Is overheating a serious problem in a pontiac fiero?

[dtrain521]

I am aware of the radiator being in the front and the engine in the back so I have heard somethings about the overheating. But I would really like to know if this is a serious problem as I am pursuing buying one. Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[SomeGuyRandomWeirdo]

I haven't heard of them overheating a lot but they do tend to catch on fire.

 

[sca_3]

Over heating is always a serious problem. Over heating causes warped heads, blown intake gaskets, warped intake, blown freeze plugs, defective thermostat, break down of coolant, break down of oil viscosity. If you are pursuing buying an overheated Fiero, I would wonder what else this person is not telling you. They are famous for spontaneously combusting, as well. I hope this helps. Good luck and God Bless.

 

[84 2m4 ws6]

My1984 Fiero runs very cool while driving, and it didnt over heat or catch fire while waiting in some serious traffic on the 400 series highways. From what i read they only caught fire because of to little oil in the crankcase and from being over revved causing connectings rods to break, but most have went in for recalls hopefully. Mine has a heat shield between the exhaust manifold and the engine block to stop oil from getting on the manifold. No fires in its 25yrs of operation.

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[Oreif]

Fiero's don't have an overheating problem by design. Meaning if all is working well there is no problem. But they do have a unique cooling system and there are certain things you need to watch for.

First, some service places do not know that there are 2 coolant tubes that run under the car. So if the tech puts the car on a lift and isn't paying attention they could accidently crush or damage a cooling tube. If you are looking at buying a Fiero, always inspect the cooling tubes under the car for damage as well as after you take it in for service.

Second, with respect to the V-6, many aftermarket waterpumps tend to use a plastic impeller. Over time the impeller can slip on the shaft reducing coolant flow and causing over-heating. If you ever replace the waterpump always make sure it has a metal impeller.

Finally, due to the cooling systems design, there is a procedure for properly filling up the cooling system. If it isn't done right, an air bubble can get stuck in the cooloing system and disrupt flow.

I have a V-8 in my Fiero and even with the larger engine I have had no cooling issues.

As for Fiero's catching on fire, It is only the 84-86 4-cyl's that had the problem. Recalls corrected a lot of the problems and any Fiero on the road 20+ years later most likely has had the recall.