Pontiac's design staff pulled a fast one on their straight-laced management when designing the Fiero towards the end of the 1970s. The original concepts showed the car as an economical two-seater commuter machine, in tune with contemporary world-wide concerns about fuel economy. However, the idea of building a sporty two-seater was in the back of the design team's collective mind all the time. And that, with management blessing, was what eventually appeared in 1983. The original Fiero was no ball of fire with its four-cylinder engine; enthusiasts had to wait for the later V6 models for something approaching real performance. Nor was its layout particularly adventurous, while its coupe configuration bowed to conventional wisdom that open sports cars were dead. However, its space-frame construction with bolt-on plastic panels did show some new thinking. As the articles in this book show, the Fiero had an inauspicious start. Customers tended to feel that they were doing the on-the-road development which Pontiac should have done before the car was launched. The company was also slow to respond to demands for more power and more sporting behaviour, and in the end sales proved disappointing. So the Fiero was dropped from production after just five years, at precisely the time when it had finally become the car it should have been from the start. So car enthusiasts have mixed views about the Fiero. Reading this book will explain why and will certainly point some people firmly in the direction of Fiero ownership. One of them might be you. This is a book of road & comparison tests, new model intros, owners survey & buying second hand. Models covered: 2M4 SE, SE, Pfaff Turbo, GT, GT V6, GTU & Formula.
