This Dune Buggy Fiero Is A Bad Idea Done Right

"DailyTurismo" (thedailyturismo)
04/13/2015 at 13:26 • Filed to: Daily Turismo, Fiero, Dune Buggy, Blog

If a friend told me that he had this totally bitchin' idea about transforming a Fiero into a Jeepesque dune buggy, I'd tell him that he needs to check the expiration date on his meds. But somehow this mid engined dune runner pulls off a great beach buggy vibe and actually looks cool. Cut fenders, roll tube bumpers, and gaudy wheels with too much offset are normally no-nos in the great book of acceptable automotive addendum, but they work on a dune buggy...even one built from discarded bits of Pontiac's Fiero.

The last custom Fiero featured on Daily Turismo ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ) was downright horrific and others (like the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ) have been really bad implementation of a good idea. But today's feature comes from the opposite side of the spectrum and is the best possible outcome from a positively ludicrous idea. Find this !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! offered for $7,500 CAD ($5,970 USD) located in Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada via kijij.ca. Tip from JohnU.

The seller includes a video of the little yellow custom doing things you'd expect it to do, like backing out of a driveway and cruising down the street. Back in the day you could build/buy something like a Meyers Manx and take it to some light off roading on the beach like you were in an Elvis movie, but I don't believe there is a single stretch of beach that allows you to hoon your custom in the US of A anymore — having fun was a 20th century distraction, now replaced by facebook/instagram/tatoos&twitter.

See another strangely cool looking example of a bad idea done right? !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Originally published as !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

Image credits: Kijiji.ca

DISCUSSION (90)

Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:30

Kinja'd!!!

How did Demuro get his hands on this already?

DailyTurismo > Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif
04/13/2015 at 13:34

You know — I had the exact same thought. The Demuro salute has crossed the border into Canadia?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:35

CP, but it is a lovely thing.

MJ > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:45

It's a Jalapeño kit:

http://www.pisafierohq.com/rebody_kits/ja…

Tim the KNinja > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:46

Totally the Jalapeño ( http://www.pisafierohq.com/rebody_kits/ja… ):

Kinja'd!!!

O'Verboost, Where Art Thou > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:46

An unlikely return to its SUV origins since part of the suspension comes from the blazer...

Kinja'd!!!

DailyTurismo > Tim the KNinja
04/13/2015 at 13:46

Spicy!

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:47

It's interesting. I'm not sure if I'd want to buy it. But it would be fun.

gunner dearborn > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:47

You can romp on Pismo Beach, CA

DailyTurismo > MJ
04/13/2015 at 13:48

Shhhh, now everybody will want one!!

8695Beaters > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:48

Kinja'd!!!

If these were still popups, I'd be sold. Still, this is a much better use of a Fiero than turning it into a knockoff Ferrari.

SolamenteDave > MJ
04/13/2015 at 13:48

That's kinda awesome. Now, to go find a V6 Fiero for cheap.

Sethersm > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:49

Kinja'd!!!

Was on board until here. Those tail lights just ruined it.

Also, unless things have changed in the last few years, you can still drive on the beach on the NC Outer Banks: https://www.outerbanks.org/outerbanks-dri…

nighttimeistherighttime > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:50

I don't understand why Fieros get so much hate. I used to own one and they're fun little cars to drive.

DailyTurismo > Sethersm
04/13/2015 at 13:50

I guess you can still have fun in the Carolinas!

David E. Davis > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:50

Kinja'd!!!

I'm a sucker for rotary dial wheels. Ever since seeing the Mach 5.

Kinja'd!!!

MrMongoose > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:51

That would be Canukistan, thank you very much!

ApriliaFutura > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:52

why is that so painfully delightful?!

reverberocket is nipping the apex..and gently blowing in it's ear. > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 13:53

It bought to my mind the Meyers Manx SR - I guess it's the sports/dune thing...

Kinja'd!!!

DailyTurismo > MrMongoose
04/13/2015 at 13:53

Did you know that Canada was originally spelled Cnd? But when a Canadian was asked to spell it he said: c, eh, n, eh, d, eh.

Frenchlicker > Tim the KNinja
04/13/2015 at 13:56

exactly what I was thinking.

MrMongoose > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:00

I have lived in Canada my entire life... and I still cannot understand where Americans got the ''eh'' from ._.

daender > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:00

Kinja'd!!!

This body molding needs to go, it looks out of place now that the rest of the molding was removed when the new ends went on.

random001 > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:01

Kinja'd!!!

That's actually really cool for what it is...

BeauM > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:02

It looks like a poor mans Stratos. I want it!

GreenN_Gold > nighttimeistherighttime
04/13/2015 at 14:04

I don't think people hate the Fiero. People hate what other people do to Fieros.

F86Pilot > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:04

I see why he has the roof off, his head looks about 2 inches too high!

GreenN_Gold > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:04

I could have fun in that.

rayJoyal > O'Verboost, Where Art Thou
04/13/2015 at 14:05

Having owned a Fiero and an S15 Jimmy, I'm going to suggest that the above statement is incorrect.

Front suspension on a Fiero is from a Chevette, the rear suspension is the front suspension from a Citation.

The rear suspension on a Blazer is leafs and a solid axle. The 4x4 front is torsion bars. The 2wd Blazer front suspension looks like a 2nd-gen F-body.

TheRealBicycleBuck > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:07

"...I don't believe there is a single stretch of beach that allows you to hoon your custom in the US of A anymore..."

You are mistaken in your beliefs. Most of the beaches in Texas have unrestricted vehicular access and access is considered a constitutional right !

Unrestricted Vehicular Access

The beaches along the Texas Gulf Coast were historically used as public roadways. Today, this tradition is still recognized in many areas where vehicles are permitted to park and drive without restrictions on the public beach throughout the year. Vehicular access is considered a primary means of access to most Texas beaches for all persons and is recognized as an acceptable option for providing access for people with disabilities.

MikeofLA > MrMongoose
04/13/2015 at 14:10

I talk to Canadians daily. I don't understand how you can't hear it. It's mostly from the Mid Western provinces though. It's probably how I no longer hear "like" from Southern Californians or "uh", from... well, everybody.

I am Jack's complete lack of compassion > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:10

Outer Banks, you can hoon the beach. Daytona too.

Prophet of hoon > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:12

no stretches of beach to hoon? whatcha talkin about willis? there's a billion places to do so... okay maybe I exaggerate a bit... but there are, along the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California lots of places to play in the sand. Going inland, there's a bunch as well....

whether there's a place to play in the sand where you wouldn't have to wear a bag over your head in that car? that could be tougher to find.

Prophet of hoon > nighttimeistherighttime
04/13/2015 at 14:13

they like hating everything from GM. no more, no less.

Stephen > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:14

Sehr gut!

Kinja'd!!!

Matthew Urso > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
04/13/2015 at 14:14

NP. T-tops and yellow, dammit

Gravypig > ApriliaFutura
04/13/2015 at 14:16

Because it is a Jalapeno! Spicy and full of flavor!

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Matthew Urso
04/13/2015 at 14:18

Totally NP if you have somebody to go halvsies with.

DailyTurismo > Stephen
04/13/2015 at 14:19

That is SLCK!

drdude > rayJoyal
04/13/2015 at 14:25

I concur.. The blazer front suspension uses the same lower a arms as the F-body (3rdgen camaro) and the same as the G-body (monte carlo)... all stamped steel pieces of crap.

Not_Bob > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
04/13/2015 at 14:27

The whole kit is $4860 , so you are getting the donor Fiero and 200 hours of labor (according to the kit sellers) for $1110.

Pigfeet > Stephen
04/13/2015 at 14:29

As an SLK 230 owner, I don't know if I want to laugh, cry, or be intrigued.

Maxxuman > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:29

So, Duneiero?

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:30

This shouldn't work, but it does. Oh does it does...

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Not_Bob
04/13/2015 at 14:37

I was drawing a CP on general terms, because a project like this is never worth what you put into it - so a comparison to the retail for a normal Fiero seemed apropos... in other words, the question of how much more this is worth than a normal Fiero comes up. BUT: the real comparison is probably to what any kind of Meyers Manx or similar would go for turn-key, and on that grounds, it might very well squeak a NP. Definitely in comparison to the genuine Meyers.

supra-squirrel > Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif
04/13/2015 at 14:38

thats not demuro, its his eerily nice Canadian cousin.

Whatabouteggs > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:39

might be my favorite fiero conversion, bu. Wouldn't it have been cheaper to just buy an x90?

Kinja'd!!!

James > MrMongoose
04/13/2015 at 14:40

I'm from Toronto. We even say it here. Not in conjunction with "the accent," but still.

Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif > supra-squirrel
04/13/2015 at 14:42

It can't be, Doug is already the most Canadian name possible.

I hoon, therefore I am > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:43

Kinja'd!!!

Baby Rally Fighter?

BlurpleToyotaDishwasher > 8695Beaters
04/13/2015 at 14:47

The positive thing about all the awful Ferrari-wannabe Fiero kits is that it means less awful Ferrari-wannabe MR2 kits.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:56

Pisa Jalapeño is an interesting kit.

Makes for a conversation piece, that is for sure, especially a rare T-top space-frame.

Kinja'd!!!

timgray > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 14:57

It's also very very old, They sold those kits for at least 2 decades.

http://www.pisafierohq.com/rebody_kits/ja…

p00pman > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
04/13/2015 at 15:07

Your face is a crackpipe.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > p00pman
04/13/2015 at 15:11

Your mom's face is a crackpipe.

Caleb "If a rally car can do it, so can my Malibu" M. S. > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 15:13

Kinja'd!!!

It looks almost like one of those small, battery powered, plastic cars that petrolheads buy for their kids

defenestrae > O'Verboost, Where Art Thou
04/13/2015 at 15:29

They also (on some models) share the same 2.5L Iron Duke engine.

Ted Ladue > Prophet of hoon
04/13/2015 at 15:33

On the East Coast there's drivable beaches from NC to FL.

718Rogue > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 15:34

I've done donuts and high speed drifts in the sand on the ghetto beach in Long Beach around 2am...

TheThirdParty > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 15:35

I see what you did there...

DoglegFirst > Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif
04/13/2015 at 15:37

I thought he sold his Fiero a few months ago

SeniorVerde > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 15:40

Kinja'd!!!

Longbeach, WA - still driveable beach!

nighttimeistherighttime > GreenN_Gold
04/13/2015 at 15:51

I don't know about that. I had an '85 Fiero from '90-'92 (my junior and senior years in high school and my freshman year in college) and I always had car guys making fun of it. Unfortunately I took a corner too fast one cold December day, slid on some sand, over-corrected, and put it into a telephone pole. Thanks to the mid-engine design I was able to drive it home, even though the pole went halfway through the front of the car.

hismiths > MrMongoose
04/13/2015 at 15:52

Don't know any Canadians to talk to, eh?

jeffieboy > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 15:52

Kinja'd!!!

Had to be a Canadian vehicle. Hell, we need those tires and clearance just to get through the snow on a regular basis. This wasn't a toy, it was a necessity.

jeffieboy > David E. Davis
04/13/2015 at 15:53

Also a fiero...

LongLarry > MrMongoose
04/13/2015 at 15:54

Being from Minnesota I have spent a lot of time up north. Maybe its a regional thing, I have heard some use it but it is hardly universal. Sort of like Minnesotan's who say , "don'cha know"

DailyTurismo > nighttimeistherighttime
04/13/2015 at 16:11

See — if you had turned yours into a dune buggy, it would have been prepared for the sand and not skidded into a pole.

DailyTurismo > Gravypig
04/13/2015 at 16:12

And like a jalapeno, you seriously regret your choice 24 hours later.

CBus660R > nighttimeistherighttime
04/13/2015 at 16:13

I think it comes down to the fact that the 1st couple years had issues and as Autoweek put it back in the day, when GM/Pontiac finally go it right, they killed it off.

GreenN_Gold > nighttimeistherighttime
04/13/2015 at 16:25

Perhaps these "car guys" were really just being snotty teenage douche bag haters, as so many teenagers (#NotAllTeenagers) are good at being.

But you actually owned one for a few years, so I'll have to defer to your experiences with it. My dad got to take one home from work a couple nights (the car was a promotional piece for Carquest) and we had a lot of fun with it. I may or may not have stuck my head out the sunroof.

Gaseous Clay > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 16:27

I feel like I have seen this kit before

edit: TimTheNinja confirmed it: http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/totally-the-ja…

Prophet of hoon > Ted Ladue
04/13/2015 at 17:16

In Oregon, they made any beach with sand a designated roadway (seriously, an "interstate" system) - it was actually pretty savvy because it guarantees public access to it... which means it's all driveable(ish).

What's ironic about that designation is this - it was conservatives who did this in the 50s, and the environmentalist, while first touting it as an amazing/great idea, mostly hate it now because they can't protect whatever is between the high-water line and ocean (the designated area)...

Jon Player Specialist > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 17:49

As a dune buggy aficionado with a couple of meyers manxes I feel it's necessary to correct a few things in the article...

you can still buy a meyers manx kit, there are several models available actually: meyersmanx.com

"light off road fun"? buggies can do anything a jeep can do only better and looking cooler. just two days ago i zig zagged through a group of 3 jeeps inching up the face of a sand dune in pismo beach. running firestone all terrains that are only 215 wide with a simple super diff and a single port vw 16oo the car weighs a little over 1200 lbs and glides over stuff that 4x4s sink into and churn their way through. we LIVE to clown jeeps anywhere and everywhere.

there are a couple beaches left, the afore-mentioned pismo beach in Ca, the grand banks in north carolina, a few beaches in florida, hawaii as well as thousands and thousands of miles of open desert available for outright hooning.

Anyone who does have a buggy or is taking an interest should look into the manx club manxclub.com it's a very low key and fun group that can immediately supply 100 answers to any question a budding buggy builder may pose with approximately 4600 members worldwide. this weekend we had a get together in central CA with 136 manx and manx-like buggies gathered with great off road and on road runs. raffles, potluck etc and had a really great time. 89 year old Bruce Meyers, inventor of the fiberglass dune buggy attends all of the club meets and is more than willing to autograph your car, merch, pictures magazines etc while telling grand stories about the history of off road racing and his many adventures.

The buggy is back! the price of a classic, legitimate meyers manx is climbing FAST but the wanna bes are just as fun to drive or you can build a new manx from scratch with many chassis, suspension, engine and transmission options for both on road and off road performance. many of the new builds are using subaru engines and transmissions now with great success though you see everything from LS swaps with mendeola transaxles to little 1200cc vws..

Andrew P. Collins > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 17:50

It's a Jalapeno! I've met the guy that makes this body kit , he's a really cool dude. Works out of a shop near the PHX airport.

...also he says these are "absolutely undrivably bad" off-road.

DailyTurismo > Andrew P. Collins
04/13/2015 at 18:23

I wouldn't expect this thing to be good at any kind of terrain challenge, but bombing along washboards (or the beach!) it can't be that bad...right?

Your Jalapeno article is great — I missed it when it was published.

Turbonium2K > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 19:00

Looked on the website, found some interesting stuff. They sell a few other Fiero based kits, but they seem to have made a habit of designing a pretty front with an ugly rear, for example...

Kinja'd!!!

They call this one the "Artero" kit, and I really like how it looks from the front. Honestly, I'd say it almost looks like a Fiero for the 90s. I think I could go for a different bumper, maybe one designed to look more like a Camaro or a Geo Storm, but I really like the flared fenders and the rounder shape overall. I kind of like the swoopy, tucked-in sides too, with the air vents.

The back end of the car is 100% pure Lamborghini Diablo. It's not that I think it's ugly or anything, but if I'm going to be turning my Fiero into anything other than a Pontiac Fiero I at least want it to be original. I've thought about buying a Fiero, and maybe I could just sort of try to build a "90s Fiero" out of a mishmash of kit car bits, maybe with a few custom fab pieces to tie it all together. Personally, I'd go for a look closer to an Esprit V8 or a Ford Probe.

Tigerjuice > DailyTurismo
04/13/2015 at 19:00

Pismo Beach, CA, dude. Best drive on beach and dunes in the country. Check it out.

DailyTurismo > Tigerjuice
04/13/2015 at 19:47

Radical, man!

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > daender
04/13/2015 at 20:03

You're right, it does look out of place. If I had to guess, I'd imagine it's held on by screws and the guy just decided he would rather have the molding there then do the body work to fill it...but if you're gonna come this far, why quit now, you know?