I’m halfway through a ridiculous ordeal to get home from Portland, as I sit typing this in the Humphrey terminal at MSP. I’m very much looking forward to getting back to ground-based transportation at this point, no matter its condition. I found these two scruffy rascals in a search last night, and they still look interesting, so I’ll run with them.
How do you choose a project car? Prevailing wisdom says it should be something you truly love, so that you are willing to weather the storms that inevitably come with fixing up an old car. But that’s not much help if, like me, you’re more or less agnostic in your love of cars. Before I bought my MGB, I looked at a Volvo 122, a Sunbeam Alpine GT, and a Porsche 924, and inquired after a bunch more, including a Lancia Beta, a Mustang II, and a second-generation Camaro. I have no brand loyalty; I just like what I like.
Once something catches your eye, though, that’s when the real danger sets in. You have to approach any prospective project car with as clear of a head as you can manage, and consider the worst possible outcome, rather than just hoping for the best. The Volvo I looked at ran all right, but had no floors – and I don’t know how to weld. So it was out. The Porsche was the opposite; it was rust-free and shiny, but ran on three cylinders. And that poor old Sunbeam still surfaces on Craigslist in the Pacific Northwest once in a while. I don’t think anyone has gotten it back on the road yet. I thought my MG was a safe bet, until the radiator blew on the drive home.
The two cars I’m going to show you today couldn’t be more different. One is a stodgy sedan with a busted transmission, and the other is a sports car that has been transformed into someone’s vision of something. Spend time getting either one of them back on the road, however, and you’ll know a thing or two about old cars. That much is certain. Let’s check them out.
1974 Volvo 164E – $1,000
Engine/drivetrain: 3.0-liter OHV inline 6, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Orlando, FL
Odometer reading: 120,000 miles
Operational status: Runs well, but has transmission issues – must be towed
Volvo is often seen as a luxury brand, but if you’re familiar with its cars, especially older ones like this, you’d know they’re not really luxurious. The’re just nice, and well-built. But come to think of it, quality was something of a luxury in the world of 70s automobiles, when so few had it, so I guess you could say this is a luxury car. The 164 is definitely a step fancier than its other models, aimed squarely at BMW and Mercedes.
In place of the typical four-cylinder, the 164 features an inline six. This is a later E model, with fuel injection. The seller says it runs well, and in fact it was daily-driven until a year ago. Unfortunately, like too many US-spec models, this 164 has an automatic transmission, and even more unfortunately, it’s a Borg-Warner 35, the official poster child of “eh, good enough” when it comes to optional automatics in European cars in the 70s. Predictably, it’s trashed, has no reverse, and it sounds like it slips going forward. The seller was planning a four-speed manual conversion, but has not been able to locate a pedal assembly to complete it. They fear some custom work might be necessary. It doesn’t sound like a bolt-in conversion.
It’s rough inside, a victim of many years of regular use. This was the loaner car for a Volvo dealership in the 80s, and getting passed around like that is tough on a car’s upholstery. The dash top has seen better days as well. Restoration parts are available for other Volvos; it should be possible to track down what this one needs.
Another thing it needs is rust repair; the tin worm has been chewing away at the floors and rocker panels for some time now. But hey, the price of entry is low enough. Make this the car that gets you to learn how to weld. And when that’s done, you can try your hand at a DIY paint job, too.
1986 Pontiac Fiero SE – $2,500
Engine/drivetrain: 2.8-liter OHV V6, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Greenwood, IN
Odometer reading: 166,000 miles
Operational status: Not running, needs fuel pump
Selling a customized car is a dangerous business. It’s such a personal endeavor, and your tastes are unlikely to align perfectly with someone else’s. So if you’re going to customize a car, you’re better off doing it for yourself, rather than expecting to turn a profit. And it’s also better if you finish it before trying to sell it, because it’s even more unlikely that someone else is going to want to continue the work to realize your vision. Witness this hopefully one-of-a-kind Pontiac Fiero.
The seller calls this car a GT, but it isn’t. In 1986 the GT version of the Fiero received its own unique body panels, with a fastback silhouette created by long flying buttresses and quarter windows on either side of the engine cover. This is the typical “notchback” Fiero shape, marking it as a base or SE model. Since it has the V6 engine, I’m assuming it’s an SE. It still has the old Muncie four-speed manual, which means it’s an ’86 from early in the year, as well. The engine and transmission have been rebuilt, but the car currently needs a new fuel pump to run.
There are a lot of strange little details about the interior of this car that you’d probably have to have the seller explain to you. The row of switches behind the shifter are for the air-ride suspension, I imagine, but I don’t know what the red button on the side of the shifter does. I like to think it activates a smoke screen, or an ejector seat on the passenger’s side, but it’s probably nothing that cool.
Who else remembers the old MPC “Golden Opportunity” model kits from the 1980s? Because that’s what this car reminds me of on the outside. You could either build the car stock, or add on a bunch of custom bric-a-brac to the outside. This looks like it takes its inspiration from the “Custom” version of the Fiero on the box. It has a cowl-induction hood, which is ridiculous because the engine and its air intake are in the back, but it also has those two huge air scoops sticking up over the roof, which may or may not be functional. The door handles have been shaved, too, a detail I have never understood. And at the moment, it looks like the entire thing is finished in flat black.
The sellers of both of these cars had a vision for them, and it’s a vision you’ll have to share to some degree to get them back on the road. One of them needs a transmission swap and some rust repair, and the other technically only needs a new fuel pump, from the sound of it, but there is a lot of work done that you may wish to undo. Either way, you can dip your toes into both mechanical repair and body work with either one of them. Which one will it be?
That fiero has been on Craigslist for several months. Apparently nobody wants it.
Save air ride suspension for the low-riders, which this could be with the non-sensical scoops and shaved door handles, but it seems like a strange platform and I think current owner wanted to make something that would look fast and sinister. Overall I would rather have a Fiero, just not that Fiero. Make mine the Volvo today I like the blue paint and bet that was a very handsome car at some point.
Is there an option to vote for the Fiero at the Volvo’s price?
Selling the Fiero as a GT(F…outta…here)…..?
Unbutchering the Fiero probably is easier and might even add value to the vehicle. Even if I do a hacky job, it can’t be worse than what’s here.
The Volvo is obscure enough to make the project more about sourcing correct parts. It is also nice enough that I’d want to do it right, which means that it would never happen.
I like Fieros. But not this one. Ick.
So I’m voting Volvo, despite the fact this one has a rust hole in the firewall.
Flat black is absolutely the wrong color for that Fiero. It demands some wild graphics in yellow, magenta, and teal… I have a vision for how it SHOULD look, so it has my vote.
Totally. They were happy cars, not angry Fast n Furious wannabes.
I mean, the logo was a freakin’ pegasus. It’s impossible for that to be all scary.
I guess Fiero, but not because it looks more fun. I like Fieros, and that one could be viable after removing some of the stupid stuff like the air intakes. But the shaved door handles…ugh. But the Volvo is a bit too much of a basket case between the transmission and rust, and it isn’t a model I like enough to commit to fixing both.
I expected to go Fiero here, but yeah it’s just too much of a mess and the Volvo is more appealing today.
I love Fieros. I’ve had two and I would like to have another.
But not that one.
Volvo for me.
I went Fiero.
I’m not opposed to spending some money restoring an old Volvo, just not this this particular one. I’d go for an p1800.
Well this is one of the days I wished for a “neither” button. I went for the Volvo, only because someone hadn’t completely bodged it up. I guess I’ll break out the welding rig and get to work, and perhaps do a tranny swap. I wonder if a Torqueflite 727 would fit in that Volvo?
Oooooff. I don’t do rust, so that forces me to choose the Fiero. Can’t be that hard to find a new frunk lid, right? I can live with the snorkels if they actually improve air flow to the engine (BIG if), but the side scoops need to go. Hopefully they just pop into the original intakes and aren’t glued/epoxied to the body.
Some cars are just finished. Cars that most people wouldn’t take for free. They lived their useful life and, for various reasons, are destined for the wrecking yard.
These are 2 of those cars.
Neither, but gun to my head, the Volvo.
You can’t make this Volvo nice for what a nice one of these costs, so taking it on is tilting at windmills. This is a parts car at this point, and needs to finish dying so better ones can live.
That Volvo just ain’t my thing. The Fiero in its current form ain’t either, but that would be relatively simple to rectify with bolt on plastic panels from the junk yard, or a better yet turn it into the 308 look alike I’ve always wanted.
I don’t think the Volvo is as rough as it appears at first glance. The interior looks good, aside from the front seat upholstery, the crack in the dash, and the right door panel. The door panel and upholstery are an easy (but maybe not cheap) fix. The dashboard might be difficult to locate, but if nothing else it could be covered easily. The rust makes me nervous, but I don’t see anything that isn’t repairable. Aside from the rust and paint, the exterior looks good. I don’t see a need for major body work and the glass, chrome bits, lights, trim, and bumpers all look like they could be reused with minor reconditioning. This Volvo is definitely a project car, but it isn’t a total basket case. It is a solid deal.
I’m going to refrain from commenting on the Fiero. I’m not an ’80s car fan, but I can appreciate a stock, or at least tastefully modified, Fiero. This isn’t that.
I hate the body kit on that Fiero and I don’t want to deal with removing it and figuring out what the body underneath it needs.
The Volvo looks worthwhile for someone who knows what they are getting themselves into and has the skills/money to fix it up. I have neither unfortunately. It still gets my fake internet money vote for today because good god I hate that Fiero’s body kit.
Wow! That Fiero is…..something. First of all, why did the seller include a picture of the car wearing a giant shower cap? Any why no picture of the engine? I suspect that the ‘air intakes’ make it difficult to open the hood.
The air suspension is an idea I had back in 1982 when the Ford EXP came out. As a young kid with no clue about cars, I thought that putting an air suspension in back to give it that drag racer lift at traffic lights would be awesome! (I had no idea that it only had 70hp, and that it was way more ‘drag’ than ‘racer’.)
Since it’s not running, at least I look of the Volvo. So it’ll look nice sitting there waiting for me to work on it.
But the Fiero’s starting point means that no matter what I do to it, it can’t look much worse. And with dark tinted windows, no one would know it’s me.
Fiero. Because I wouldn’t be able to do the Volvo justice.
This post is very self-aware.
Fiero body panels are plastic, so a donor might be found to easily return this thing to something less thing-like. However, $2500 is to much.
Gimme the Swedish Brick. It looks way better than the Fiero. I’m not scared of a little rust.
Another day of picking the least expensive option since neither is worth the asking price.
Gimme the Temu Batman Fiero. If a Volvo is rusty where you can see it, it’s way worse where you can’t.
Also, is that an airbag steering wheel on a 1974 Volvo?!?
Nope, no airbag!
Volvo just started making space for that safety tech 20 years early.
No airbag, just as big an energy-absorbing hub as they could put there, and, yes, that is the original wheel. GM had (rare) optional airbags in 1974, but Volvo didn’t have them until about 1987.
Stock, non-airbag.
https://live.staticflickr.com/5227/5805187274_61121017d4_b.jpg
TEMU Batman is WILD.
I’ve always thought Fiero’s were cool. The 88 GT was pretty nice but by then the ship had already sailed. I had two MR2’s & want a third. I have enough friends that I could bribe into helping me with this thing, one even has two lifts.
The Volvo does absolutely nothing for me.