Its 20 degrees with wind gusts to 45 mph here,so I'm avoiding any tranny swaps..hell,I dont even want to walk to the mailbox!...got 5" of snow yesterday,first measureable storm so far this winter--..
The Fiero is a "duh" ... the kit car, though, is trickier. Laser 917? Bradley GT? Hard to tell in the snow. Assuming it's VW-based and doesn't have another Fiero underneath (that's usually Lambo replicas, yeah?)
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Its 20 degrees with wind gusts to 45 mph here,so I'm avoiding any tranny swaps..hell,I dont even want to walk to the mailbox!...got 5" of snow yesterday,first measureable storm so far this winter--..


Thanks. I have not had the time to think about this since the last update. But that thread makes a lot of sense. The flywheel has a lip extending forward of the teeth, while the flex plate has none. In order to get the teeth in the right place, that ledge will be sticking further forward.
I have heard of the small-opening starters, and seen pictures of them in the little helpful sheet that Autozone shipped with my MT-28 starter (explaining that gear reduction starters are equivalent to direct drive starters). It also claimed that small-opening starters were equivalent to large-opening starters. But that nose is exactly what seems to be the problem. Shimming out the flywheel will put the teeth in the wrong place (so the starter won't be able to engage it). I really do need to make clearance appear via the starter motor.My other (automatic) trucks have the large-opening starter in them.
So...shall I grind the starter down like the poster of that thread did? I've not heard of a manual 24V truck, so I'm not sure I could buy a large-opening 24V starter. I'm not ready to rewire everything for 12V at this point.
@Richcz28, did you have a similar problem when you swapped trannys?
@diesel4me, thanks a bunch for looking that up. I hadn't even started thinking about the problem yet, and here you already have a good piece of the solution. Your willingness to help out is really neat.![]()
We'll get this truck running yet.
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And I'll go for the triple post...
I agree with 3.73s for the 5 speed with 33 inch tires only. I would personally jump to the 4.10s for a little extra, but I wouldn't go higher on the 33s. I forget how awesome low gears are until I get in my truck with 4.88s and pick the clutch up and it just drives itself.
Cut the rockers out and stop messing around.
Your frame looks a little crusty for a cucv.
Check out a third row removable seat from a burb with the seat belts incorporated for the kids. They bolt in really easy.
Look into the Josh Thomas dodge sye for that 208 before you bolt it up.
Just run the stock 208 shifter. Everything else sounds more complicated than necessary. I think @Chevy305 has it working fine.
When you switch to 8 lug will you be running wheels without safety beads?
Why do people not just get the correct glow plugs? My 13gs work perfectly....




Ya I used the stock 208 shifter in the stock location. The only thing is that the NV4500 shifter interferes with the plastic bezel. My solution was to run a 205 shifter boot and retainer. The boot retainers overlapped at the corners but it works. The bolt holes didn't line up exactly so I just used self tapping screws. One of these days I'll get around to making a custom combined boot and and retainer.
View attachment 195915

You guys missed the grand am, snapper lawnmower, and dodge ram 50 ( Mazda) pickup.Trivia bit:
Here is a picture of the rotten trailer (no bed floor or support, just the box falling off the frame). Who recognizes the other vehicles in the lineup?
View attachment 195160
Or here's a different year (with a different mix of cars). That trailer sat for a loooong time before getting reused. The frame is still sitting until someone comes up with a use for it.
View attachment 195161
Closeup on the back end. I wish I could find the actual pictures of digging it out for this project. But its condition wasn't noticeably different.
View attachment 195159
You guys missed the grand am, snapper lawnmower, and dodge ram 50 ( Mazda) pickup.

Btw the Fiero GT is kind of a cool car. Reasonably quick. My buddy had one in high school.
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The hardcore guys swap the 32 valve caddy northstars into them. They are crazy quick then.
I see big blue has the same wheels.... Hint, hint....

idk, I had one of those snapper lawnmowers and you could wheelie those all day due to the rear mount engine.Nobody cares about those.![]()
idk, I had one of those snapper lawnmowers and you could wheelie those all day due to the rear mount engine.


I used a universal shifter boot. My trans didn't come with the stock boot or shifter. But given how close the shifters are you couldn't run the stock boot anyway. Sorry if I missed it, but what was the wife's idea?Might just be the picture angle, but your tranny shifter boot looks smaller than a stock NV4500 boot. Is this true or just an illusion?
And is your shifter in the same location as the older series of NV4500 cases? I know the shifting tower is different.![]()
I used a universal shifter boot. My trans didn't come with the stock boot or shifter. But given how close the shifters are you couldn't run the stock boot anyway. Sorry if I missed it, but what was the wife's idea?
I believe the shifter location is the same for all NV4500s. Which is just a few inches back from the SM465. Here's exactly where I moved mine back to. (Please excuse the horrendous eye balled cuts)
View attachment 195966

