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6-8-90
I am graduating from High School. My parents cannot understand why I am cruising
the local paper for Pontiac Fiero's for sale. I end up buying a Beretta GTZ so I
have a full warranty.
11-14-98
3:30AM -- I ask my wife what I'm doing. She tells me for the fourth time that
she's driving me to the airport so I can fly from Detroit to Atlanta, rent a car to shoot
over to Aiken, SC, to pick up my car. I nod, wondering if the whole 30 hour ordeal
of travel and getting the car back to Michigan is a good idea. She reminds me,
seeing the worry on my face, that I've talked about Fieros since I was seventeen years
old, and I was getting a fair deal.
The Fiero in question is the Blue '87GT that can be seen on this page. At this
point, I've spent a few months talking to owners and meeting them, and determining that
the Fiero is going to be my project car of choice. The fact that I was buying this
particular car was one of pure luck -- it was posted to a mailing list I had subscribed
to, and although I didn't intend to purchase my car until spring, I had already budgeted
the entire project from beginning to end, and this car was going to save me $600 on my
budget plan right away. Actually, the fact that it was factory Bright Blue modified
the project somewhat, since it was rare I didn't want to repaint or put in a severly
different powertrain (like a V8 or 3800 Series II)
12-23-98
Orders are placed with two companies, Ryane Motorsports and Mantapart, to begin
constructing the parts that will make my Fiero the performer I expect.
Ryane is constructing a custom suspension system for me. The '87GT front end is
being swapped out for a near bolt-in replacement with adjustable coilovers for maximum
flexibility. An order is placed for the '88 Engine cradle and associated hardware to
convert the rear of the car to an overall better suspension system, relocating the strut
towers with Ryane's hardware. At the same time, the factory 9.5" rotors are
being retired for 12" rotors, elimating the Fiero's notorious brake fade and if all
goes well, stopping me from 60-0 in about 110 feet. Darryl over at Ryane explains to
me that a Fiero at the GM proving grounds in Costa Mesa, CA with the exact configuration I
have specified pulled .99 average on the skidpad, with a high of 1.01g in five runs.
Mantapart, a race shop in Ohio, is building the engine. Although Design1System's
Turbo Kit is set up for stock engines, if I want to press the performance of my engine,
special build considerations must be made. The 3.1L replacement for my 2.8L will
feature a slightly lowered compression ratio (8.2:1 instead of 8.5:1) and all strengthed
parts. The goal is to built a bulletproof, reliable performer, and you cannot skimp
with Turbo applications.
Jump to February 1999
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