There may be some debate about the actual year of the Fiero in this morning’s CC, but there can be no doubt about the year of this one. I was heading to Costco for some gas last week and caught a glimpse of this car on the road. Surprise, surprise, it was heading to Costco for gas too. We covered the actual Indy Pace Car version of the Fiero here, but this is the first one I have seen on the street in quite some time. This car looks newer than an ’84 because the Pace Car used a different front end that was applied to regular production versions of the Fiero GT the following year .
I spoke briefly with the owner, who indicated that he rescued this one from a junkyard. It is a mite rough around the edges, but is a rare find and worthy of being kept and loved, so Kudos to its new adoptive parent. I wondered what to do with this picture, and toyed with doing a piece on some of the Indy Pace Car replicas that I have seen out and about. But this starting out as Fiero day, I suppose there is no time like the present.
A little quick research indicates that a form of the Indy-version “Super Duty 4” was kinda-sorta available from Pontiac. The car that actually paced the race was a 2.7L version that put out 232 hp. The trick apparently was that you had to order the parts and make it yourself (including some significant machining of the block). A complete engine was never offered to the public (or anyone else). They appear to have come in 2.7L (272 hp) and 3.2L (330 hp) versions.
I can find no word on whether they were any smoother than the stock Iron Duke, but with those huge displacements, not likely. Instead of a rough lump of an engine, you would at least have a really fast rough engine. Once the Olds Quad4 came out, all development work on the Duke seems to have stopped.
I think the development of the Super Duty 4’s was tied to a GT/GTP racing Fieros that Pontiac campaigned in the 80’s.
There were a couple of racing Fieros, Pontiac did campaign them actively for several years.
GTP racing Fiero
Which interestingly enough, donated lots of styling cues to the “never was to be” 1990 Fiero GT/GTP
I have pics of that car in a book called “Cars That Never Were.” Looked really good, and reminded me of the 1989 Banshee concept car.
I know a lady up the street that still daily drives her 84 pace car that she bought new, even in the winter. The car is kept so immaculate you’d never guess it wasn’t a garage kept collector.
Pretty cool Indy PC specific interior items in it like the red carpet and the leather covered arm rests on the doors.
Those wheels look terrible though, he needs the original pace car wheels on there!
One of these is for sale a ferry ride away from me, the ad has pictures showing the red interior. It tempted me as a new daily driver car.
http://nanaimo.en.craigslist.ca/cto/4079062425.html
I’m positive the 84 Pace Car’s nose, rear wind and body cladding were carryover’s for the 85 GT and the 86 and 87 SE V6 models. The Front urethane nose was then carried over onto the GT for 86 onward along with the lower body cladding. Great find by JP. I honestly cannot ever recall seeing an Indy Fiero.
I’ve owned 2 Fiero’s, both Sixes, one an SE and the other the fastback GT. I loved them both and they remain one of my most favorite cars to drive, ever! Good mileage, great sounds out the exhaust and the loud sound of intake air right by your left ear… Not to mention dead reliable. The achilies heel for the pre-88’s were the back disc brake/parking brake mechanism which was not a self adjusting design. The parking brake cables had a penchant for seizing up, sometimes with the rear caliper in full lock. Ouch! The throw out bearing clutch arm was made of cheap sheet steel and over time, cracks would develop requiring costly replacement due to the mid-engine design.
I always considered the Solstice a step backwards compared to the mid engined Fiero GT…