page_title: Pontiac Fiero
section_title: 1984
hierarchical_section_title: Pontiac Fiero / Production years / 1984
caption_attribution_description: An old spot from Hawaii last year - this was sitting half inside and half outside the covered parking area of small apartments in Waikiki. It didn't appear to have been sitting long - in 2011 Streetview images it's nowhere to be seen.
context_page_description: The Pontiac Fiero is a mid-engine sports car that was built by American automobile manufacturer General Motors from 1983 to 1988 for the 1984 to 1988 model years. The Fiero was designed by George Milidrag and Hulki Aldikacti as a sports car. It was the first two-seater Pontiac since the 1926 to 1938 coupes, and the first, mass-produced mid-engine sports car by a U.S. manufacturer. Many technologies incorporated in the Fiero design such as composite panels were radical for their time. Other features included hidden headlamps and, initially, integrated stereo speakers within the driver and passenger headrests.
  A total of 370,168 units were produced over the relatively short production run of five years; by comparison, 163,000 Toyota MR2s were sold in their first five years. At the time, the Fiero's reputation suffered from criticisms over performance, reliability, and safety issues.
  The word Fiero means "very proud", "fierce", "bold", "haughty" "cruel", "severe" in Italian, and "wild", "fierce", or "ferocious" in Spanish. Alternative names considered for the car were Sprint, P3000, Pegasus, Fiamma, Sunfire, and Firebird XP.
context_section_description: The Fiero began production in August 1983. In an effort to sell the car as economically sensible, GM equipped and sold the Fiero as a commuter car; although the marketing build-up leading to initial release indicated anything but a regular commuter. The car also proved uncomfortable for some drivers because of the lack of power steering.
  At the beginning of production the Fiero was only available in Red (M71) and White (M40) colors with Black (M41) and Light Gray Metallic (M14) introduced later, the paint shop was only able to handle four different colors at a time. All 1984 models came with the same 2.5 L I4.
  Although sales literature listed only two models available in 1984, there were at least three models available with different optional packages. There was the Fiero Coupe, the Sport Coupe and the SE. The Fiero Coupe, also called "Fuel Economy Leader", came with the MY-8 4-speed manual transaxle that had a 0.73 overdrive top gear along with a high mpg 3.32:1 axle ratio. This gave it an EPA highway/city rating of 50/31 mpg. Air conditioning and automatic transaxle could not be ordered. The starting price for the Fiero Coupe was $7,999. The Fiero Sport Coupe, also referred to as the "base car", came with the M-19 four-speed manual with a 0.81 top gear along with 4.10:1 differential, giving it better acceleration at the cost of fuel economy, 42/26 mpg. An automatic 3-speed transmission, MD-9 Hydramatic 125-C, was available along with A/C. The starting price was $8,499 for the Sport Coupe. The top model was the Fiero SE, starting at $9,599, it included the WS-6 handling package along with other trim upgrades.
  The marketing included title sponsorship of Daryl Hall & John Oates tour supporting the release of their Big Bam Boom album.  From November 1984 through 1985, each tour venue had Fiero banners and signage above the main stage, new Fieros on display, and Pontiac dealer ticket giveaways. Sales managers at Pontiac dealerships also received a limited edition "Pontiac Fiero Presents Daryl Hall & John Oates" vinyl greatest hits album enticing them to participate in the sponsorship tour. The LP was Rock 'n Soul Part 1. The album cover featured Hall & Oates standing with a red 1984 Fiero SE.
  Also, for marketing purposes, the 1984 base model was featured in a 1983 episode of the television show "Hardcastle & McCormick".
  The 1984 model line included a limited "Indy Pace Car" edition, consisting of an Indianapolis 500-themed option package on SE-model vehicles (a package that was specially reissued in 1985). Approximately 2,000 of these vehicles were sold. The Indy had aero body cladding and new front and rear fascias that would be used on the 1985 GT. Only the four-cylinder engine was available, though a few prototypes were fitted with a unique periscope-style inlet sprouting from the engine compartment and curving up and over the roof. This "periscope" style inlet was used on the three actual Indy Pace Cars used at the 1984 Indianapolis 500. This inlet scoop fed the cvt|165|CID|L|1|order=flip}} Super Duty engine which was only exclusive to the actual Pace Cars. The Super Duty engine was rated at 232 hp (173 kW) at 6,500 rpm and 210 lb⋅ft (280 N⋅m) of torque at 5,500 rpm. Pontiac's General Manager Bill Hoglund nominated John Callies to drive the actual pace car at Indy. Callies was the factory's lead engineer on both the pace car and IMSA programs. The Fiero became the first 4-cylinder car to pace the 500 since a Stoddard-Dayton paced the 1914 race.
  The production of the 1984 model ran from July 1983 until almost the end of 1984, this resulted in Pontiac exceeding its first year goal of 80,000 units, which was 28,000 more than the initial estimate and the most two seater cars produced by any US manufacturer at the time.
caption: 1984 Fiero 2M4 SE
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