The New Life of the 3800 "Formula"

[Fierofool]

That's not good.

Actually, on the Fiero it is good unless done to the extreme.  The Fiero is recognized as having some serious understeer.  I find it easier to control a loss of directional control in the rear than in the front. 

[GTRS Fiero]

I'm used to "hanging the rear out there".  In general, the understeer hasn't been a problem, as long as I stayed in the throttle.  I did lose the front end, coming around a turn in the wet, but I was going somewhat faster than 50 MPH.

[The Art Doctor]

I also once spun mine in the wet on a curve.   That seems to be a very common thread on these swapping ends, wet conditions.  In the snow it would not steer at all, turn the wheel and go straight.  After that i put a 50lb bag of sand on the spare tire.  No issues after that that did not involve ice.  My old 911 had factory twin batteries mounted up front, one in each fender in front of the tire and behind the headlights.  I think the fronts are a bit light.  Anyone on here do the battery relocation mod?

[Raydar]

... Anyone on here do the battery relocation mod?

Mine is in the front. And when I swap my coupe, its battery will be moved to the front as well.
But not so much for the handling, although I'm sure it makes a difference. It just makes stuff on the "front" of the engine so much more accessible. (The battery in my 4.9 car was this >-< close to the belt and pulleys.)

[scottb]

... Anyone on here do the battery relocation mod?

(The battery in my 4.9 car was this >-< close to the belt and pulleys.)

Think mine has a bit less clearance

[The Art Doctor]

Just measured the rear mount full size battery in my boat at 38lbs.  I pulled it for a motorcycle one and now have less trouble getting up on plane with passengers.  Moving one from the the rear to front would be effectively like adding 70lbs over front wheels, pretty close to the bag of sand I was using.

[TopNotch]

I have yet another thing to fix in the white car. The heater core is leaking, and it seems to be getting worse. There is a coolant smell in the air when I run the AC or just blow air, and it's getting stronger. I found some info on Youtube, and the job doesn't look too hard. I'll update this thread when it's done. I just happened to have a spare heater core that I bought years ago. I'll leak test it this way: I'll fill the kitchen sink with water, submerge the heater core, stop one tube, and blow in the other. Hopefully, I won't see bubbles.
Edit: The replacement heater core checks out -- no bubbles. It's a used one I bought off Ebay, so I had to check it.

[Raydar]

...
I found some info on Youtube, and the job doesn't look too hard.

It's really not. It's one of the easiest things to do, on a Fiero.
The most difficult part is getting the hoses off the old heater core fittings, without trashing the hoses.
Put something in the floor to catch coolant. It's almost a certainty that some will be spilled.

[Fierofool]

If you have the hose tool, its like an ice pick with the end bent at 90*, hoses come off fairly easy.  The hardest part of the job is getting to the screw that's up on top of the heater box.  I have a flexible driveshaft that I've used.  At reassembly, if I have trouble getting that screw back in, I just skip it.  Taking out the right speaker can sometimes be of help.  Pad the rocker panel very well to keep from bruising your ribs. 

While you're in there, try to find the weep hole for the condensate.  When you do, let us know where it is.  I've never found it. 

[TopNotch]

Well, here's the story of the hoses. Those suckers were push onto the core tubes all the way to what would be the firewall, if it was a front engine car. There was no way I was going to get them off, so I cut them. I will get some short lengths of hose and some hose-to-hose nipples and clamps when it's time to reassemble things.

[GTRS Fiero]

If you have the hose tool, its like an ice pick with the end bent at 90*, hoses come off fairly easy.  The hardest part of the job is getting to the screw that's up on top of the heater box.  I have a flexible driveshaft that I've used.  At reassembly, if I have trouble getting that screw back in, I just skip it.  Taking out the right speaker can sometimes be of help.  Pad the rocker panel very well to keep from bruising your ribs. 

While you're in there, try to find the weep hole for the condensate.  When you do, let us know where it is.  I've never found it.

I took a pic of that hole, and described the location for one of the newsletters.

[GTRS Fiero]

Yep.  October 2018, page 16.

[TopNotch]

While you're in there, try to find the weep hole for the condensate.  When you do, let us know where it is.  I've never found it.

I'll leave the actual location of the drip hole to GTRS. But I can show you how the water gets to it.
Water collects in this channel in the HVAC housing.


With the heater core removed, and the heater door open, you can see the channel running below the AC evaporator.

Edit: And yes, the heater core was leaking. It's a good thing I laid several paper towels underneath when I opened the housing up.

[Fierofool]

Is that some kind of filter mesh in the picture?  What is it made of?

[TopNotch]

Is that some kind of filter mesh in the picture?  What is it made of?

Some kind aluminum screen. My guess is that it's to protect the evaporator.