Ottawa Fiero Club Forum

I finally got my Fiero in for a Safety Certificate (Trying desperately to make Odessa) Anyway it needs a few suspension components mainly bushings, a couple tie rods and a ball joint in the front. Parts are not too bad but labour is killer, anyone do thier own? How difficult is it?

Also in need of a REAR INNER tie rod, anyone have a new one? At GM prices I could buy a whole other car :)

Thanks

Bushings:

Speaking as someone who is 90% finished a complete bushing replacement...  (all bushings in upper & lower control arms, stabilizer bar end links & pillows)

Is it hard to do yourself?  I'd rate it at about a 6 out of 10, with 1 being kid stuff and 10 requiring the services of Mr. Scott.  ;)  The replacement bushings I used are press-fit into the outer sleeves of the the OE ones.  If the replacement bushings you decide to use come with their own outer sleeves, that difficulty rating above may change.

It is a time consuming job however, especially if you've never done it before or are limited to hand tools.  The control arms' pivot bolts like to rust-weld themselves to the bushings' inner sleeves.  You'll probably spend more time working at removing the control arms than you will replacing the bushings and re-assembling everything.


Tie rods:

2 out of 10 difficulty rating for the outer ends, 6/10 for the inner.  The inner are easier to deal with if you remove the steering rack from the car.


Ball joints:

Upper ball joints are another 2/10, as they simply bolt in place.  Lower ball joints are usually pressed and/or welded in to the control arms, so they get an 8/10.  I had a lower ball joint replaced by a shop while I had the control arm off the car...  it was a whole $20 in labour.


Oh and one final note, you will require a wheel alignment after all this has been done.



I guess this would be a good time to get off my butt and post that suspension write-up that I promised Eric a while back.   ;D

 :) hehe

I'd bump the bushing difficulty up to an 8/10, personally.  My Fiero was a Florida car, and I couldn't get the lower control arms off the front.  I had to end up taking it in to the shop since I couldn't get it off with hand tools.  Rusted on there solid... so yeah, you basically have to take apart the entire front suspension to do everything you're doing.  If you can get around doing the bushings, then try it!  Otherwise it'll cost you either some money or time and frustration.  Unless you get lucky and your bolts come out!  heh

But yeah, the other stuff listed is pretty easy, last summer I replaced all my ball joints and tie rods on the front, and I'd never worked on any suspension before.  Piece 'o cake.  Good luck!

Brad

THanks, Might get the shop to so the Bushings (probably balljoint while they are there) They want 3 hours to do the uppers on both sides. Tie Rods sound doable.


NoFiero

the bushings are most likely the worst item, unless they have been changed recently, in which case you wouldn't have to, would you..... ::)  so obviously they will be nicely 'frozen  in'.......    The part that gives all the grief is the inner steel sleeve of the bushing(S) rusting SOLID on the long bolt.  That long bolt, by the way, is expensive (compared to 'other bolts...' ) so if they have to cut it, expect a cost PLUS it might not be in stock right away, either.  You might as well be prepared for that possibility or even PROBability......
Sorry, sad but true.....

Lowers weren't so bad...... individual bolts that are a bit easier to handle.
Ball joints are a piece of cake by comparison.  You can do them most likely, as long as you pay a bit of attention and do only one at a time so no parts get mixed up.
Anyway
good luck!!!

All depends upon how gentle you are.  ;)  I gave it a 6/10 on difficulty because I used a patented FieroBUZZ technique for removing the lowers.

The bolts were frozen to the inner sleeves, and all the usual tricks to free them up failed.  So I pulled out the grinder and mercilessly amputated the bolts where they protruded through the crossmember.   ;D

...just don't ask how long it takes to cut the head off a 10.9 bolt with a Dremel tool!