starting my 5.3 with pics

[The Dark Side of Will]

Shaun, and Will,
why push me to have a Fiero moving under it's own power? What don't you like about me doing it right the first time?

Excuse me?

[Atilla the Fun]

Simple question. After all, you repeatedly advised "don't detour"
Nothing to get upset about.
Maybe you guys think that driving is more fun than building?
If so, how are your driving records?
Mine won't stand even one more moving violation, ever. And racetracks suck. The fun is so limited.
If I had the Nurburgring within an hour's drive...but I don't.

[Pocket]

More along the lines of actually finishing a project. You've got a ton of stuff going on and nothing more than big plans for any of it

5.3/6.0 Fiero
.060" over 305 mustang
4.3/350 TA
Truck(s)

Yard ornaments get old quick. Do your racing on the track, its just not safe anywhere else. If this is raining on your parade then try growing up some

[The Dark Side of Will]

And all I asked was "can you measure how much weight you're removing?..."

[fieroguru]

I can make and sell V8 swap kits for the Z31. That'll pay for the Fiero stuff. Because my CNC-milled LSx-swap adapter plates aren't selling as fast as I expected. The Z31 / V8 kits are gonna do it, because I have NO competition.

Your LS(x) adapter plates might not be selling because you have never posted a finished picture of them and the adapter plate is only 1/3 of the issue. It bolts the engine to the transmission, but you still need to provide a starter and flywheel solution and those will require more fabrication and custom machining. While solutions for all these exist, several of the people who have done them have no intensions of mass producing them or offering a kit (myself included).

Most fiero guys (and most car guys in general) are cheap and will not drop a dime for something they haven't seen. If you want to be a vendor, then you must market your product, show your work and open yourself and your products up for criticism.

[The Dark Side of Will]

A complete package would sell a lot better than just a plate.

[Atilla the Fun]

I've rebuilt the front suspension on the 300ZX, plus done rear springs and shocks. I made hella progress on the diesel, I did hella work on the Sierra, I crushed the LTD, Mustang and S-10, I sold the 4.3, I've PM'ed pics of the adapter plate to several interested parties and sold 2 so far.
My cancer is in remission, and my hair is growing back, thank God! I'm under 220 pounds, and I feel good! I can walk for 3 hours non-stop, and lift a SBC head 1-handed! With either hand! It's been a long time since the last time I could honestly make any of those claims about my abilities.
I did a flexplate on a neighbor's '85 4WD 6.2 diesel 3/4 ton ex-army pickup, I fixed 2 other neighbor's tractors.
I nursed my dad through his second broken hip. He's now 80 years old.
I drove a monster truck around in an empty warehouse.
Yeah, I've done hella lot. So much for saying I never get anything done. There just aren't enough Saturdays for all that plus the unimportant Fiero. Were all those accomplishments detours?
I'm not upset with anyone right now, thank God, and I count Will as a friend, whom I don't always agree with.
It's more fun in the canyon carving department than a Trans Am or a 300ZX. And that's based on when it was just a stock '84 duke / muncie.
So I do hope to drive it again.
But then again, I also hope for a second chance at TGO, with a new ID, from a new IPO. And this time I'm gonna play ignorant. And I'm gonna do it with a car Pocket hasn't seen. Not my '84 T/A.
Peace!

[Atilla the Fun]

So my basement is flooded. The landlord warned me of this.
This means no progress on the 6.0L.

[Atilla the Fun]

Finally saved up enough cash for the clutch. That's been the biggest delay.

[Atilla the Fun]

I now have both cradles on the floor of my garage.
The '88 still has TH125c axles, I gotta go research which one works with a 4T65E and which one can donate parts.

[Atilla the Fun]

According to BC2002SS: "with a 4t65-e non HD you can use a stock Fiero auto driver side axle on the driver-side. A stock Fiero manual driver side axle on passenger side."
Great, thanks!

[Atilla the Fun]

Well, it is the correct-length D/S axle, but will have to change the trans end:
"All 4T65-E's, regardless if they are HD or not, have a roller bearing inside the transmission that the Driver's side inner tripot end rides in. 440T4's, 4T60's, and 4T60-E's do NOT have this bearing, and the CV inner tripod area where it installed into the transmission is machined differently. You should not try using a driver's side CV axle inner tripot that was made for a 440-T4, 4T60, and 4T60-E in a 4T65-E or 4T65-E HD transmission.
Trying to run the 440-T4, 4T60, and 4T60-E driver's side inner tripot in a 4T65-E or 4T65-E HD transmission will result in the CV tripot end not riding in the bearing (inside the 4T65-E transmission) correctly.

-ryan"

[Atilla the Fun]

I've been agonizing over this for months. My dad and my sister both want a shot at driving my Fiero. Possibly take a road trip together, like to Yellowstone. Share the driving.
Both of them require an automatic transmission. Dad can drive a stick with no left hand, but now his knees are too bad to work the clutch. And my sis refuses to learn to drive a stick.
I can't trust my sister with this, because she likes sporty driving, but she's totalled all 3 of the FWD cars she has owned, and the only reason her '90 Firebird survived was because it scared her. It felt big to her. She's a small person, not 5" tall.
Dad is competent, but mid-engine is new to him.
I hate to risk the '88 cradle, but I'm risking the entire car anyway. I think I need to give them the L67 that's been sitting in the corner of my garage, on the '88 cradle. That '88 rear suspension just might save the car and the dad from the sister's driving.
I can continue progress on my 6.0L and manual trans since I have the '84 cradle, then if the car survives their road trip, that's the time to swap the good drivetrain onto the good cradle.
I've been looking for an A/T Fiero at a good price, with no luck.
But part of the appeal of my '84 is that it is a low-mileage cherry. Everything works correctly. My sister has no interest in a 200,000-mile anything. Certainly not more than once, nor more than a mile from home, no matter how reliable I say it is.

[Pocket]

After two years you still havent chosen a path of action?

Grow a pair and build your own damn car. If you want a stick, put it in there. If sis cant drive, dont let her. Simple

[Emc209i]

Simple

Truth.

[jelly2m81]

Actually it's 3 years not 2.

tilla, why even bother taking them into consideration? They will both be long gone due to old age at the rate this project is going.

3 years and 25 pages and nothing to show, must be some sort of record.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I think I was at 6 years when I first fired my Northstar, but only 15 pages on Pfiffle.

[Emc209i]

That's pretty embarrassing.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Life gets in the way of cars sometimes.

[Atilla the Fun]

Pocket, I'll grant that you have some measure of knowledge about a few car-related specifics, but to think I'd heed you on anything, damn. If I want your opinion, I'll politely ask you for it, but not really expect it.
Jelly, Will is right, life gets in the way. As for showing anything, it only leads to me getting bashed. I will not tolerate criticism. Too stressful. Any thread I do post pics of my work in, I'll never return to.
Will, you just proved yourself a true friend, understanding and being supportive. Guys, pay attention: you have to be a friend to gain a friend. Be a true friend, you deserve a true friend, and if the person is decent, that's what you get. I tried to be a friend to Pocket, several times on TGO, judge for yourself how that turned out. I've given up on him.
Back to life getting in the way: maybe noone was paying attention, but I've been clearing my plate. My Mustang is no longer detracting me from progress on my Fiero, nor is my C-10, as of tonight. It's one wire splice from being done. My S-10 is also gone, like the 'stang.
All of this counts as getting closer to a running Fiero.
I'm not embarassed about slow progress, nor about my dad and sister. I'm proud that I have an excellent example of a Fiero, with 2 cradles, and 2 engines. I'm proud of my dad.
I don't have the funds availability I truly expected, funds I had before I got this Fiero. Maybe it's a bad luck charm, IDK.
But I can get the 6.0L ready to go into the Fiero, and I can get it running without the Fiero.
And what's 3 years when I set my deadline at 10 years? So I still have 7 more yet.