Todd951968

I've recently been looking at Fieros too. Possibly , as a replacement for my E30 BMW. I was surprised at the retained value they have in relation to the 944 and my 325is. First off, they originally cost about 1/2 as much and now, 20+ years later, they are worth as much (or more in the case of the BMW). My BMW was over $30k in 1990! Factor in maintenance costs over the years and the Fiero looks like a steal.

Some dismiss the Fiero as a hogepoge of parts from the GM parts bin. Well, so was the 944 with its 924 origins coming from Audi and VW. The Fiero doesn't have the cache of the Porsche or BMW but it does look like it was a better value.

Rogue_Ant

I had an 86 GT - absolutely loved it, and it still holds a special place in my heart
If your looking for one - it should be the '88 GT (last year made). Much better suspension then earlier models, better brakes, better transmission (5-speed), and of course the 6-cylinder engine.
The perfect engine swap, IMO, would be the DOHC 3.4L. Bellhousing pattern should be the same, and much more 'sport-oriented' power-band than the stock 2.8L OHV. This was actually the engine that GM was considering in the 1990 Fiero prototype...

Tom R.

Why was "northstar" swap not mentioned in this thread yet?Too bad it didnt have the ferrari kit. Then you could have killed a certain ferrari in your ferriero.

Rogue_Ant

Lol, yeah good times...
The Northstar is a good engine... But frankly it doesn't 'fit' the Fiero, IMO. Kinda the same way I don't care for LS1 swaps in the 944/951.

James Chimney

so we are not a cult? dam I was looking forward to the white robes chanting (Porsche Porsche Porsche) and tambourine 's

J Berk

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ponti...fCarsQ5fTrucks

Tom R.

im pretty sure there are renegade type kits for the nothstar/fiero swap.

Rogue_Ant

Without doubt. I was meaning that the V8 just doesn't suite the cars personality.

944Ross

There was an 88 GT with the Northstar swap on eBay and near me. I believe it bid up to around $4k. I just can't imagine that being a practical swap, unless you only car about going straight. A light turbo 4-banger would seem the ideal replacement, although there is nothing wrong with the V6's, they sound as sweet as a Healey.

locke

a superchargered 3.8L from a grand prix GTP would suite me just fine.

Potomac-Greg

A little OT, but the next big thing in LS__ swaps is the Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky duo. Apparently the engine fits really nicely, and as a GM-GM marriage, the electronics and accessories work. Solstice is a nice track car.

harrisonrick

I had an 87 GT fastback...put over 350,000 kms (2 clutches) otherwise a great little car.

AND...with good snows, awesome in winter.

---

Lots of guys put the Northstar V8s in them...wow, an animal for power. If you cheaped out and didn't beef up your axles, there were a lot of axel failures with these swaps.

IMO the 3.8 V6 would be better...the Northstar V8s were prone to head issues.

A friend of mine was at Auto-body school, and one student had an LT1 installed in his 86 Gt...thing would WHEELIE when he dumped the clutch...it actually had to have wheelie bar on it.

Todd951968

I think some of the aluminum V-8 swaps end up weighing less than the original 2.8 L V6. So, why not go for the V8? Granted a 3.8 SC would be great too.

eviladam

AFAIK there are no "kits" for the northstar v8 swap, and every one of them is different. Archie offers the sbc/ls1 kits and I believe Westcoast Fieros offers the 3800sc kit. You can also swap in the newer Saab f40 6speeds in them now! Tons of rebodies and interior swaps. The car is very venerable and you can make it your own in many ways. The tech for the time was way ahead of its time being fiberglass and spacebody.

I owned an 86 Fiero se about 10 years ago. It was a blast to drive. Totally different than driving the 944, but none of my suspension is stock so Im not sure what a stock 944 felt like. The Fiero I had had the 4speed muncie trans and with the 2.8l v6 it moved nicely but I bought a northstar for it....

Fiero's are a pain in the @$$ to work on, and I have found that the 944 has much more space on quite a few of the components the fiero doesnt. Starter, sparkplugs, waterpump, fuelpump...ect.

I only bought a 944 because I was unable to find a fiero in the condition I wanted for the price I had set; which would have allowed me to get one anywhere in the country but I didnt want to drive across the country on a 11.8gal gas tank.... Then I found my 944 in town for cheap! so I grabbed it.

I think the main reason the 944's are slightly cheaper in comparison to a well condition Fiero is parts cost. And just about all 944's are in about the same condition if still running today. As where ALOT of Fiero's were trashed since it was just a pontiac. So it is harder to find one that isnt beat to hell and back.

If you are going to hash out what "swap" is good for the "personality" of the car you should head over to pennock's. There are many many lists and threads on the advantages and disadvantages of each swap. Most go the 60* v6 swap way with the 3.1, 3.4, 3400dohc or the caddy 4.9l v8(4.1 and 4.5 were boat anchors with tons of problems). But if you feel more mechanical the 3800sc is a great motor that was just discontinued. None of those require adaptors for the trans, just new mounts and lots of wiring. The SBC requires a frame rail cut on the pass side. The northstar requires a cradle modification and horrible amounts of wiring.

All in all I love my 944 but I miss my Fiero, if you have never owned one you just wouldnt understand.