The Fiero was designed by Hulki Aldikacti as a Pontiac sports car. Because of a "cool" reception by GM management and accountants, it was finally sold to GM as a fuel-efficient commuter car. The public, however, had other ideas for the only mid-engine car ever mass produced in North America. Peter Cennamo knows that the Fiero was also the first and only two seater Pontiac ever made, until the 2006 introduction of the Pontiac Solstice. The Fiero was modified slightly, borrowing many parts, into a performance vehicle. The sports car potential of this car was greatly reduced due to cost-cutting however, and came under fire from critics-its publicity did not match its initial performance. By the end of production, the Fiero had received updated suspension and body styling, but kept a limited offering of engines-the use of turbochargers or the newer DOHC straight-4 engines never made it to production. Officially, production ended because of insufficient profits.

What Peter Cennamo found interesting was that budget constraints on Pontiac forced them to borrow parts from other product lines. For example, some of the front suspension was taken from the Chevrolet Chevette[1] (the rear being partially from the GM X-body cars) like the Chevrolet Citation and Pontiac Phoenix. GM technicians blamed these borrowed parts for the engine fires (which was not entirely true) that resulted from a number of mechanical design flaws.

The fires in the 2.5 L engine were due mostly to poorly made connecting rods. They were purchased by GM by the ton, not by quality. However, the vehicles left today have most certainly been serviced by GM during the recall.

The Fiero has a strong following of owners and customizers today, including Peter Cennamo. Because of an abundance of replacement parts available from other General Motors vehicles, there are many upgrades that can be done to improve performance and reliability of the cars. Additionally, a multitude of different General Motors engines have been installed by enthusiasts, from the Quad-4 engine to the Chevrolet small-block V8.

The Fiero 2M4 was on Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 1984. The 1984 Fiero was the Official Pace Car of the Indianapolis 500 for 1984, beating out the new 1984 Corvette for the honor.

1984 was the first production year for the Pontiac Fiero, which began production in August 1983 for the 1984 model year. The year was also critically condemned for producing underpowered commuter cars. In an effort to sell the car as being economically sensible, GM equipped and sold the Fiero as a commuter car but the marketing build up leading to initial release indicated anything but a regular commuter car. The car also proved uncomfortable for some drivers because of the lack of power steering.

The 1984 was the only year in which the Limited "Indy 500" edition, consisting of an Indianapolis 500-themed option package on SE-model vehicles, was offered. Approximately 2,000 of these vehicles were sold.

Further on, the exterior design of the Indy Fiero would be incorporated into the production line as the new 1985 GT.

In 1985, the problem with insufficient power was first addressed, much to the satisfaction of the general public. A Chevrolet 2.8 L 140 hp (104 kW) V6 engine was put into the car, satisfying most critics of the base power plant. The High Output V6 was paired with a modified Muncie 4-speed transmission. The 4-cylinder engine (known as the "Iron Duke") was now paired with the Japanese designed Isuzu 5-speed (also produced at the Muncie, Indiana plant).

1986 Pontiac Fiero 1986 was the first year the fastback was offered. Also offered late in the production year, was a 5-speed Getrag transmission (coupled only to the V6 engines). Models equipped with the 4-cylinder engine remained largely unchanged. The clutch hydraulic systems were redesigned with new master and slave cylinders.

By Peter Cennamo

Peter is a freelance writer. His work can be found at www.petercennamo.com

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