Fiero Rear Suspension/Brakes Questions

[BearGFR]

Howdy,

My son has an '87 Fiero GT, V6, 5-speed that we recently overhauled the rear suspension on:  new struts, polyurethane bushings, ball joints, brake pads, tie rod end boots.  Of course after we got it back together, it was in sore need of alignment so we took it to have that done.

Question 1:  It sort of "feels weird" driving. Under acceleration it feels like the nose of the car, instead of raising straight up, almost wants to go very slightly left at the same time.  It's just barely enough to notice and cause you to say, "that's odd", but not all that drastic.  Conversely, when you let off and coast in gear, the nose seems to want to go slightly right as it drops.    This car is an '87 so it doesn't have the re-designed suspension that came out on the '88's.   The only parts on the rear we didn't replace were the tie rod ends, but they felt nice and tight while we had it apart.   What we're not sure of is whether this is a parts issue or perhaps the shop that aligned it didn't get it exactly right.    Thoughts on this?

 

Question 2:  When changing the rear brake pads, "we didn't know" that trying to compress the pistons in the usual manner with a big c-clamp could damage their internal parking brake mechanisms, so we did - and probably did.  His parking brakes are pretty much non-functional now, and we're discovering that finding even rebuilt rear calipers isn't easy.  However, if there are rebuilt calipers available, then they must themselves be rebuildable - right?  Does anyone know of reference information and parts sources we might be able to use to rebuild the ones we have?

 

Thanks,

Bear.

[Last Indian]

6 hours ago, BearGFR said:

Howdy,

My son has an '87 Fiero GT, V6, 5-speed that we recently overhauled the rear suspension on:  new struts, polyurethane bushings, ball joints, brake pads, tie rod end boots.  Of course after we got it back together, it was in sore need of alignment so we took it to have that done.

Question 1:  It sort of "feels weird" driving. Under acceleration it feels like the nose of the car, instead of raising straight up, almost wants to go very slightly left at the same time.  It's just barely enough to notice and cause you to say, "that's odd", but not all that drastic.  Conversely, when you let off and coast in gear, the nose seems to want to go slightly right as it drops.    This car is an '87 so it doesn't have the re-designed suspension that came out on the '88's.   The only parts on the rear we didn't replace were the tie rod ends, but they felt nice and tight while we had it apart.   What we're not sure of is whether this is a parts issue or perhaps the shop that aligned it didn't get it exactly right.    Thoughts on this?

 

Question 2:  When changing the rear brake pads, "we didn't know" that trying to compress the pistons in the usual manner with a big c-clamp could damage their internal parking brake mechanisms, so we did - and probably did.  His parking brakes are pretty much non-functional now, and we're discovering that finding even rebuilt rear calipers isn't easy.  However, if there are rebuilt calipers available, then they must themselves be rebuildable - right?  Does anyone know of reference information and parts sources we might be able to use to rebuild the ones we have?

 

Thanks,

Bear.

Bear, for what it’s worth what you described in question 1 sounds like rear torque steer. If so, I would guess this is due to unequal rear shaft lengths. This phenomenon, if it is the case, is usually caused by the longer shaft whipping or more accurately not turning in a true circle without deflecting. There are a few things that can be done to counter this if you find that to be the issue & feel the need to address it.

Question 2, is if they are the type of calipers I think I remember them to be, they are a pain to rebuild the internal part that is the E brake. You need special tools, but, NAPA sells rebuild units, at least here. #NUG 9717255B & 55A  right & left respectively.

[BearGFR]

Thanks L.I. ,  Neither one of us remembers if the car was behaving that way before we replaced all those parts, which is part of the problem I guess. I'd found the calipers from NAPA, but both are listed as out of stock on their online site.    I did find some from Rock Auto, rebuilt, each from different suppliers.

 

Bear

Edited August 16, 2022 by BearGFR

[Last Indian]

18 minutes ago, BearGFR said:

Thanks L.I. ,  Neither one of us remembers if the car was behaving that way before we replaced all those parts, which is part of the problem I guess. I'd found the calipers from NAPA, but both are listed as out of stock on their online site.    I did find some from Rock Auto, rebuilt, each from different suppliers.

 

Bear

Summit racing shows them as well. https://www.summitracing.com/search/year/1987/make/pontiac/model/fiero/department/brake-systems

[Frosty]

The Fiero Factory is a Fiero only junk yard in Alabama. They harvest and repurpose all sorts of Fiero parts. They also have a Facebook page. notallthere made me aware of this place since his wife has a Fiero. He said the place is massive.

https://thefierofactory.com/

 

Edited August 17, 2022 by Frosty