Should i trade him?

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   hello. i know i dont live on the west coast but you all 

seem to know more and are more active than any other site 

ive seen. 

i have a 97 firebird. black. chrome rims. 3.8 automatic. 

got some interior problems. headliner is falling. upper 

dash is cracked. trunk lifts dont hold it up. and the 

front rotors are so bad it causes the car to shake. 

anyway. this guy wants to trade me his 86 Fiero GT. says 

the front crossmember needs to be replaced. idk how easy 

of a job that is. but im fairly comfortable working on 

cars and i have access to my highschool shop.

heres the fiero

http://flint.craigslist.org/cto/2266056422.html

heres my firebird 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/4083088...n/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/40830882@N04/5546395749/

should i trade? if so should i ask for cash on top? and 

how easy is it to replace that crossmember. anything i 

should look for? im just trying to get some help from 

people who know more about this car than i do. thanks a 

ton.

Tim.

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bigthoogs Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 March 2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3	Post Options Post Reply Quote bigthoogs Report Post Quote Reply Topic: Should i trade him? Posted: 21 March 2011 at 8:04pm
	hello. i know i dont live on the west coast but you all seem to know more and are more active than any other site ive seen. i have a 97 firebird. black. chrome rims. 3.8 automatic. got some interior problems. headliner is falling. upper dash is cracked. trunk lifts dont hold it up. and the front rotors are so bad it causes the car to shake. anyway. this guy wants to trade me his 86 Fiero GT. says the front crossmember needs to be replaced. idk how easy of a job that is. but im fairly comfortable working on cars and i have access to my highschool shop. heres the fiero http://flint.craigslist.org/cto/2266056422.html heres my firebird http://www.flickr.com/photos/4083088...n/photostream/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/40830882@N04/5546395749/ should i trade? if so should i ask for cash on top? and how easy is it to replace that crossmember. anything i should look for? im just trying to get some help from people who know more about this car than i do. thanks a ton. Tim.

Dawg Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 15 August 2009 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 988	Post Options Post Reply Quote Dawg Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 21 March 2011 at 10:06pm
	Hmmmm....nice low mile Fiero. Looks clean. I'm just wondering why the guy thinks the cross member needs replacing. What's wrong with it? I can't imagine anything short of major rust or accident damage that could cause this. Non of those are a good thing. If he gives either of those two reasons, I would get the car in the air and examine it carefully. For that price, it would still be ok though. As long as you are able to do the repairs yourself. Changing out the cross member can be a bit of a pain if the bolts are really rusty and start breaking on you. Other than that, it's easy. You can use an 85, 86 or 87 cross member if I remember correctly. Cheers, The Dawg
	You dream it up....I'll make it

bigthoogs Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 March 2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3	Post Options Post Reply Quote bigthoogs Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 22 March 2011 at 5:52am
	said theres a crack above the passenger quarter window. and the passenger sideskirt is cracked. said the crossmember was a cheap one and rusted through the brackets. said its the only rust on the car.

beken Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 12 February 2007 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 1462	Post Options Post Reply Quote beken Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 22 March 2011 at 1:33pm
	I'm a bit leery about the cross member as I don't think they usually break. Also, the car has new head gaskets but nothing else was changed? As in all used cars, look it over carefully. As for your Firebird, it looks in great shape. I had entertained thoughts of trading my Fiero in for a Firebird quite a few years (more than a decade) ago. But there is a lot of sentimental value tied to my Fiero. Ultimately, I decided I would miss the handling and the engine noises of a mid-engined car. The Fiero would be very unique and standout car as it ages. However, that would mean few would know how to work on them and difficult to find parts as the car gets older. My advice is, if you are a gearhead and enjoy working on cars and driving them from a car appreciating perspective, go for the Fiero. If you just want a basically reliable good looking car, the Firebird isn't a bad choice either and ultimately a bit less expensive to maintain.
	Beken (aka Ken) - bekentech@westcoastfieros.com Original and still the owner of an 85SE 2M6 4spd

bigthoogs Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 March 2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3	Post Options Post Reply Quote bigthoogs Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 22 March 2011 at 4:43pm
	how about this one? http://saginaw.craigslist.org/cto/2267117957.html idk about that oil leak. im not too worried about cruise control.