EV Fiero Project?

[bennelson]

Ah, Hondo, of course!

I talk to so many people about so many things, it's hard to keep track of them all! We did have a fun little crew of Ecomodders at the MREA Fair this last summer, though, didn't we!?

I'll have to private message you sometime with a barrage of questions.

Maybe I can come up and visit to check out your car.

One thing that I would change if I did it again, is to convert a COOL car to electric.

Like, um, maybe a Fiero.

[nimblemotors]

I converted a Fiero to Electric. They make very good EVs, they are not whimpy like other small cars and can handle the battery weight.

Originally Posted by bennelson

Last night, I was at an environmental group meeting.

Afterwards, I met a guy who is interested in converting a Fiero to electric. In fact, he has two Fieros, and bought the one SPECIFICALLY to convert to electric.

I would love to help him out on it, as he has never done an EV conversion before.

I have often heard of how much people like converting Fieros to electric. Somebody on this board must have converted one. What do you like about it? Any special considerations? Any other thoughts?

-Ben

PS: sounds like this guy is really serious. Might be a very cool summer project!

[davidbr13]

I, too, converted a fiero - Dave Brandt's 1986 Pontiac Fiero. It cruised on the flat at about 1 amp for each MPH (e.g. 50A at 50 MPH) with a 228V system.

Parts are readily available. Many specialty stores and aftermarket stores (like Fierostore.com: The Fiero Store) offer stuff for the fiero. Everything from replacements for the little plastic rivets to body kits.

I agree they are built solid, too. Fit and finish isn't always too great, though.

And the handling - you can take a 90 degree corner at 40-50 MPH without much extra effort or any extra suspension parts.

The bad - hard to find anyone to work on them (for alignments, paint and body work, etc.).

I am currently parting mine out - the batteries and controller are gone. However, everything else is still there, installed, and is a great starter if you are building an EV. Yes, it's for sale. Savannah, GA area. Contact me if interested. ev_dave13 at yahoo dot com.

[wolfer]

I've also converted an '88 Fiero to electric. I started with a 4 cyl w/ 5-speed. The stock curb weight of the vehicle was 2495 lbs. The Tech-4 engine weighed 301 lbs without the flywheel/clutch/pressure plate. The reason for the heavy weight of the Fiero is due to the "Space Frame" which completely surrounds the vehicle. The body panels that all "bolt-onto" the frame are FRP, or Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic.

It is posted on the evalbum, along with my other EV's.

I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have concerning converting a vehicle ot electric.

[Bigswampthing]

If you are concerned about rust, you will want to check the steering rack. They are prone to corrosion and breaking in half, after which you loose all steering. Problematic, if you also add a bunch of weight in the front in the form of batteries. Greetings from the "rust belt"!

[davidbr13]

Prone to breaking? I've been on the fiero yahoo group for more than a few years, with a bunch of people who have a lot more experience with the fiero than I do and I have never heard of a steering rack failure. Rag joints getting loose, sure, every now and then. Ignition modules failing, there are a few reports of that every month. EGR tubes cracking, there are reports of that every week, but never the steering rack.

As for rust, when I bought mine it had obviously been brought back from the brink, and had sat outside in a forested setting for a few years, judging by the amount of leaves and pine straw in it. The only place with rust was around the battery, however, which is a problem on these cars, since they put it in the hottest point in the car - it tends to boil over and turn the sheet metal tray into swiss cheese. There is a kit to relocate it in fact.

Adding weight is part of making an EV, unfortunately. As long as he adjusts the suspension components, it should be fine. I had custom springs wound by coil spring specialties of st. mary's, KS. They have the original designs in their computer and you just tell them how much weight you have added in the front and in the back, and what ride height adjustment you want, if any. They did a great job. Mine rides (rode) like it was on rails.

[Bigswampthing]

Looks like you are from Georgia? When I say rust belt... I mean like upstate New York. The original poster was worried about rust because he too was from a more Northern state. They spread salt on the roads up here almost 6 months of the year, and yes, the steering rack is a common failure on Fieros. Our snow fall is measured in feet not inches. Please don't take my comments as slanderous. I was simply making a suggestion that he check the rack.

[bennelson]

We salt our roads like crazy in my area.

I'm not sure where my friend got his Fiero. I'm assuming it was local. I've only gotten to see the car once so far - at night in the rain.

I'll pass on comments to him though.

On my Metro, there is a known problem with rust in one particular location. It's easy to fix while you have the engine and transmission out, but only if you know about it. Part of the unibody framework rusts from the inside out, so you never see it until it's too late.

It's always great to get "insider" information from other owners of the same model vehicle!

[davidbr13]

Hey, no sweat, bigswampthing. I've never lived further north than Oklahoma (and the fiero came from west virginia), but my wife is from Indiana, so we know about salt and rust. It was bad enough when they put just plain salt down. The stuff they use nowadays is worse. I honestly had never heard about any steering rack issues, though, and the yahoo group is pretty widespread.

Thinking about it, though, several of them garage their cars in the winter (causing a rash of different problems the next spring!). That could be a factor!

Yeah, I wound up here by accident, but I must say it's nice that I no longer need a snow shovel:-)

In any case, Ben, another area that usually needs repair is the sheet metal by the battery.

[zegilles]

Try Rebirth Auto.
They make nice adapters and liquid cooled controller.