You can knock the Pontiac Fiero for many things: the suspension that was ganked from the Citation and Chevette that didn’t live up to it’s promises, that small issue of engine fires, or any other point. But in reality, the Fiero was a pretty decent leap of faith for Pontiac. In the early 1980s, Pontiac was kind of a shell…they had lost their own engine line, and were selling more and more badge-engineered GM vehicles, like J2000s. The Fiero was unlike just about everything GM has produced, before or after. In fact, outside of prototypes, the rumored mid-engined Corvette and the rear-engined Corvairs are the next closest vehicles that match the Fiero’s overall layout, and only the C8, which is thirty years newer, will have more sporting credentials. The Fiero fit into a small group of cars that were intended to be economical and sporty. Unlike the rivals, the Ford EXP and the Dodge Charger 2.2, the Fiero used a layout normally sitting in the Ferrari showroom.
This is a promo video that is hosted by a voice you should know pretty well…Mike Joy might be better known for NASCAR work or his time at TNN, but here he’s a Pontiac spokesman and interviews everyone from Hulki Aldikacti to the line workers on the Fiero line at the Pontiac Assembly plant. You’ll see everything from the mahogany first prototype through desert testing the development mules and see how Pontiac’s little sports car came to being!
I worked at a Pontiac dealer in the 90s and we used to get some really nice ones come through the shop. We also had 3 occurances of engine fire insurance fraud that were hillarious. One poured gas on the decklid and set it on fire claiming it was the engine. The engine was spotless under the decklid with no leaks at all. Another at least lit the engine on fire but it was v6 when it was the 4cylinder cars that had gotten the bad reputation. The third was the cliche moron that lit the front of the car on fire. How the guy didn’t know the engine was in the back still blows my mind to this day. Come to think of it, In the 12 or so years I worked for pontiac, I never saw a single legit Fiero fire get towed in. Makes me wonder if this was as big of an issue as the media made it out to be. BTW, This was in Florida so if assume it was hot enough for the issue to occur.
Man I love illuminating comments like yours!
Lately I’ve been scanning CL for a suitable mid engine whip starting with the MR2, then any ’88 Fiero a close 2nd and maybe a 914 or X1/9 if I’m feeling lucky. I did just buy a mid-engine ’91 Honda Beat at an Amelia Island auction. Speaking of burned, I was burned: their advertising claimed it as a 35,000km car. What arrived at my house hundreds of miles away in an auto transporter was haggard with a rolled back odometer and some hidden receipts they’d missed showing it actually had 185,000 kms on it.
Back to the search!