nitrosportsandrunner

searching on ebay, i found a newly listed traxxas stampede 4x4 roller. just needed electronics and a body. all of which i have already.
it was $150 BIN with shipping.

but i looked at a few utube vids, to read feedback and see what it will do on 3s lipo.

didnt take longer than 5 minutes to decide i wanted it, went to buy and and it was sold!

considering they are $400 new, i think $150 shipped for a roller in good shape is a good price. wish i hadnt hesitated. been alittle while since i had a traxxas for bashing[&o]

The Mad Modder

Ebay's like that. I've lost many items on the bay. It's most iritating when something gets sniped at the last second.

sloppyG

if there was one there before, there will be another one again

anyone ripping apart these vehicles and selling them is not going to just do it once

The_Shark

i cant tell you how many things slipped through my fingers due to hesitation. such as a 1988 fiero GT (rare) with 5 speed (even rarer) with 50k miles on it, i went there to see it, drove home to think about it (actually forced to by father) called back 1 hour to buy it and it was sold.

sloppyG

that sounds like a case of hesitation saving you!!!!

fiero? they're only "rare" because nobody liked them, and most have been crushed

The_Shark

check your sorces.

the fiero sold more cars in a given amount of time than any other car in history. they where immensly popular, and soon after infamus for fires, however this was one year only and .7% effected.

the 2.8L V6 was one of Gm's best engines ever, rock solid, had multi-port (one of the first cars ever having this) it generated 140HP which is ample given the ford 5.0 and GM 350 where making 150hp at this time.

i had a 86 GT, loved the thing to death but sold it due to rusted rails triggered by a leaky battery.

the 88 had race bred suspension and framework 4wheel vented disk brakes with aluminum calipers, they made very few due to the high cost and by now was apperant they where a handfull in the snow.

these are reliable simple cars and are also extremly safe because its first ever space-frame body structure.

sloppyG

it's a car from a terrible time in automotive history,

it may have been good for the time, but when your sports car is getting beat at the stoplight by a minivan, that's just sad

the fiero was ahead of it's time, but I can't imagine ever wanting one (unless maybe we're back in the late 80's via some time machine)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fkWjsp2wkY

if one of their "best engines ever" only makes 140 hp from a v6, I'd hate to see their worst efforts

nitrosportsandrunner

i havent driven a fiero, so i cant speak for that particular car.
but i do know that some cars have a "perfect balance"
i had a 91 honda civic HB with the 1.5l motor. only 100hp in that thing. but it was light weight. the suspension was lowered. the engine was very quick-reving. find a twisty road and go over 50mph and your knuckles turned white and your heart beat so hard your passenger could feel it beating!
sure, a 500hp fire breathing car is cool. but you have to drive it over 100mph to get the same rush that that 91 civic would give you doing 50mph on a twisty road or even just dropping the clutch at the lights!

i used to read d-sport mag. and the editor said the same thing about a 89 honda CRX he used to have. and that is someone who has driven some amazing sports cars! he said he still wished to have the feeling that little car gave him on twisty back roads.

just talking about my civic makes me miss it i know there are a hundred better cars out there, but slamming throught the 5 speed in that car is the most fun i ever had for $1000!

sloppyG

reminiscing about old stuff is better than actually driving it

guarantee if anyone hops in a fiero, CRX or whatever else from that period they'll think it's a heap

I've driven cars I used to love, and they just don't hold up compared to modern stuff.

nitrosportsandrunner

sorry, i disagree. if i could rationalize it somehow, i would buy another 91 civic HB. but i own a house now, and my 2nd vehicle has to be a pickup. and i cant afford to maintain 3 cars

i mean, just look at that pic i posted. a thing of beauty

electricrc68

my mommy has a VW jetta and my daddy has a honda pilot. i don't have a car yet but i can't wait to get one!!!!

The_Shark

the fiero was beating many cars those days, including porche, it was the smog days. the car wieghs 2300-2700lbs depending on year/model.

it was quick, stick shifts are snappy, but it wasnt fast, but it was fast for the day. i drove a 3800 conversion that was very quick. not only that but everything about the car was fun, from the mid engine tone to its size and its handling.
the 2.8 was very reliable and ahead of its time, it didnt make huge power numbers (140hp 165torque) but was good compaired to the other ultra lights at 40-80hp civic CRX
i know my fieros and really know my stuff about cars, arguing wont change anything. back on subject.

The_Shark

i actually prefer how cars drove/handled back then, throw in some modern power (or pre 70) and its a real win-win.

stuff today feels like a million pounds and understeer like crazy. i also like to feel and hear my engine. this is why i love my corvette, rides like a shopping cart but is sticks to the road like glue and now is friggin spooky fast.

nitrosportsandrunner

i hear you on the weight thing. a civic of today weighs what a late 80's early 90's accord used to weigh! all the models just get bigger and heavier.
on a track, a modern civic aint much faster than an old 91 HB! even tho it has twice the HP.
today, cars have to have DOHC and VVT and fancy computer stuff just to get the fuel mileage you could get in a Duel point injected SOCH 91 civic. why? all the added weight.

if honda would build the early 90 civic, or even the 89 accord LXI again, i would buy one in a heartbeat.
I had a 89 LXI. removed the power steering pump, AC unit(didnt work anyway) advanced the timing and put on a short ram intake. best fun i every had in a 4 door car. and those flip up head lights! loved it

HpiTrax383

My Feedback: (2)

x2 on the vette, my grandpa has his 74 stingray in my garage. it hasnt left the garage in 6 years but last time i rode in it, it felt like my old go kart i had with no suspension what so ever but the 350 sounded so good and it wasnt a speedy car at all but its sure does get some attention.. i dont think modern cars arent near as fun as an old classics or pickups. ill drive my 89' dodge ram until there is no more gas on earth haha

Scottgir

Not to mention being able to drop a 350 high output into a fiero......Had a buddy of mine do this.

nitrosportsandrunner

another fav car of mine is the 89-92 volvo 740! you can fit a v8 in those cars with ease.

i had a 92 wagon turbo. RWD, 150hp and 180 torque. not a ton of power, but more than enough to have lots of fun! Especially in the winter. find a empty parking lot and go drifting!!!

and check out this 740 wagon turned into a kruck! i dont care for the camo paint, but id have that volvo in black in a heatbeat!!!

sloppyG

seriously, what is up with you guys thinking fondly of the smog era gutless "sports cars"

there's almost nothing worth owning from about 71-72 through about the mid 90's

every Vette, every Mustang or camaro, even Ferarri's were terrible through a lot of those years

bronx boy

i use to race a guy who parked in the same lot as me in midtown manhatten he had a fiero i had a 73 duster 225 slant six one barrel i beat him every time with three people in my car and the ac on those cars were dogs bud i know /i had a stage one buick and a 440 six pack cuda /if my downtown car with 125 hp could beat it it was a real dog

nitrosportsandrunner

man, its not about the "power" of the motor. no denying my civic and volvo's lacked HP. its about the "feel" of the car. the balance of the power, handling and suspension. how the car drove when you pushed it to the edge!
hop in a volvo 740 turbo and find a twisty road and keep your foot down on the gas as much as you dare. a promise you your face will have a big grin on it.
the volvo and civc i mentioned are no sports cars. and they can be had for a low price, but can be alot of fun to drive.

The Hedgehog

Yep and seeing how Camry's make over 100 HP more than all of these cars nowadays, really it's a no brainer.

And contrary to what people believe there ARE some cars today that outhandle the crap out of old cars.

sloppyG

you need to expand your vehicular experience, no volvo is fun to drive, no volvo handles well

go drive some more things

The_Shark

its still a sports car, it just needs extra power, a 74 corvette had 160hp, slap some heads on there and blam! 300+ hp, go dual catless BLAM 310-320, put some roller rockers with a 1.6 ratio capow! 320-350 and this is for FACTORY heads of today. my corvette is a easy 350-375HP and 400lbs of torque with the proformance heads and other things listed.

plop a few grand into a 3800 SC or 350 and your make that fiero do 12sec quarters.

its not just the engine that makes a sports car, its everything else too, its like having a top shelf mugen with a cruddy engine and then say it isnt a track buggy, no, it just has a cruddy engine, if you like it enough you will put a good one in.

sloppyG

yeah, but the suspension and brakes and power of the engine are all designed together

you can add a ton of power to an old car, and then you throw the balance of the design out the window because now the brakes are inadequate and on and on.... the designs of suspensions and suspension components have improved in quality as the years have gone by also.

why start with something that has such a glaring problem (such as no power)?

the factory will always be better at engineering things than I would be, so I'd rather buy a vehicle I don't have to monkey with to bring up to modern standards.

The_Shark

real sports cars have sports car chassis and components, but not nesssisairly engines.

my 1978 corvette has all wheel vented disk brakes with 4 piston fixed calipers FROM THE FACTORY. given i rather have rack and pinion, the gear box and hydrolic ram-rod works fine.

the fiero had manual rack and pinion and great feedback.

why buy a old sports car and fix it up?? because for less money than a new one, you can have one that blows away the new stuff in every way and make it yours... not just another number, anyone can plop down money on a car, its a whole different feeling when you pour your blood sweat and tears into it, and it becomes yours.