only downfall was the price.

scottohno · 11-09-2009, 12:23 AM

however, i do think fieros were decent competition. without them we would all still be in 112 hp NA models like me

mr24u · 11-16-2009, 10:24 PM

Umm, yeah, not all those Fiero's are slouches...

YouTube - FIero V8

Sounds pretty impressive. Of course when that guy first started the car I wasn't sure if it was a man or woman...

wagonis · 11-17-2009, 03:20 PM

Nice! A Vette engine in a Fiero. I wonder who will be the first to try the ZR1 engine in the Fiero. Can you imagine that beast?

karl · 11-22-2009, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeePeyton

and enjoy the fire. last i checked from my best friends dad that sold cars said the fiero was known to catch on fire from bad wiring. sooooo, what evers.

i've seen more pics of MR2s burned to the ground than fieros.

i like fieros. they're cheap and they're fun and they have plenty of potential. i'm always amazed at the reasons people give for hating cars that aren't MR2s.

Medusa · 11-23-2009, 01:07 AM

Wow.

Just...wow. I think i dropped a few IQ points reading this thread. Specifically, myMR2chaseCops's posts were so devoid of any rational thoughts that I could not help but slowly insert a barbecue skewer through my eyeball and into my brain.

Thank you to the few people who can actually admit that MR2's aren't the single greatest car ever created in the history of automobiles, who can admit that Fiero's can be made into pretty awesome cars, and that their owners are not all inbred redneck fanboys who act like they just walked off the set of F&F.

Personally, I'm not that big of a Fiero fan. Mostly because my mom had one and the engine caught fire due to overtorqued head bolts. But that doesn't mean I have to stoop to the level of the OP and be a complete numbskull.

I remember hearing a quote somewhere, and I couldn't help but think of it while reading this thread - Don't try to argue with the stupid. They'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

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Real Fiero Tech • View topic - MR2 FROUM WHY FIERO'S SUCK AND THEIR OWNERS HATE US.	This thread	Refback	11-04-2009 09:46 AM
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Real Fiero Tech • View topic - MR2 FROUM WHY FIERO'S SUCK AND THEIR OWNERS HATE US.	This thread	Refback	11-02-2009 08:07 PM

11-04-2009, 12:21 AM	#142 (permalink)
LeePeyton Building Motor from Hell Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tennessee/USA Posts: 204 Thanks: 5 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	and enjoy the fire. last i checked from my best friends dad that sold cars said the fiero was known to catch on fire from bad wiring. sooooo, what evers.

11-04-2009, 06:58 AM	#144 (permalink)
LeePeyton Building Motor from Hell Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tennessee/USA Posts: 204 Thanks: 5 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	"Officially, production ended because of an internal GM forecast of insufficient future profits due to an expected decrease in overall demand for two-seater sports cars, however this decision was commensurate with heavy media coverage of Fiero engine fires." Pontiac Fiero - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Here's the whole spill if you don't want to click the URL. Engine fire reputation Total production of the Pontiac Fiero over all 5 years was 370,168.[4] Out of these numbers, as many as 260 are reported to have had engine fires of some type, depending on the source used. The Associated Press quoted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration as saying it had "...received 148 complaints regarding Pontiac Fieros catching fire including reports of six injuries.... Low levels of engine oil may cause a connecting rod to break, allowing oil to escape and come into contact with engine parts. The oil would catch fire when it contacted the exhaust manifold or hot exhaust components.... David Hudgens, a GM spokesman in Detroit... said, 'If you ran out of oil, and then that coupled with some aggressive driving, perhaps, and maybe not changing the oil very often, you end up with a broken rod, and that's where the connecting rod came in; it is still the owner's responsibility to check the oil.' "[5] The Pontiac division claimed in a 1988 press release that "GM tests have shown that running these 1984 cars with low engine oil level can cause connecting rod failure which may lead to an engine compartment fire.... Pontiac is aware of 260 fires attributable to the condition, along with ten reported minor injuries."[6] The larger of the two reported numbers of cars with fires (260) amounts to 0.07% of Fieros produced. The fires affected the 2.5 L engine almost exclusively, and mostly 1984 models (although there may have been additional occurrences after the above reports were published). There are several possible contributors to Fiero engines catching fire. The primary cause is thought to be a batch of poorly cast connecting rods, produced in GM's Saginaw plant, which failed when the oil level became too low. One theory is that the sports car styling attracted buyers who would drive the car hard, most notably by over-revving the engine. Another factor was the incorrectly listed three-quart oil capacity; the actual oil capacity was 4.5 quarts, but a misprint on dipsticks and in the owner's manuals led to owners using only three quarts, perhaps resulting in a leaky valve cover gasket[clarification needed] which would allow the oil level to decline over time to a dangerously low level. If the proper oil level was not maintained, the bearings could seize, snapping the porous castings of the connecting rods. This could result in a hole being punched in the engine block, allowing oil to spray onto hot exhaust components where it could ignite. Alternatively, some fires may have been due to the engine wiring harness being located in the center of the engine bay above the exhaust manifold, where the heat could possibly melt and ignite the wiring. The 1984 model had a magnesium grille over this area. In later models, this was improved to some degree with better heat shielding wrapped around the wiring harness. A third cause might be cracks in the engine block from overtightenening of the head bolts. Some engines developed cracks in the block that would leak coolant and/or oil, sometimes accompanied by broken head bolts directly above the crack. The leak would spray coolant or oil, the latter resulting in fire if sprayed onto the hot catalytic converter or exhaust manifold at the front of the engine compartment. Most vehicles existing today have been serviced by GM during one of the safety recalls on the car.[citation needed] For the fire-related recall, shields and drip-trays were added to prevent leaking fluids from contacting hot surfaces. The presence of drip shields between the engine block and the exhaust manifold are a clue that the car has been retrofitted. The addition of the longer AC Delco PF51 oil filter and a recalibrated dipstick added extra oil capacity to the oiling system, and enabled running four quarts of oil in the crankcase instead of three, to help prevent oil starvation to the rods. Certain vehicles also had their connecting rods or entire block replaced.

11-04-2009, 08:50 AM	#145 (permalink)
RePete Midship Specialty Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Vantastic, BC Posts: 957 Thanks: 0 Thanked 58 Times in 57 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	I owned a Fiero GT and I would regularly stomp MK1s (never went up against an SC though, that one would have probably kicked my ass as I owned an '89 SC later on & I knew its potential). I knew right away that the engine fires were with the Iron Duke 4 cyclinder junkbox engine (later renamed to the euphemistic Tech IV). But most enthusiasts heard this news word-of-mouth and not from a reliable source. So every time I heard that I just looked at the person delivering the statement as just another unfortunate, ignorant puppet of the media, spreading more urban legend around with their hot air. Such idiots... The original poster of this thread has misdirected his bile on the Fiero. Yes, it was not a very reliable car (mine had zero problems in the 2 years I owned it though), the interior was strangely laid-out with cheap material, it had a missing 4th gear (1,2,3 were short, then a long 4th gear which was really 5th), one sat on the floor when they drove, it was constructed w/ a lot of Chevette parts until the last model year and the paint on the plastic panels was cheap and cracked easily. But I learned to drift in that car, it was very neutral handling and was smokin' fast too w/ that sweet revving, torquey V6. The poster should have set his sites on the Cavalier, the Chevette or a dozen other miserable crap cars that GM was selling, not this one. Can anyone imagine an affordable mid-engine attempt from GM these days? Never again, like ever. And my best bud owned an '85 N/A MK1, I didn't hate him or his ride (though I regularly humiliated him w/ V6 power), I loved his car and bought one not too long after I ditched my Fiero.

11-04-2009, 11:03 PM	#146 (permalink)
LeePeyton Building Motor from Hell Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tennessee/USA Posts: 204 Thanks: 5 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	The last couple of years they made it I think it looked alright. I wasn't trying to out right diss it. Hell, a buddy of mine wants a v6 88 or so. Was just stating

11-04-2009, 11:51 PM	#147 (permalink)
traintech86 Traintech86 on all im's Join Date: May 2009 Location: Norfolk VA Posts: 922 Thanks: 15 Thanked 25 Times in 24 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	i am gonna be honest, i look at fiero's as rivals. imho, there are plenty of cars out there that are far worse then the fiero. who knows, if the fiero didn't exist, maybe toyota would have never worked on improving the mk1...

11-09-2009, 12:23 AM	#149 (permalink)
scottohno Cage Fighter Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Orland Park, IL Posts: 127 Thanks: 5 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	however, i do think fieros were decent competition. without them we would all still be in 112 hp NA models like me

11-17-2009, 03:20 PM	#151 (permalink)
wagonis Cage Fighter Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Tampa Bay area, FL Posts: 1,082 Thanks: 50 Thanked 22 Times in 22 Posts iTrader Rating: (5/100% )	Nice! A Vette engine in a Fiero. I wonder who will be the first to try the ZR1 engine in the Fiero. Can you imagine that beast?

11-23-2009, 01:07 AM	#153 (permalink)
Medusa Cage Fighter Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Reno, NV Posts: 630 Thanks: 9 Thanked 10 Times in 10 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	Wow. Just...wow. I think i dropped a few IQ points reading this thread. Specifically, myMR2chaseCops's posts were so devoid of any rational thoughts that I could not help but slowly insert a barbecue skewer through my eyeball and into my brain. Thank you to the few people who can actually admit that MR2's aren't the single greatest car ever created in the history of automobiles, who can admit that Fiero's can be made into pretty awesome cars, and that their owners are not all inbred redneck fanboys who act like they just walked off the set of F&F. Personally, I'm not that big of a Fiero fan. Mostly because my mom had one and the engine caught fire due to overtorqued head bolts. But that doesn't mean I have to stoop to the level of the OP and be a complete numbskull. I remember hearing a quote somewhere, and I couldn't help but think of it while reading this thread - Don't try to argue with the stupid. They'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.