My dad worked at the Fiero plant. When I ordered my 87 GT he took me to the plant and I followed my car down the line as it was being built. Not many people can say that. Miss you Dad!!!
@@MarinCipollina I agree, over and over. They rush a lackluster product to market. Then refine it. But the damage done is too great to continue the run. However with the Fiero it was a little different. The original was not incompetent but just crude. The engineers made it better than its competitors (MR2, Fiat, Pulsar NX) and then abandoned the market. Imagine if they continued to refine it and brought out a second generation to compete with the Miata, second gen MR2, etc. but we will never know because most of the time GM is not about making great cars. They are about making money. It is not a dynamic that is unique to GM, but it is overly representative of them.
As a Fiero owner, I'm so glad about this model's resurgence in popularity over the last few years. The younger generation is extremely interested in 80s cars!!!
My sisters had a base ‘84 Fiero as her sweet sixteen car. It was very mildly used with just a few thousand miles on it, and it was purchased while new ‘84s were still on the dealer lots. I drove it a lot when she was in college and the care was home when I hit sixteen. It was fun, but within safe parameters. I can neither confirm or deny that it could seat four in a short distance pinch. In was awful in the rain, but better than you’d think in the snow. Loved the speakers in the headrest. We all thought that was coolest thing. I know the car gets a lot of hate, but I have nothing but fond memories of it. Poor things was stolen by thugs and destroyed. It was found with the transmission wrecked when presumably the morons threw it into park while traveling at a pretty high speed. What a shame.
My first new car was a 1984 Pontiac Indy Fiero. Had a four speed manual transaxle. It left me stranded several times, usually when a fusible link fried. It cost my 26 year old self $16,500 out the door, which is close to $50,000 in 2024 dollars. I still have the "Official Pace Car" decals that I never applied to the doors, and my California "84 INDY" and Nevada "INDY" license plates. Knowing that GM internally referred to the Fiero as the "P car" platform, I had considered getting the license plate "P ENVY." I remember the print ads that said, for the first time in history, all 34 cars at the Indy 500 were mid-engined (the 33 race cars plus the Fiero pace car). Later that year, Rick Mears' 1984 Indy 500 winning car was parked on a street in Morristown NJ where I worked, and there was an open space in front of the race car, where I parked my Indy Fiero. So my Indy Fiero actually "led" Rick Mears' car. And it was 1984, when nobody carried cell phones or cameras, so of course I don't have a photo of this chance encounter. Forty years ago. Damn I'm old.
They were marketing these to working women, but my wife has a hard time with the lack of power steering. I think most of these were sold to guys. It's tragic that GM was so determined to keep the Fiero from competing with the more expensive Corvette, because if they'd put a super charged 3.8 in this thing, they'd probably still be in demand.
"The Saturday Night Joke" A man owned a small farm. The Labor Department determined he was not paying proper wages to his staff and sent an investigator out to interview him. "I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them!", demanded the investigator. "Well," replied the farmer, "there's my farm hand who's been with me for three years. I pay him $200 a week plus free room and board. "The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $150 per week plus free room and board." "Then there's the halfwit. He works about 18 hours every day and does about 90% of all the work around here. He makes about $10 a week. He pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of whiskey every Saturday night. He also sleeps with my wife occasionally." "That's the guy I want to talk to...the halfwit!" said the agent. "That would be me," replied the farmer
An important omission is Fiero’s space frame and “Mill and Drill” manufacturing process. The space frame resulted in a very strong chassis structure, and “Mill and Drill” eliminated stacking of manufacturing tolerances for better fit of the exterior body panels. This was a very innovative process that I don’t think was continued beyond Fiero, likely due to cost and/or overly conservative leadership. A shame.
@@bobloblaw204 Almost. The later GT models were really good handlers. The early cars had quick steering, but didn't like bumpy roads at all. The dealership I worked at had 4 Fieros go to the body shop in a single year because prospective customers were overconfident during test drives. Thankfully none of them had chassis damage, and the panels were quick to swap out.
A tale of two friends. First friend bought an 86 Fiero GT new. Second friend worked for Ford at the time and would tease him by saying, "You're driving a Chevette in reverse". All in good fun. Excellent content as always - thank you.
Working on the assembly line at the Fiero plant was the last job my father had before retiring from GM. When they closed the plant, he was given three options, the first of which was a job in a city we'd never heard of before; Tonawanda, NY. Needless, to say, my father declined that position and took an early retirement (they also offered a buyout that he wasn't the least bit interested in). While he worked at the Fiero plant, he would occasionally bring home a car for a day and would take me (then, a teenager) for a drive. I loved it; admittedly, he did not. He was always disappointed at how under-powered the cars were. To this day, I still have plans of getting my hands on an '88 GT or Formula. I truly appreciate your deep dive into the history of this car and thought I'd share a little bit of my own. They were cool and unique cars and should be remembered. In my opinion, they never should have been discontinued. The prototypes of the next generation models were very cool. Thanks again for the great content.
The 70s SCREAMED GAY DYSFUNCTION!!! I'm so glad it only lasted 10 years! I barely got thru the 70s! L0L I had SHORT hair thru most of it all too! My nickname was "Nick The NARC"!
Hey Adam, the burgundy '88 GT with gold wheels you featured a few times sold YESTERDAY on BaT for nearly $30k! That's twice the original sticker price. These are finally getting the respect they deserve after years of being a punchline. ☺
The nicest Fiero I ever drove belonged to a good friend. He put me behind the wheel but didn't tell me that it carried a 4.4 liter supercharged Northstar. It is a rocketship. He still has it and enjoys it on nice weekends.
"...GM didn't have the capital..." in 1983 to introduce a new model, mkay. and yet, 1985 Roger Smith was able to find $5B of capital to buy Hughes Aircraft, which really made sense for a car company, right? At the same time, Smith was spending plenty of capital to start shutting down Buicktown, moving production to Mexico and selling off the tooling to Japan. Roger Smith presided over the destruction of GM during those dark days.
I can see why Michael Moore did the "Roger & Me" movie. These swivel chair commando Capitalist beancounters sure don't seem to do any favors for the folks working for them.
Another fun fact is the Fiero plant was the 1st plant where GM trided to impliment japanese team oriented manufacturing techniques. This pre-dated nummi and like nummi it was a plant slated for closure so the workers were happy to try something new to keep their jobs. I remember reading a story about a fiero that fell into the cravace on the line and some quick math showed it was better to get it out and throw it away than to get the equipment in to get it out and resettled on the line. 1 tossed car is better than 15 cars that wont get built was the logic so a forklift operator speared it and ripped it out to get the line moving again.
@mark, but JS probably NEVER bought a Fiero, which was just a souped-up Chevette! L0L There were SO many LEMONS out there in the 1970s-80s GM Land! BTW, my EX drove a Chevette!!! Grrrrrrr!!!! L0L
Great cars that suffered from low quality GM electrical parts and too high engine bay temperatures. As a rookie, I remember replacing a boat load of TPS sensors on the Iron Duke. It was pretty close to the EGR valve and I bought a long swivel socket from Snap On that was originally a Caddy distributor socket to change them quickly with. Still have the socket and use it often for other stuff. LOL
My uncle owned a yellow '86 Fiero SE V6 that was imported from Massachusetts (we live in Bahrain). He was quite into the likes of F-bodies and 'Vettes but couldn't afford them in his youth. He played a role in me becoming a car person. I still consider the Fiero a guilty pleasure of mine, even the Iron duke ones.
To this day, I still want a Fiero. A friend of mine had one in school, and it was so fun to ride around in. Wasn't old enough to drive it, though. And unfortunately, I've never had an opportunity to drive one since. Now that I've been working on and customizing cars for years. I would love to get my hands on one in decent shape
Two things I recall about the Fiero. One being the radio speakers located in the headrests. The other was seeing them in traffic with one headlight up and the other one down.
What surprised me about these Fieros 9:51 was the leg room they had. I had a buddy who was 6’2” and bought one of these. He never complained but we all laughed when he would get out of it.
Had a jet black ‘84 Fiero 2M4 in my 20’s, with the sunroof and rear deck strips and spoiler as at 10:50. Many great memories of the car and its styling. It always turned heads. Mechanically, had some trouble with the cooling system and water pump(s) as I did not recognize its complexity-to my regret-and some general annoyances as an exterior driver’s door lock that stopped working, busted driver’s seat floor adjuster (no clearance underneath to repair), and a radio backlight that burned out. Just loved it though, a two-seat sports car impressed my girlfriend and eventual wife-to-be, so was worth every single penny….
The front X car suspension was not really turned around 180 degrees. It was just slid backwards to become the rear suspension. That’s why the 4 cyl engine has the intake side toward the firewall and why the drive belts are on the same side as the X cars.
I made the same comment to Adam here. This "fact" of the 180-degree X-car drivetrain needs to go away. I think Jason Cammisa also said the same thing in his Hagerty piece on the Fiero. Anyways, it's been in publications dating back decades. Wish I knew where it started, but it's clearly wrong.
@@obiwanjacobi76 its an easy mistake to make. Adam is really a huge fountain of knowledge and a great accurate source for all things GM. He may have known it but just articulated it wrong.
@@alsguitars5127 I'm definitely not questioning Adam's knowledge. His factual & informative channel is among my very favorites. I think this "tribal knowledge" about the X-car drivetrain being turned around probably started when the car was still new 40 years ago : )
And the engine isn't "turned around" either; the water pump and drive belt is still on the passenger's side for example. It only looks "backwards" because we're looking at it from behind.
I will NEVER understand why the totally revamped 1988 Fiero was one year only. All of the vices were gone and then....canceled. The modifications should've been celebrated and advertised. I recall the magazines loving the fixes.
In my opinion this is the best Fiero video I've seen. Very informative with no nonsense or untrue rumors. I own 2 Fieros myself, and get endless compliments about these cars. Great video, thank you.
Nice piece Adam. I had an '88 Coupe a couple of years ago. Low miles, one owner, red over grey, manual transmission. My first Fiero. It was a surprisingly nice little sports car. If it had been a GT, it would've been a keeper. The GT is such a nice design.
You could get the super duty iron Duke over the counter from gm performance parts. It had a forged crank, pistons and rods, a bigger cam, and higher compression.
@@MarinCipollina they were expensive. About 1/2 the cost of a new fiero. When I worked at the Pontiac/Cadillac/Olds dealer in the late 90’s we still had a few of the super duty parts in stock because we had a couple customers who had Fiero’s they put the super duty in. Another viable option was using the 3 liter mercruiser short block and getting the super duty cam, head and other parts.
Thanks for sharing Adam!! Your automotive history is amazing!! My dad talked me out of buying a 1988 Manual White Fiero Formula in 1988. Wish I bought it!!
Great video. I've owned 6 of them. 84 Red, 85 Red SE V6, 87 Blue GT (still own), 87 Blue Coupe 4 cly, 88 Red Formula V6, 88 Red Formula TDI (still own)
I've owned X-body cars and Fieros, and can tell you, the powertrains were NOT turned 180 degrees in the P-body. Belts, accessories, etc were on pass side in both cars, and both attached to the transaxle toward the passenger side.
This is the most educational and smartest automobile channel on RUclips! I really appreciate the history and interesting interviews that really snapshot the automobile industry of tha an era!
A friend of mine owned both an 1985 and 1988 Fiero (the '85 he drove from '86 until '88, and the 88 he drove from '88, brand new, until '92). The '88 was a GT, with the MUCH, MUCH improved power and suspension. One thing I recall is the dashboard in front of the passenger had a small plate that said "Suspension by Lotus" or possibly "Suspension tuned by Lotus". The difference between the two cars was like night and day, completely different. With the engine over the rear tires, you could drop the clutch from 5000 rpm and take off like a rocket. That Fiero GT was faster 0-40mph than every single car in my friend group, including my built (350hp) '67 Olds Cutlass, my bosses '67 Impala with a 450+hp 427, and his brother's '78 Trans Am with its slightly built high performance W72 400. The Fiero GT also performed extremely well in both Solo 2 and tight, twisty road course racing. That '88 Fiero was very impressive with its V6 and Lotus improved suspension.
Thanks for this one, Adam.. I drove one of the first Fiero's ever made, it was the first one delivered to the Pontiac dealership where I worked. The steering was very high effort, and there was no power steering option. It was striking how hard it was to turn the steering wheel on that car. That plus that boat anchor of an Iron Duke engine made it all show and no go.. That was remedied rather substantially in later years, but then (in typical GM fashion), once they fixed the car they axed it.
I wonder what they could have done to make the steering so hard. One of the few things I really liked about the Chevette was the steering, and one would expect that with no engine over the front wheels, the steering of the Fiero would be even lighter. I wonder if the gearing was just a little too quick for a manual linkage. It seems like a shame to have to resort to power steering on a mid or rear engine car, loosing the feel and simplicity of a manual linkage.
Alot of graduating female seniors were gifted one of these in the mid 80s. The car was cute and fit that characterization perfectly. What great memories.
I owned 2, back to back....an 86 2M6 and an 86 GT. Both with the 4 speeds. I loved them both and still wish I had them, today. Take a look at those 1989 Fiero and Fiero GT prototype pictures out there on Google. A baby, mid-engined Firebird Trans Am GTA, if you will. A shame that GM does what they always do in axing a car just when they nail it right. The interior had to be GM's finest in materials and quality; look at any typical Fiero for sale today and the interior is more often than not, as nice as the day it rolled out of the factory. Brooklands has a good compilation of Fiero stories bound together in a book. In it, they reprint a Road & Track comparison piece between the Fiero flying buttress GT and....... a Ferrari Dino. What is interesting how close these cars were, performance wise. (I know, I know!)
A couple of years ago, while driving on Highway 34, just North of Maryville Missouri, I spotted 2 1984 Fiero Pace car replicas sitting at the end of someone’s driveway. They were both for sale. They were both in good shape. I wish now that I would have taken a picture of them.
With the recent news about Pontiac maybe making a comeback, the potential of a Fiero coming back would be really really cool. Pretty sure I'd end up buying one.
Actually the fiero rear suspension is, as mentioned, the front suspension from the x car. However it was not turned around 180 degrees as mentioned, but rather had the same front to back orientation in both platforms. Essentially the x car front end was just slid back to reside under the rear of the fiero. Fieros are starting to draw some attention. I have an 84 Indy Fiero and my teenage son and I get a lot of comments and looks when we have it out. Such a cool design with so many unique features. I'm very pleased pontiac fought for it and gm made them. I own a 1980 buick x car with the iron Duke and both cars appear to have the same engine orientation to me.
One of the 2000 made Indy owner here, glad to see such a comprehensive break down. The interior information was very interesting as I had never heard or seen that before in regards to the development.
This is one of the few GM cars that’d I’d actually like to own at some point. I remember having a toy one as a kid, and really like the way they look. I like the older ones though, to me they look better than the later more rounded ones. Funny enough I remember the toy one I had, had the Fiero emblem on it pretty large, and I must’ve never looked at it real close. I always thought it was a bird, similar to what you’d find on a Trans Am, and now I clearly see it is a horse. Very interesting.
he final two years of production finally allowed it to be the car that it should have been from the beginning. It's still amazing to me how the design and production team managed to pull a fast one over corporate and get the thing produced. It could have been a Corvette killer from the beginning if Chevy wasn't so afraid of that. I was fortunate to work at a dealership during the last year of production. I took every opportunity that I could to take one on errands, even though the newest one I could do that with was a used '86.
I had an ‘85 2M4 with the 5-speed Isuzu gearbox. It was a pretty good car and I put a ton of miles on it. Yeah the 2.5 Iron Duke was a dog and the “no glove box” stock interior was idiotic, but the car was fun to drive and cheap to own.
My earliest Fiero memory when i was 14 in 1985... My mom went on a date with a guy who owned an 84 fiero. She wasnt all that interested in him and when he came to the house for the 2nd date he tried to impress her by letting me drive his fiero around the block while he talked my ear off about himself. I drove it at 14 with no license about 5 miles and remember the lack of power steering and its tight feel like a go kart, when i got back i knew they werent going on a 3rd date.. lol
Great video, Adam. One thing that wasn't mentioned about the interior is that because the fuel tank was located between the seats, it made for a wide center console.
I'm getting ready to list my black '84 SE. I've had it for six years and purchased it from the original owners, a family of mechanics. Only 19,000 miles. What impresses me most about that car is how stout it is. It feels so solid and substantial, like a mid-80's GM midsize., which I've also owned. A tough little car which gets great mileage, doesn't take up a lot of space, and sparks conversation wherever it goes. I'll miss it.
At the 1981 Seattle International Auto Show, custom-fitted sheepskin seat covers caused a sensation! Suddenly, people demanded the "sheepskin look" for car interiors for style and comfort. Auto accessory shops were offering full-custom installation and retails stores offered one-size-fits-all strap-on style seat covers. Nice to see Pontiac go the sheepskin route with Fiero interion proposals. Brings back memories of the 1970's when "wet-look" vinyl interiors and tops were all the rage, with specially formulated care products to keep everything shinny.
The 1988 Fiero did get power steering. This is from Wikipedia: A variable effort electro-hydraulic power steering unit, the same design later found on the GM EV1, was also to be a late addition. It used an electric motor connected to a pump.
You missed the next sentence in Wikipedia..."This option never made it to production - one reason cited is that models with the prototype power steering were noted as being too loud"
I tell my friends my Fiero has power steering...made by Armstrong!!😂 Seriously though, once your moving a few mph, power steering is not really needed anyway, plus I've always felt power steering would remove too much road feel in a mid engined car that only weighed 2700 lbs. I don't miss it at all and daily drive my 87 GT from April till November.
I've never felt Fieros needed power steering, they're light cars....all it'd do is add weight. And I drive my manual 86 GT and enjoy the fact that she also has manual steering.
Dude, I was so young when this car was introduced. I was still being supported by my parents. I wanted one but could no way afford it. But I did drive a new Pontiac Firebird, my senior year in high school!😊
The advantage of the angled door handle (in the beginning of the video) in conjunction with the level surface it is attached to, is that it can be used more effectively as an outside armrest.
Excellent video. This is the car that ended my Pontiac aspirations after owning 4 different ones. When it was thrown away and the Stinger never produced, i was done. Now we need a show dedicated to the 1989 running concepts.
In 1974 Pontiac had the Banshee III. It was a two door four seater powered by a 455 SD with a TH400 transmission. You can find pictures of it online... I was fortunate to get to ride in it. My buddy's Dad worked in the design department at Pontiac.
The Pontiac "Pegasus"....LOL! I lived in an apartment in Fort Lauderdale in 2005 for nine months before we bought our house and one of these "Clenet" fiberglass cars was parked in the parking garage, under a cover. It's just a gaudied up '78 Mercury Cougar, and one day a guy was in the elevator when I was going to my '85 Porsche 928S2 and he asked me if I knew where the car was parked. "Yeah, it's over on the far edge, close to Federal Highway, under a cheap torn cover. I recommend very dark sunglasses, otherwise that hideous car is going to damage your eyesight....." He gave me a dirty look. I made a point of revving out the 928's engine as I left~
Adam, I have a friendly inquiry: You noted the X-car powertrain was flipped 180 degrees to fit amidships in the Fiero. I believe this is a common misconception. It was simply slid back as-is (still facing “forward”). Exhibit A (of many) are the Duke spark plugs up against the firewall behind passengers where they would normally be easy to access from front of X-car or equal. Ex. B is transmission stays on driver’s side, belts on passenger side. Ex. C is air cleaner inlet still faces forward over top the valve cover. I could go on…. Am I wrong?
Thank you Adam. This car was interesting to hear about. The photos really bring things together. This car was supposed to be just a "commuter car", but it turned into something else over time. Thank you for mentioning that on your video as I recall reading that years ago. I am glad you mentioned the Chevette suspension and X Car suspension. They did this car on a budget indeed. I saw a Fiero with a 3800 V6 online. Someone modified one. Too bad it did not get that super duty 2.7 liter engine. I also saw photos of what was supposed to happen before the car was killed. In a way, the Solstice is a spiritual successor.
I absolutely loved these cars! Thing was, I graduated high school in 1984 and went off to college, and with my parents help, the budget for my college car was only $2000, so a Fiero was out of the question. Also, a college kid needs a car with room. He's going to be moving all the time and needs inside space to haul things and good fuel economy. I bought a '77 VW Rabbit in Bali Green, which was actually a little tiger of a car, 84 hp and 1800 pounds which made it quicker than many smogged out V8 American cars at the time. It was only in 2019 when I bought my current '14 Cayman S that I finally got my mid engine screamer and the instantaneous steering. Something tells me that after owning the 981 Cayman S for over 5 years that the Chevette-based front end of a Fiero would be an utter disappointment. Still, if I had a garage and could have five cars as a car collection, a Fiero would be one of them.
Another interesting fact on the Fiero was that the outer body components were mostly plastic and the inner still body supported the car and the suspension. There were multiple resin blocks bolted to the steel inner structure that were all drilled at one time in a giant fixture but were up to 1/8 of an inch variance between cars so the body of your Fiero when screwed to these resin blocks may be off up to 1/8+ of an inch compared to its inner steel structure.
Adam, very well done and THANK YOU for again focusing on the Fiero! It was truly revolutionary, especially for GM. The P platform was shared with no other car. Hard to believe it is 40 years old this year. People often forget the impact these had upon introduction, before it became a punchline. I’ve owned many over thirty years. At car shows to this day, everyone above a certain age either had one or knew someone who did, and then proceed to tell a nostalgic story. They are finally getting the respect they deserve. ☺ The burgundy GT with gold wheels that you feature a few times actually sold on BaT yesterday for nearly $30k!
I think using the X -series front drive axle assembly turning it 180 degrees as a mid engine rear axle on the Fiero is a really clever and inexpensive idea, I suppose that the plastic fiberglass body of the car was the too expensive part to be fabricated in large numbers which may have pushed for a premature end of the production. It would be interesting if former GM engineers could be interviewed regarding this aspect.
That Fiero in the opening shot is a beauty! 18:38. The Fiero Logo NEVER registered with me as a horse/Pegasus. I always thought it was a bird in the vein of Firebird / Phoenix. Cool fact!
Ferrari had a prancing horse logo, Fiero upped them with a flying horse... Of course, I assumed it was a bird, also... never looked at it closely... Still have my '85 Fiero... white, grey interior, Iron Duke 4, 5 speed, rare turbine style wheels...
had a 86 v6 manual fiero in th UK in 2001 , i loved it ,the sound ,attention it got especially from mr2 owners,drove it at over 100mph with no problems at all, clutch fork broke and radiator blew but that was all in 3 years.
Wish there were more over here, been after one for a while, ever since I part restored a black v6 about 15 years ago. Really enjoyed driving it once I sorted the running, was a fun car to drive. I'll find one eventually...
Thanks for the extended look at what was one of my favorite cars from the '80's. Speaking of great looking cars with pedestrian underpinnings, I would love to see a video about the Isuzu Impulse. That car had great design inside and out, and towards its end was lifted by performance enhancements by Lotus. Naturally I refer to the first-gen car designed by Giugiaro in the mid-eighties. The 2nd-gen Impulse just doesn't interest me. It's a shame Impulses are so scarce on the road today.
I loved these cars. The last year had the best styling. Typical GM, it perfects a model then shuts it down. Love to get my hands on a low mileage last year car.🇺🇸
The steering damper is a big contributor to steering effort, but if you take it off you have to go to 22 psi front and 35 rear to tame the oversteer when switching direction in a slalom.
Had an '84 SE auto in silver. Looped it in the rain but kept it on the road. Surprisingly good in the snow. Had a foot of snow overnight and kept momentum in the driveway until the snow lifted the car to lose traction. Let it idle and drink coffee until the coolant tubes underneath melted it back on the ground and repeat. Plowed the whole driveway with it's spoiler. I believe the mirrors and headlight assemblies were from the Firebird.
Авто/Мото
My dad worked at the Fiero plant. When I ordered my 87 GT he took me to the plant and I followed my car down the line as it was being built. Not many people can say that. Miss you Dad!!!
Very cool! Thanks for sharing that.
Great story. Do you still have the car?
@@WinterInTheForest No, don't have it anymore.
Great story!
I worked in Engineering at the Fiero plant from mid-1984 to early-1987 when they eliminated the 2nd shift.
Typical GM; work out all the bugs then cancel the model.
Fools.
Like every make and model
@@HunterB738 The EV 1 was GM's greatest folly they could have made us energy independent over 30 years ago and been bigger than Tesla by now !
@@HunterB738 Like EVERY American-made models you mean! Toyota got 500,000 miles on many of their efforts!
😂😂😂
GM had this car just about perfect in 88 and then pulled the plug.
Of course...
It's what they do.. It's who they are.
@@MarinCipollina I agree, over and over. They rush a lackluster product to market. Then refine it. But the damage done is too great to continue the run. However with the Fiero it was a little different. The original was not incompetent but just crude. The engineers made it better than its competitors (MR2, Fiat, Pulsar NX) and then abandoned the market. Imagine if they continued to refine it and brought out a second generation to compete with the Miata, second gen MR2, etc. but we will never know because most of the time GM is not about making great cars. They are about making money. It is not a dynamic that is unique to GM, but it is overly representative of them.
Designed to fail for service revenue or cancel it. They never engineer a good product for long term success.
your comment made me wonder what a 90 model would have looked like
As a Fiero owner, I'm so glad about this model's resurgence in popularity over the last few years. The younger generation is extremely interested in 80s cars!!!
My sisters had a base ‘84 Fiero as her sweet sixteen car. It was very mildly used with just a few thousand miles on it, and it was purchased while new ‘84s were still on the dealer lots. I drove it a lot when she was in college and the care was home when I hit sixteen. It was fun, but within safe parameters. I can neither confirm or deny that it could seat four in a short distance pinch. In was awful in the rain, but better than you’d think in the snow. Loved the speakers in the headrest. We all thought that was coolest thing. I know the car gets a lot of hate, but I have nothing but fond memories of it. Poor things was stolen by thugs and destroyed. It was found with the transmission wrecked when presumably the morons threw it into park while traveling at a pretty high speed. What a shame.
My first new car was a 1984 Pontiac Indy Fiero. Had a four speed manual transaxle. It left me stranded several times, usually when a fusible link fried. It cost my 26 year old self $16,500 out the door, which is close to $50,000 in 2024 dollars. I still have the "Official Pace Car" decals that I never applied to the doors, and my California "84 INDY" and Nevada "INDY" license plates. Knowing that GM internally referred to the Fiero as the "P car" platform, I had considered getting the license plate "P ENVY."
I remember the print ads that said, for the first time in history, all 34 cars at the Indy 500 were mid-engined (the 33 race cars plus the Fiero pace car). Later that year, Rick Mears' 1984 Indy 500 winning car was parked on a street in Morristown NJ where I worked, and there was an open space in front of the race car, where I parked my Indy Fiero. So my Indy Fiero actually "led" Rick Mears' car. And it was 1984, when nobody carried cell phones or cameras, so of course I don't have a photo of this chance encounter. Forty years ago. Damn I'm old.
They were marketing these to working women, but my wife has a hard time with the lack of power steering. I think most of these were sold to guys. It's tragic that GM was so determined to keep the Fiero from competing with the more expensive Corvette, because if they'd put a super charged 3.8 in this thing, they'd probably still be in demand.
"The Saturday Night Joke"
A man owned a small farm. The Labor Department determined he was not paying proper wages to his staff and sent an investigator out to interview him.
"I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them!", demanded the investigator.
"Well," replied the farmer, "there's my farm hand who's been with me for three years. I pay him $200 a week plus free room and board.
"The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $150 per week plus free room and board."
"Then there's the halfwit. He works about 18 hours every day and does about 90% of all the work around here. He makes about $10 a week. He pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of whiskey every Saturday night. He also sleeps with my wife occasionally."
"That's the guy I want to talk to...the halfwit!" said the agent.
"That would be me," replied the farmer
YUP
An important omission is Fiero’s space frame and “Mill and Drill” manufacturing process. The space frame resulted in a very strong chassis structure, and “Mill and Drill” eliminated stacking of manufacturing tolerances for better fit of the exterior body panels. This was a very innovative process that I don’t think was continued beyond Fiero, likely due to cost and/or overly conservative leadership. A shame.
These cars handled very well for being built from the parts bin.
Like they are on rails.
@@bobloblaw204 Almost. The later GT models were really good handlers. The early cars had quick steering, but didn't like bumpy roads at all. The dealership I worked at had 4 Fieros go to the body shop in a single year because prospective customers were overconfident during test drives. Thankfully none of them had chassis damage, and the panels were quick to swap out.
Wow, you sure are a fantastic interviewer. Prepared, knowledgable, adaptive to the conversation and let the guys talk. Very well done, Adam!
As the owner of a 1987 Fiero GT since 2010 I was thrilled to see a "Fiero" video pop up!!! They are great cars! Thank you Adam!!!
LOL
@@user-mb9zx9lg7p :Me neither Michelle.
@roger - Amazing cars for sure. The manual version is quite fun.
Owner of an 85 & 86 GT here, I agree!
popped up like headlights
A tale of two friends. First friend bought an 86 Fiero GT new. Second friend worked for Ford at the time and would tease him by saying, "You're driving a Chevette in reverse". All in good fun. Excellent content as always - thank you.
Working on the assembly line at the Fiero plant was the last job my father had before retiring from GM. When they closed the plant, he was given three options, the first of which was a job in a city we'd never heard of before; Tonawanda, NY. Needless, to say, my father declined that position and took an early retirement (they also offered a buyout that he wasn't the least bit interested in). While he worked at the Fiero plant, he would occasionally bring home a car for a day and would take me (then, a teenager) for a drive. I loved it; admittedly, he did not. He was always disappointed at how under-powered the cars were. To this day, I still have plans of getting my hands on an '88 GT or Formula. I truly appreciate your deep dive into the history of this car and thought I'd share a little bit of my own. They were cool and unique cars and should be remembered. In my opinion, they never should have been discontinued. The prototypes of the next generation models were very cool. Thanks again for the great content.
I had two Fieros, an 84 Fiero SE and 86 GT. Both were exceptionally fun and reliable cars.
The colors of the "test interiors" scream 70's loud and proud.
That multi-colored stripe pattern for the seats actually made production and was available for the first few years.
@@rogergoodman8665 The 70's sure like medium and dark earth tones.
The 70s SCREAMED GAY DYSFUNCTION!!! I'm so glad it only lasted 10 years! I barely got thru the 70s! L0L I had SHORT hair thru most of it all too! My nickname was "Nick The NARC"!
That's because it was conceived in the 70s.
@@mr.blackhawk142 Funny, my high school had a Neal the Narc.
Hey Adam, the burgundy '88 GT with gold wheels you featured a few times sold YESTERDAY on BaT for nearly $30k! That's twice the original sticker price. These are finally getting the respect they deserve after years of being a punchline. ☺
The nicest Fiero I ever drove belonged to a good friend. He put me behind the wheel but didn't tell me that it carried a 4.4 liter supercharged Northstar. It is a rocketship. He still has it and enjoys it on nice weekends.
"...GM didn't have the capital..." in 1983 to introduce a new model, mkay. and yet, 1985 Roger Smith was able to find $5B of capital to buy Hughes Aircraft, which really made sense for a car company, right? At the same time, Smith was spending plenty of capital to start shutting down Buicktown, moving production to Mexico and selling off the tooling to Japan. Roger Smith presided over the destruction of GM during those dark days.
I can see why Michael Moore did the "Roger & Me" movie. These swivel chair commando Capitalist beancounters sure don't seem to do any favors for the folks working for them.
Smith was the absolute WORST GM CEO ever.
Another fun fact is the Fiero plant was the 1st plant where GM trided to impliment japanese team oriented manufacturing techniques. This pre-dated nummi and like nummi it was a plant slated for closure so the workers were happy to try something new to keep their jobs. I remember reading a story about a fiero that fell into the cravace on the line and some quick math showed it was better to get it out and throw it away than to get the equipment in to get it out and resettled on the line. 1 tossed car is better than 15 cars that wont get built was the logic so a forklift operator speared it and ripped it out to get the line moving again.
In 1984, I toured the Fiero plant in Pontiac Michigan and saw them being built.
I interviewed GM Designer John Schinella and he has very fond memories of the Fiero.
@mark, but JS probably NEVER bought a Fiero, which was just a souped-up Chevette! L0L There were SO many LEMONS out there in the 1970s-80s GM Land! BTW, my EX drove a Chevette!!! Grrrrrrr!!!! L0L
@@mr.blackhawk142 As one of the head designers for Pontiac, I am sure he could have one or three as company cars. 🤔
@@mr.blackhawk142 Fiero drove nothing at all like a Chevette.
I bought my 88 GT in November of 87. I still have it and I still love it. 😊
Great cars that suffered from low quality GM electrical parts and too high engine bay temperatures. As a rookie, I remember replacing a boat load of TPS sensors on the Iron Duke. It was pretty close to the EGR valve and I bought a long swivel socket from Snap On that was originally a Caddy distributor socket to change them quickly with. Still have the socket and use it often for other stuff. LOL
My uncle owned a yellow '86 Fiero SE V6 that was imported from Massachusetts (we live in Bahrain). He was quite into the likes of F-bodies and 'Vettes but couldn't afford them in his youth. He played a role in me becoming a car person.
I still consider the Fiero a guilty pleasure of mine, even the Iron duke ones.
Imagine a modern Fiero with the new 2.0l turbo and a manual 6 speed...yeah
To this day, I still want a Fiero. A friend of mine had one in school, and it was so fun to ride around in. Wasn't old enough to drive it, though. And unfortunately, I've never had an opportunity to drive one since. Now that I've been working on and customizing cars for years. I would love to get my hands on one in decent shape
Two things I recall about the Fiero. One being the radio speakers located in the headrests. The other was seeing them in traffic with one headlight up and the other one down.
The speakers in the headrests actually worked pretty well.
I’m surprised that they never mentioned the headrest speakers in the interview.
Saw a late model gold GT w/ manual for sale a while back. Still looked fantastic, low miles, was reasonably priced. Tempting.
The styling has held up surprisingly well.
What surprised me about these Fieros 9:51 was the leg room they had. I had a buddy who was 6’2” and bought one of these. He never complained but we all laughed when he would get out of it.
Center console and shifter felt really tall compared to seating height.
Had a jet black ‘84 Fiero 2M4 in my 20’s, with the sunroof and rear deck strips and spoiler as at 10:50. Many great memories of the car and its styling. It always turned heads. Mechanically, had some trouble with the cooling system and water pump(s) as I did not recognize its complexity-to my regret-and some general annoyances as an exterior driver’s door lock that stopped working, busted driver’s seat floor adjuster (no clearance underneath to repair), and a radio backlight that burned out. Just loved it though, a two-seat sports car impressed my girlfriend and eventual wife-to-be, so was worth every single penny….
I always liked the later model year Fieros. Especially the V6 version.
Like the corvair that they fixed all the problems pointed out by Nader but by that time, although a good car by then, it was dropped.
Because Nader poisoned the car’s reputation so badly that it had no chance regardless.
@mercoid I know. The last models were hot, though.
By 1964, the suspension had been modified to eliminate the tuck in. Nader should have stopped, backed it up and went home.
@@wernerdanler2742 Corvair Monza was the hot one.
The front X car suspension was not really turned around 180 degrees. It was just slid backwards to become the rear suspension. That’s why the 4 cyl engine has the intake side toward the firewall and why the drive belts are on the same side as the X cars.
I made the same comment to Adam here. This "fact" of the 180-degree X-car drivetrain needs to go away. I think Jason Cammisa also said the same thing in his Hagerty piece on the Fiero. Anyways, it's been in publications dating back decades. Wish I knew where it started, but it's clearly wrong.
@@obiwanjacobi76 its an easy mistake to make. Adam is really a huge fountain of knowledge and a great accurate source for all things GM. He may have known it but just articulated it wrong.
@@alsguitars5127 I'm definitely not questioning Adam's knowledge. His factual & informative channel is among my very favorites. I think this "tribal knowledge" about the X-car drivetrain being turned around probably started when the car was still new 40 years ago : )
And the engine isn't "turned around" either; the water pump and drive belt is still on the passenger's side for example. It only looks "backwards" because we're looking at it from behind.
Woah, a 45min video? That has to be a record for you, Adam. Keep em coming!
Once you do the 4.9 Cadillac V8 engine swap, this car really comes into its own.
The supercharged 3800 V6 has now become the go to swap in Fieros. They're pretty fast when setup properly and the parts supply is still plentiful.
I’m seeing LS4’s from Monte Carlo SS’ and Impala SS’ being swapped into these.
You can do the LS4, LZ9, 3100, 3400....alot of common swaps in the Fiero community.
I will NEVER understand why the totally revamped 1988 Fiero was one year only. All of the vices were gone and then....canceled.
The modifications should've been celebrated and advertised. I recall the magazines loving the fixes.
Sales were just too bad by that point.
That's the GM way
I knew I’d like this video before I actually viewed it…Always great car information from the era I grew up in without any “performance art.”
In my opinion this is the best Fiero video I've seen. Very informative with no nonsense or untrue rumors. I own 2 Fieros myself, and get endless compliments about these cars. Great video, thank you.
Nice piece Adam. I had an '88 Coupe a couple of years ago. Low miles, one owner, red over grey, manual transmission. My first Fiero. It was a surprisingly nice little sports car. If it had been a GT, it would've been a keeper. The GT is such a nice design.
Boy, what a treasure trove of a video for Fiero fans. Nicely done!
Adam, I would never have thought anyone, even you could find 44+ minutes of things to say about the Fiero.
The Fiero has a lot of nuances to explore! ❤
You could get the super duty iron Duke over the counter from gm performance parts. It had a forged crank, pistons and rods, a bigger cam, and higher compression.
How much would that cost? It would probably need a cooling system upgrade too.
@@MarinCipollina yep thats why the offical pace had force air intake scope over the deck to help keep it cool.
@@MarinCipollina they were expensive. About 1/2 the cost of a new fiero. When I worked at the Pontiac/Cadillac/Olds dealer in the late 90’s we still had a few of the super duty parts in stock because we had a couple customers who had Fiero’s they put the super duty in.
Another viable option was using the 3 liter mercruiser short block and getting the super duty cam, head and other parts.
Thanks for sharing Adam!! Your automotive history is amazing!! My dad talked me out of buying a 1988 Manual White Fiero Formula in 1988. Wish I bought it!!
thank you for not using an ai voice
Great video. I've owned 6 of them. 84 Red, 85 Red SE V6, 87 Blue GT (still own), 87 Blue Coupe 4 cly, 88 Red Formula V6, 88 Red Formula TDI (still own)
I've owned X-body cars and Fieros, and can tell you, the powertrains were NOT turned 180 degrees in the P-body. Belts, accessories, etc were on pass side in both cars, and both attached to the transaxle toward the passenger side.
This is the most educational and smartest automobile channel on RUclips! I really appreciate the history and interesting interviews that really snapshot the automobile industry of tha an era!
#11: The first use of base coat, clear coat paint in the auto industry was on the 1984 Corvette and the 1984 Fiero.
A friend of mine owned both an 1985 and 1988 Fiero (the '85 he drove from '86 until '88, and the 88 he drove from '88, brand new, until '92). The '88 was a GT, with the MUCH, MUCH improved power and suspension.
One thing I recall is the dashboard in front of the passenger had a small plate that said "Suspension by Lotus" or possibly "Suspension tuned by Lotus".
The difference between the two cars was like night and day, completely different.
With the engine over the rear tires, you could drop the clutch from 5000 rpm and take off like a rocket. That Fiero GT was faster 0-40mph than every single car in my friend group, including my built (350hp) '67 Olds Cutlass, my bosses '67 Impala with a 450+hp 427, and his brother's '78 Trans Am with its slightly built high performance W72 400.
The Fiero GT also performed extremely well in both Solo 2 and tight, twisty road course racing.
That '88 Fiero was very impressive with its V6 and Lotus improved suspension.
Thanks for this one, Adam.. I drove one of the first Fiero's ever made, it was the first one delivered to the Pontiac dealership where I worked. The steering was very high effort, and there was no power steering option. It was striking how hard it was to turn the steering wheel on that car.
That plus that boat anchor of an Iron Duke engine made it all show and no go.. That was remedied rather substantially in later years, but then (in typical GM fashion), once they fixed the car they axed it.
I wonder what they could have done to make the steering so hard. One of the few things I really liked about the Chevette was the steering, and one would expect that with no engine over the front wheels, the steering of the Fiero would be even lighter. I wonder if the gearing was just a little too quick for a manual linkage. It seems like a shame to have to resort to power steering on a mid or rear engine car, loosing the feel and simplicity of a manual linkage.
Alot of graduating female seniors were gifted one of these in the mid 80s. The car was cute and fit that characterization perfectly. What great memories.
Loved that car! So “rocketship” cool. Thank you!
Space Shuttle would have been new at the time
too bad it went like a battleship
I owned 2, back to back....an 86 2M6 and an 86 GT. Both with the 4 speeds. I loved them both and still wish I had them, today. Take a look at those 1989 Fiero and Fiero GT prototype pictures out there on Google. A baby, mid-engined Firebird Trans Am GTA, if you will. A shame that GM does what they always do in axing a car just when they nail it right. The interior had to be GM's finest in materials and quality; look at any typical Fiero for sale today and the interior is more often than not, as nice as the day it rolled out of the factory.
Brooklands has a good compilation of Fiero stories bound together in a book. In it, they reprint a Road & Track comparison piece between the Fiero flying buttress GT and....... a Ferrari Dino. What is interesting how close these cars were, performance wise. (I know, I know!)
First
Grew up with a 1988 Formula
A couple of years ago, while driving on Highway 34, just North of Maryville Missouri, I spotted 2 1984 Fiero Pace car replicas sitting at the end of someone’s driveway. They were both for sale. They were both in good shape. I wish now that I would have taken a picture of them.
With the recent news about Pontiac maybe making a comeback, the potential of a Fiero coming back would be really really cool. Pretty sure I'd end up buying one.
Actually the fiero rear suspension is, as mentioned, the front suspension from the x car. However it was not turned around 180 degrees as mentioned, but rather had the same front to back orientation in both platforms. Essentially the x car front end was just slid back to reside under the rear of the fiero. Fieros are starting to draw some attention. I have an 84 Indy Fiero and my teenage son and I get a lot of comments and looks when we have it out. Such a cool design with so many unique features. I'm very pleased pontiac fought for it and gm made them.
I own a 1980 buick x car with the iron Duke and both cars appear to have the same engine orientation to me.
The latest iteration of this car, with some top notch suspension and a turbo v6 that actually performed would’ve been a home run.
Like a mini Porsche.
One of the 2000 made Indy owner here, glad to see such a comprehensive break down. The interior information was very interesting as I had never heard or seen that before in regards to the development.
This is one of the few GM cars that’d I’d actually like to own at some point. I remember having a toy one as a kid, and really like the way they look. I like the older ones though, to me they look better than the later more rounded ones.
Funny enough I remember the toy one I had, had the Fiero emblem on it pretty large, and I must’ve never looked at it real close. I always thought it was a bird, similar to what you’d find on a Trans Am, and now I clearly see it is a horse. Very interesting.
Fascinating to know how this design process works.
he final two years of production finally allowed it to be the car that it should have been from the beginning. It's still amazing to me how the design and production team managed to pull a fast one over corporate and get the thing produced. It could have been a Corvette killer from the beginning if Chevy wasn't so afraid of that. I was fortunate to work at a dealership during the last year of production. I took every opportunity that I could to take one on errands, even though the newest one I could do that with was a used '86.
I had an ‘85 2M4 with the 5-speed Isuzu gearbox. It was a pretty good car and I put a ton of miles on it. Yeah the 2.5 Iron Duke was a dog and the “no glove box” stock interior was idiotic, but the car was fun to drive and cheap to own.
Thank you, Adam. Great background on one of my favourite 80’s cars!
My earliest Fiero memory when i was 14 in 1985... My mom went on a date with a guy who owned an 84 fiero. She wasnt all that interested in him and when he came to the house for the 2nd date he tried to impress her by letting me drive his fiero around the block while he talked my ear off about himself. I drove it at 14 with no license about 5 miles and remember the lack of power steering and its tight feel like a go kart, when i got back i knew they werent going on a 3rd date.. lol
Late night release. Adam After Dark.
Sort of like Nick at Night, huh ?
Great video, Adam. One thing that wasn't mentioned about the interior is that because the fuel tank was located between the seats, it made for a wide center console.
Console was also abnormally tall compared to seats
I'm getting ready to list my black '84 SE. I've had it for six years and purchased it from the original owners, a family of mechanics. Only 19,000 miles. What impresses me most about that car is how stout it is. It feels so solid and substantial, like a mid-80's GM midsize., which I've also owned. A tough little car which gets great mileage, doesn't take up a lot of space, and sparks conversation wherever it goes. I'll miss it.
At the 1981 Seattle International Auto Show, custom-fitted sheepskin seat covers caused a sensation! Suddenly, people demanded the "sheepskin look" for car interiors for style and comfort. Auto accessory shops were offering full-custom installation and retails stores offered one-size-fits-all strap-on style seat covers. Nice to see Pontiac go the sheepskin route with Fiero interion proposals. Brings back memories of the 1970's when "wet-look" vinyl interiors and tops were all the rage, with specially formulated care products to keep everything shinny.
The 1988 Fiero did get power steering. This is from Wikipedia: A variable effort electro-hydraulic power steering unit, the same design later found on the GM EV1, was also to be a late addition. It used an electric motor connected to a pump.
You missed the next sentence in Wikipedia..."This option never made it to production - one reason cited is that models with the prototype power steering were noted as being too loud"
I tell my friends my Fiero has power steering...made by Armstrong!!😂 Seriously though, once your moving a few mph, power steering is not really needed anyway, plus I've always felt power steering would remove too much road feel in a mid engined car that only weighed 2700 lbs. I don't miss it at all and daily drive my 87 GT from April till November.
I remember having a 1988 Fiero brochure that showed the power steering option being available.
I've never felt Fieros needed power steering, they're light cars....all it'd do is add weight. And I drive my manual 86 GT and enjoy the fact that she also has manual steering.
@@Aleiza_49 Steering was surprisingly stiff, even for manual steering.
Dude, I was so young when this car was introduced. I was still being supported by my parents. I wanted one but could no way afford it. But I did drive a new Pontiac Firebird, my senior year in high school!😊
An absolutely excellent overview of the Fiero, Adam. I especially enjoyed the interviews that your shared with Irv and Marv. Well done, sir.
The advantage of the angled door handle (in the beginning of the video) in conjunction with the level surface it is attached to, is that it can be used more effectively as an outside armrest.
Excellent video. This is the car that ended my Pontiac aspirations after owning 4 different ones. When it was thrown away and the Stinger never produced, i was done. Now we need a show dedicated to the 1989 running concepts.
In 1974 Pontiac had the Banshee III. It was a two door four seater powered by a 455 SD with a TH400 transmission. You can find pictures of it online... I was fortunate to get to ride in it. My buddy's Dad worked in the design department at Pontiac.
The Pontiac "Pegasus"....LOL!
I lived in an apartment in Fort Lauderdale in 2005 for nine months before we bought our house and one of these "Clenet" fiberglass cars was parked in the parking garage, under a cover. It's just a gaudied up '78 Mercury Cougar, and one day a guy was in the elevator when I was going to my '85 Porsche 928S2 and he asked me if I knew where the car was parked.
"Yeah, it's over on the far edge, close to Federal Highway, under a cheap torn cover. I recommend very dark sunglasses, otherwise that hideous car is going to damage your eyesight....."
He gave me a dirty look. I made a point of revving out the 928's engine as I left~
What a beautiful car this was! Wish they made a modern version like they are doing with many models of past decades !
Adam, I have a friendly inquiry: You noted the X-car powertrain was flipped 180 degrees to fit amidships in the Fiero. I believe this is a common misconception. It was simply slid back as-is (still facing “forward”). Exhibit A (of many) are the Duke spark plugs up against the firewall behind passengers where they would normally be easy to access from front of X-car or equal. Ex. B is transmission stays on driver’s side, belts on passenger side. Ex. C is air cleaner inlet still faces forward over top the valve cover. I could go on…. Am I wrong?
Thank you Adam. This car was interesting to hear about. The photos really bring things together. This car was supposed to be just a "commuter car", but it turned into something else over time. Thank you for mentioning that on your video as I recall reading that years ago. I am glad you mentioned the Chevette suspension and X Car suspension. They did this car on a budget indeed. I saw a Fiero with a 3800 V6 online. Someone modified one. Too bad it did not get that super duty 2.7 liter engine. I also saw photos of what was supposed to happen before the car was killed. In a way, the Solstice is a spiritual successor.
I absolutely loved these cars! Thing was, I graduated high school in 1984 and went off to college, and with my parents help, the budget for my college car was only $2000, so a Fiero was out of the question.
Also, a college kid needs a car with room. He's going to be moving all the time and needs inside space to haul things and good fuel economy. I bought a '77 VW Rabbit in Bali Green, which was actually a little tiger of a car, 84 hp and 1800 pounds which made it quicker than many smogged out V8 American cars at the time. It was only in 2019 when I bought my current '14 Cayman S that I finally got my mid engine screamer and the instantaneous steering.
Something tells me that after owning the 981 Cayman S for over 5 years that the Chevette-based front end of a Fiero would be an utter disappointment. Still, if I had a garage and could have five cars as a car collection, a Fiero would be one of them.
Another interesting fact on the Fiero was that the outer body components were mostly plastic and the inner still body supported the car and the suspension. There were multiple resin blocks bolted to the steel inner structure that were all drilled at one time in a giant fixture but were up to 1/8 of an inch variance between cars so the body of your Fiero when screwed to these resin blocks may be off up to 1/8+ of an inch compared to its inner steel structure.
Adam, very well done and THANK YOU for again focusing on the Fiero! It was truly revolutionary, especially for GM. The P platform was shared with no other car. Hard to believe it is 40 years old this year. People often forget the impact these had upon introduction, before it became a punchline. I’ve owned many over thirty years. At car shows to this day, everyone above a certain age either had one or knew someone who did, and then proceed to tell a nostalgic story. They are finally getting the respect they deserve. ☺ The burgundy GT with gold wheels that you feature a few times actually sold on BaT yesterday for nearly $30k!
The Grand Ma was MORE better! L0L (Grand Am) It lasted a few months before FALLING APART COMPLETELY!
I think using the X -series front drive axle assembly turning it 180 degrees as a mid engine rear axle on the Fiero is a really clever and inexpensive idea, I suppose that the plastic fiberglass body of the car was the too expensive part to be fabricated in large numbers which may have pushed for a premature end of the production. It would be interesting if former GM engineers could be interviewed regarding this aspect.
Great video!! I really enjoy the talk with the designers and the concept sketches.
How I wish they had done the Banshee - what a great looking car.
Would love to have a last year Fiero. That one they finally got right.
That Fiero in the opening shot is a beauty! 18:38. The Fiero Logo NEVER registered with me as a horse/Pegasus. I always thought it was a bird in the vein of Firebird / Phoenix. Cool fact!
Ferrari had a prancing horse logo, Fiero upped them with a flying horse...
Of course, I assumed it was a bird, also... never looked at it closely...
Still have my '85 Fiero... white, grey interior, Iron Duke 4, 5 speed, rare turbine style wheels...
Bravo on a wonderful episode.🌲
had a 86 v6 manual fiero in th UK in 2001 , i loved it ,the sound ,attention it got especially from mr2 owners,drove it at over 100mph with no problems at all, clutch fork broke and radiator blew but that was all in 3 years.
Wish there were more over here, been after one for a while, ever since I part restored a black v6 about 15 years ago. Really enjoyed driving it once I sorted the running, was a fun car to drive. I'll find one eventually...
I had a Fiero when I was a young man. It was a blast to drive! Like a Go-Kart with air conditioning!
Didn't hurt that it was a chick magnet either!
Thanks for the extended look at what was one of my favorite cars from the '80's. Speaking of great looking cars with pedestrian underpinnings, I would love to see a video about the Isuzu Impulse. That car had great design inside and out, and towards its end was lifted by performance enhancements by Lotus. Naturally I refer to the first-gen car designed by Giugiaro in the mid-eighties. The 2nd-gen Impulse just doesn't interest me. It's a shame Impulses are so scarce on the road today.
The car in the opening scene here STILL looks fabulous.
I loved these cars. The last year had the best styling. Typical GM, it perfects a model then shuts it down. Love to get my hands on a low mileage last year car.🇺🇸
My friend had a 89 sunbird gt.
2.0 turbo.
And it blew the pants off my
1988 formula 305.
The steering damper is a big contributor to steering effort, but if you take it off you have to go to 22 psi front and 35 rear to tame the oversteer when switching direction in a slalom.
I remember reading somewhere that the Fiero was also planned to get the Quad4 engine... that would have been a hot option.
Had an '84 SE auto in silver. Looped it in the rain but kept it on the road. Surprisingly good in the snow. Had a foot of snow overnight and kept momentum in the driveway until the snow lifted the car to lose traction. Let it idle and drink coffee until the coolant tubes underneath melted it back on the ground and repeat. Plowed the whole driveway with it's spoiler. I believe the mirrors and headlight assemblies were from the Firebird.
Had the 2.0 brazil motor inmy 87 skyhawk. I really liked it. It made reasonable amounts of power, got good mileage, and was VERY reliable. 15:26
WHO had???? NEVER MIND....
Almost had a 86 fiero, but it sold 2 days earlier, at our local Chevrolet dealer in 91.
so you're telling us you never had one