Pontiac Fiero

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Pontiac
Pontiac Fiero Notchback GT (1985)
Pontiac Fiero Notchback GT (1985)
Fiero
Production period: 1983-1988
Class : Sports car
Body versions : Coupe
Engines:
Petrol engines : 2.5-2.8 liters
(73-101 kW)
Length: 4072 mm
Width: 1750 mm
Height: 1191 mm
Wheelbase : 2373 mm
Empty weight : 1176 kg

The Pontiac Fiero was a sports car with mid-engine , of July 1983 to March 1988 by General Motors in the same US city of Pontiac was made.

The vehicle was available in the versions 2M4 (stands for 2 seats, mid-engine, 4 cylinders), 2M6, SE, GT , Formula. Two body variants of the Fiero were produced: the notchback (notchback) and the fastback (hatchback) introduced in autumn 1986. All models had pop-up headlights .

Pontiac Fiero GT Fastback (1987)
2.8 liter V6 engine in a Fiero GT
Pontiac Fiero rear view

It was powered either with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with 68 kW (also called Iron Duke) or a 2.8-liter V6 with electronic injection and 99 kW. The design team around the Turkish- born Hulki Aldikacti initially conceived the car as a two-seater “commuter car” with low fuel consumption, which is due to a political decision by GM and Pontiac management. This also resulted in the use of the rather weak four-cylinder engine, which was also available with an Econo automatic transmission. In addition, depending on the year of manufacture, manual transmissions with four or five gears were available. The 2.8-liter V6 was available from model year 1985. Most vehicles with a V6 engine can be recognized by the rear wing .

The special production method of the Fiero was the combination of a mobile space frame made of steel with screwed-on plastic panels. For it was in the same city Pontiac in Michigan from General Motors a new factory built, which worked with specially designed machines.

Due to this construction method, which was previously only used in racing, and the mid-engine arrangement , the Fiero can be used as the basis for Ferrari , Ford GT 40 and Lamborghini replicas. More powerful V6 and V8 engines are also often installed in the Fiero by enthusiasts . Engines with a displacement of 3.1 liters, 3.8 liters (with or without a compressor) or the 3.4 liter DOHC V6 from General Motors or the famous Chevy "Small Block" V8 with 5 .7 liters of displacement are used. From 1984 to 1988, the American automobile manufacturer Zimmer used the Fiero as the basis for its Quicksilver model.

In 1984 the Fiero was the backup vehicle for the Indianapolis race. Therefore, in the same year, a limited "Indy Fiero" version was offered.

For the last model year, 1988, the wheel suspension and suspension were revised. The Fiero was discontinued in 1988 due to falling sales, some quality problems, especially engine fires from model year 1984, increasing competition from the Toyota MR2 sports car and sharply rising insurance premiums .

Another possible reason for the end of the model series was that the increasingly sporty Fiero, especially in the 2nd generation planned for 1990 and with more powerful engines, would have represented too great internal competition for the Chevrolet Corvette and therefore fell victim to an internal power struggle fell.

It was not until the Pontiac Solstice , which was produced from 2005 to 2009 , that General Motors again offered a sporty two-seater.

literature

Web links

Commons : Pontiac Fiero  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Pontiac Fiero GT: wannabe Ferrari from the 80s. In: Welt Online . March 2, 2012, archived from the original on January 31, 2016 ; accessed on January 31, 2016 .
  2. ↑ Hot box. In: Der Spiegel 20/1988. May 16, 1988, p. 261 , accessed January 31, 2016 .