Engine Info (2.8 V6)

Ok, Im building a project car, its nto a fiero, but we've narrowed down our possible engines, and one of them is a 2.8 V6 from a fiero.

Now Im just trying to get more info on the fiero and its V6.

Things like which year was the best. which year had less problems, what problems did the engine have, and whatever.

The more info about the engine the better.

Thaks for your help.

ive never had any problems with my engine. and i havent heard of any strange problems.

all the 2.8's are the same pretty much. i think they changed the oil pan in 87 or 88 thats about it

otherwise they are pretty reliable and all?

yeah as far as i know they are. mine had 16,700 miles on it when i got it in 2002 and now it has 51,700.never had any problems.

The 88's used a coil pack, the earlier models used a distributor/coil set up.

pretty reliable, mine had 147k miles before it threw a rod, but that was due to driver error. just dont run it low on oil, and you should be fine.

the fiero 2.8 had 140hp, 170 lb-ft of torque. the camaro/firebird 2.8s had slightly less, due to more restrictive intake manifold i believe.

[QUOTE=fierangero]pretty reliable, mine had 147k miles before it threw a rod, but that was due to driver error. just dont run it low on oil, and you should be fine.

What he said. The oiling systems aren't so good on these engines, so keep 'em full and use good oil that wont sludge up and make things worse.

I don't think the camaro/firebird 2.8s were the high output versions of the 2.8. If thats the case they don't have the larger valves that the Fiero heads have. I do know for sure that the cams are different; the Fiero cam is the better one to have. People even use it in the 3.4 shortblock when they do that engine "swap". I don't know about the 2.8 Camaro intake but the 3.4 camaro intake is less restrictive than the 2.8 Fiero intake used in the common swap which is one reason the power output is reduced.

The intake is really the main hurdle when it comes to building these engines. Someone recently started selling a custom intake for the 2.8/3.1/3.4 (pushrod) that flows better especially on the high end, making it much better for a built engine. Here's a few threads on Pennock's concerning it, including some dyno information and one buildup thread:
http://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/051176.html (read the last few pages, the rest was from before the intake was released)
http://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/059634.html (Raydar installs the intake in his 88 Fiero coupe 3.4)
If you don't go with a custom intake, I think the camaro/firebird 3.4 intake is the best flowing out of all the ones available from the factory.

If the application isn't Fiero-specific, consider the aluminum headed version of 2.8/3.1. The overall intake system is much better than the iron headed version. The plenum and water pump assemblies won't fit in Fiero, without cutting up the shock towers and altering the suspension.
The later 3.1 and 3.4 stuff will fit, and has advantages like roller rockers and roller lifters.

The 88 2.8 in fieros (L44) didn't use coil packs. MY brother in law has an 88 formula and he uses the same msd coil as me.

The 88 is the better engine it is internally balanced, Lighter pistons (90 grams total), and the pistons are lathed.

The cast 2.8, 3.1 and 3.4 all share the same cast iron heads. The aluminum heads are different. The fiero L44 is the only high output 2.8 the has 1.7 intake valves.

No matter what engine you use...get a getrag 5 dpeed tranny...they are the best.

i heard the 4 speed muncies are monsters, suited more for the 1/4 mile, and not so much for the freeway (lack of OD)

i heard the 4 speed muncies are monsters, suited more for the 1/4 mile, and not so much for the freeway (lack of OD)

No that is not a very accurate statement. My brother in laws 88 forumla stomps the hell out of my 86 fastback. The gearing is better in the getrag 5 speed, but the muncie 4 speed does come in second as far as 1/4 racing goes. It sucks on highway mile plus the topend sucks real bad with it. All the way around I would go with a getrag if I could. The other 4 speed, the 4.10 geared 4 speed is another issue when it come to 1/4 mile racing, That is the "monster" you're thinking of. That tranny is rarer than a getrag and it doesn't go over like 110 or so, but for drag racing and city driving that's the tranny to get if you like smoking tires. It is geared way low.

Hmm nice amount of torque, but only 140hp...

I was hoping for something in the 200 range atleast.