I first heard about the Fiero in the fall of 1981. I know what you are thinking; they didn’t make a Fiero until 1984. I had been a General Motors Training Center instructor since 1960. As an instructor of advanced technology, I heard at our yearly Detroit Tech Center training meeting that Pontiac was going to release a small people mover to be used for the back-and-forth to work market. That in itself was a pretty bland announcement. Pontiac engineering said it would be a two-seater, mid-engine, plastic bodied car. I wondered at the time what Chevrolet would say to this. I didn’t have to wonder very long; the following month the project was put on hold because Chevrolet thought they had the hold on the two-seater, plastic bodied market. The project was on again and off again for the next 6 months. Finally Pontiac agreed that the vehicle would always remain a small commuter car, offering no competition to the expensive Corvette. Of course later when a V6 engine was planned for the Fiero, this whole discussion came up again. Anyway, back in the summer of 1983, I flew up to the GM Tech Center in Troy Michigan, and was transported to the Pontiac, Michigan assembly plant to tour the plant and meet with engineers prior to picking up the pre-production Fiero assigned to me for training.

I drove that pre-production model home and on that trip decided this was a car I wanted to own. This car was eventually scrapped because no manufacturer’s taxes were paid on pre-production vehicles. I ordered my car within the week and on October 17, 1983 the car was shipped. The base cost of the car was $9,599.00 with $2,942.00 worth of options. Along with every option on the assembly line, it had GM’s fiber optic light monitoring for the rear, GM’s electronic rear view mirror, and GM’s electronic trip calculator. I had originally ordered the pull out shade that covered the engine, but early service problems cancelled that option permanently.

For my last seventeen years with GM I had nineteen different current model trucks and cars that I used for on-car training. I was required to take an appropriate model to the training site whenever my wife and I traveled and she traveled wherever and whenever I did. The only exceptions to this were Alaska and Hawaii. Her vehicles were shipped in and we flew to pick them up. When you have brand new vehicles that someone else is paying for insurance and gasoline, that included brand new Corvettes, you tend not to drive your second car. The Fiero sat in the garage for years. The original miles on this car are 48,134.

Life was not always easy with my Fiero. I made ten trips to the St. Louis GM Training Center in the fall of 1983 and spring of 1984 to teach, and eight of those times it had to be towed in. I finally had it with the reliability of the Fiero and wrote a letter to the Pontiac Zone and Central Office, with copies to GM Headquarters. I figured I needed a reliable car and if that meant that I was going to have to sell the Fiero and lose money, I might as well use the money to sue General Motors, so I told them that. I was scheduled to teach in Anchorage, Alaska in the summer of 1984 so I left the Fiero, once again towed into my driveway, for a four week run. Once I arrived in Alaska, I found that the Pontiac Zone office had called and wanted me to contact them. They wanted to know what would make me happy. That was simple, an engine that did not break down 90% of the time. They had already replaced pistons, cam, and lifters and repaired every electrical problem that you could think of. I ruled out any more patch repairs and insisted that there was only one thing I would accept, a new engine. They assured me that every engine being produced at that time was scheduled for production and that they could not get one. They could however get a complete engine from Pontiac Racing and if I was willing, they would pick my car up on a flat bed trailer, haul it to a Pontiac garage, and haul it back to my driveway, all while I was still in Alaska. My only stipulation was that I did not want the four-barrel carburetor and manifold that came on the offered engine and if they would adapt the stock EFI system, I would agree. This car has not been in the shop once since the new engine was installed.

GM allowed personal use of company vehicles, so one year we took the Fiero to Florida for vacation. It was amazing to see how much you could pack into that little car. The boot was full, the trunk was full, behind the seats was packed, and we stuffed rolled up blue jeans and tee shirts under our legs. We still managed to buy a few seashells as souvenirs, which made the packing for home even more of a challenge.

When I retired from GM nine years ago, I decided that the Fiero would be our second car. My wife drives a Chevrolet Trailblazer as our first car. The truth is, when I bought the Fiero I had always planned to keep it forever as it was going to be my fun car. Sitting around for years was not a good thing. The fuel tank had rusted, the fuel pump quit working, belts and hoses were deteriorated, and the spark plugs had rusted off in the cylinder head. After tires, hoses, belts, upholstery that included sculptured doors, headliner and visors, paint and pin stripping, along with miscellaneous electrical components, it was back on the street. I was proud as a new car owner and when I saw the posting of Fierorama 2007 I thought it was a great idea for a trip. I particularly liked the idea that this was to be made up of cars that are driven on the street and not trailered show cars. Once I attended the Fierorama show it became apparent that the show was truly made up of primarily restored and modified vehicles. So back in the garage the car went.

Over this last year I shaved the front fascia and headlight doors as well as molded in the body seams of a custom installed ’88 rear fascia. I fabricated a rear body panel from GM’s APV van skins and PCV pipe to create sunken LED taillights. I installed an ‘88 aero GT spoiler and International Research Motorsport ribbed engine air scoops. I topped off all of the bodywork with a ‘08 optional Corvette, pearl-based Crystal Red paint job. Then I needed an update to Radial T/A tires, SCC performance wheels, and stainless engine vent panels to finish off the outside. HushMat Ultra® sound and vibration damping and new window moldings changed the internal sound level. The engine compartment was next. I rewired some circuits and updated others, like the MSD Ignition, and covered hoses in flexible aircraft stainless webbing, and the engine compartment with aluminum service panels. One of the problems I have always had is letting the car sit over extended periods. This I took care of with an Orbit battery mounted on its side behind the right rear service panel.

As I told you earlier, I retired from GM in 1999. I was the senior resident instructor in the U.S. Service Technology group and had traveled to every state during my employment. I had been the national lead instructor on the Geo, Northstar, and Alternate Fuel programs and had presented pilot programs on computers, electronics, and E-85 systems. How exciting was retirement going to be? So in the fall of 1999, I started a prepress computer graphics company to supply the publishing industry with latest automotive art to be used in training books, manuals and on-line computer programs. The business was more successful than I had imagined, I found that I was working seven days a week, sometimes with two or three book projects at a time. In the last nine years I have created over fourteen thousand drawings, all under contract. In general I have always done everything that needed to be done, including in home construction and vehicle repair. I have done my civic duties as College Board Emeritus, College Automotive Advisory member and City Board member. Now I hope to make some time to have fun with my wife, my Fiero and NIFE. I am, after all, 72 years old.