Ottawa Fiero Club Forum

                                              Fiero History Lesson

The Fiero's history is a short tale of improvement.  The car was originally designed and brought up from paper by a man named Hulki Aldikacti. He eventually got the Fiero into production after a long battle with GM's upper brass.  He was limited to using existing parts from other cars in the GM line.  The only major original part to the Fiero was its design.  The engine was Pontiac's 2.5L 4 cylinder (for 1984), the brakes were existing GM hardware and even the side-mirrors were from the new for '82 Firebird.  The transmission choices were a 4-speed manual or a 3-speed automatic.  1984 was to become known as the worst production year for the Fiero (and unfortunately for the Fiero, the rest of the models would be blamed for that year's problems).  Performance was fair (but not up to sports car standards for the time) with 0-60 times of around 10.9 seconds and 1/4-mile runs of about 17.7-18 seconds.  Over 120,000 versions of this Fiero were made and that is how most people remember them.  All 1984 models were recalled for engine fire hazards that were caused largely by improper maintenance on the owner's part.  1984 Fieros were also plagued with bad connecting rods.  The engine fire problem was soon corrected and according to Pontiac, all 1984 Fieros have had the recall performed so you can't buy one today that has the fire risk.  The 1984 Fiero was awarded for numerous aspects of the design and was hailed by Car & Driver as one of the Ten Best Cars of 1984.


The design was very safe and strong (only a Volvo scored higher for impact safety). The Fiero was built using ply-steel and carefully constructed crumple zones and stress points. The composite panels are the same materials used on modern cars such as the Camaro, Firebird and Saturn.


The number one complaint of the 1984 Fiero from its owners was the lack of power.  Along the same lines, the biggest change owners wanted to see in the 1985 Fiero was a bigger engine.  With 14.8% of Fiero buyers wanting more power and 22.8% wanting a bigger engine, Pontiac knew something had to be done.  Even with the 1984 Fiero's problems and complaints, 83.3% of Fiero buyers would buy another Fiero (one of the highest approval ratings in the industry).


Then came 1985 and a vast increase in the Fiero's performance and value.  The Chevrolet-built, Pontiac-tuned 2.8L V-6 was now an option on the Fiero.  Performance climbed to 0-60 spurts of around 7.5-8 seconds depending on transmission, 1/4-mile times of 15.7-16 seconds and improvements in the suspension's behavior over rough roads (one thing that plagued earlier Fieros).  For a 2700-pound car, 140 BHP and 170 LB/ft of torque was enough motivation for the Fiero to compete with other cars that had half again as much power.  Skidpad numbers hovered around .84g-.88g with stock rubber and slalom speeds reached 63.4 mph.  The V-6 offered good, American style torques and when combined with the Fiero's fully independent suspension, discs brakes at all four corners and the 4-speed manual transmission, the Fiero became a very competitive sports car for around $12,000.  It was a full second faster than Toyota's MR-2 both in the 0-60 and 1/4-mile runs.  The MR-2 was the car that many considered to be the Fiero's best competition.  A few sources listed the CRX as another Fiero competitor, but Honda's little coupe had a solid rear axle, drum rear brakes and was front wheel drive (not a good combination for a sports car).  The CRX Si ran 0-60 in about 9 seconds, the 1/4-mile in about 17 seconds at 80 mph and could hold the skidpad at between .78 and .80g.  With those number and only 91 horsepower and 93 LB-ft of torque, the CRX Si fell short of making the performance level to compete with the Fiero.


The V-6 helped the Fiero to become a very competent sports car.  But the 2.5L four also saw improvements in the following years after the V-6 was introduced.  In 1987, power was increased to around 100 horsepower and the oiling system was improved greatly.  Balance shafts were added to help high-rpm smoothness and combustion efficiency was also improved.  A 5-speed, Isuzu-built, transmission was added in 1985 to all 4 cylinder Fieros and the Getrag/Muncie 5-speed was added to V-6 Fieros halfway through the 1986 model year.  The suspension was completely revised in 1988 to smooth the ride and response over rough road conditions.  1986 saw the introduction of the fastback GT, a widely popular revision.  The fastback update changed the appearance of the Fiero so much that journalists believed it was a new Corvette.  Even today, heads turn as eyes hunt for some identifying mark that will reveal what type of car it is.  This GT design continued through the cars death in 1988 (which for the '88 model year, monochrome paint was used).  1987 brought some mechanical changes and a few minor enhancements to the car's appearance.  As mentioned above, the 4-cylinder received a power boost, but a new ram-tuned manifold was also employed.  A distributorless ignition was introduced, commonly referred to as DIS.  The V-6 received improved combustion efficiency, sealing, as well as reduced friction and weight.  The 1987 engine refinements helped improve durability and lifespan.  The base coupe was given a refreshed front and rear bumper appearance and the 2M6 badge was given up for a more subtle Fiero badge on the SE decklid.  1988 gave the Fiero an improved suspension, which helped rough road handling and steering wheel gitters.  The biggest improvement to the suspension was the introduction of vented disc brakes; something that I felt was needed from the beginning.  Fiero braking was never poor, but wasn't great either.  The one real drawback was that racing a Fiero produced minor brake fade after a few hard laps, this problem is basically eliminated in the '88 model.  Most  Fiero owners don't race, but for the few of us that did, the '88 brakes were a big improvement.


There are other, faster cars out there, but none can deliver the Fiero's performance and fun factor for the same price.  The Fiero delivers a remarkable value.  For less than $4000 you can have a car with a mid- engine layout, multiport fuel injected V-6, disc brakes at all 4 wheels, a fully independent suspension, composite body panels, and near exotic car performance.  Browsing over some of the Fiero's performance statistics can be embarrassing for registration holders of many of the world's finest performance cars.  The skidpad, slalom speeds, braking distances, 0-60 times, and other measurements are all where they should be.  Add to that the low price and the result can be downright offensive.  What a way to own a sports car!

Gwen Coley
Customer Relationship Manager
Pontiac Customer Assistance Center