By Jacob Misener Posted May. 15, 2014 @ 10:49 am Pontiac, Ill.
Despite quickly falling into disfavor among many Americans in the mid-to-late 1980s, some three-plus decades later, the Pontiac Fiero continues to draw the attention of car enthusiasts from both the United States and the world abroad.
“The car still has a following,” said Tim Dye of the Pontiac-Oakland Museum. “We actually had some Germans in here who thought the Fiero was the best engineered American car there ever was. You think about Germans and their engineering and for them to say that … (it was) because how it was made was so unique, that’s why they thought that.”
This Saturday, Dye and the museum will celebrate Fiero Day. They are inviting anyone who owns a Fiero or is a Fiero enthusiast to visit that day. The Pontiac-based museum features an array of Fiero memorabilia of its own, including special luggage sold by Pontiac, old advertisements and an extremely rare chassis.
The chassis on the wall never received a VIN number, as virtually every vehicle does once its built, because it was built specifically for research purposes. When Dye came across it, it was sitting in a junkyard in Ohio. Today, it is mounted on a wall near the back of the museum as part of the Fiero exhibit next to the body panels themselves, which are simply bolted onto the chassis.
“It got a bad rep because initially there were some problems with engine fires,” said Dye. “They fixed that. It was somewhat underpowered. At first it was a four-cylinder, but then they fixed that and put a six in it. By the end, it was a really good car, but the damage had been done.
Introduced in 1984, the Fiero only had a lifespan of four years, and the vehicle saw few cosmetic changes. One of the most famous Fieros to ever see the road will be on display this weekend at the museum, in the form of a 1984 Pontiac Fiero Indy PPG Pace Car prototype.
“We’re going to give some tours of the shop down the street and the museum, of course,” said Dye. “We’re thinking if this goes well, we may have more things like this. GTO day, Firebird day – we’ll see how this goes.”
For more information on the event, individuals can contact the museum at 815-842-2345.
Just a reminder for all of you Fiero fans, this Saturday May 17th is Fiero day here at the museum. If you own a Fiero, or are a Fiero enthusiast you should plan to be here as it will be a fun day. Outside there will be a special display of a 1984 Pontiac Fiero Indy PPG Pace Car Prototype. This Pontiac Fiero was car number three of three built by Pontiac Motorsports Engineering to perform pace car duties for the 1984 Indy 500. There are special tours planned and of course there will be lots of Fiero owners to visit with and cars to see. Shown here is part of our Fiero display in the museum, a must see for Fiero fans.
[This message has been edited by mrfred8 (edited 05-15-2014).]
If you like, you can make a day out of it and attend Pontiac's first Cruise Night of the season, on the square downtown, from 5 to 8. It'll be chilly but no rain!
And to REALLY make a day out of it (and to further hijack the thread off-topic), stick around and see my friend's band "Strangers" who is playing live at Freakster's at 902 W. Culver St. in Pontiac starting at 9PM. They play the music of UFO, note-for-note accurate. They're really good! Another band follows later.
I really need a pic of the RPO sticker..... if someone can take a picture of it I would be grateful.... only one problem though .. does this fiero still have that sticker.... I need this its for a special project for the fifth annual Tyler Shipman Car Show ..... thanks to anyone getting this to me .... Danyel
I really need a pic of the RPO sticker..... if someone can take a picture of it I would be grateful.... only one problem though .. does this fiero still have that sticker.... I need this its for a special project for the fifth annual Tyler Shipman Car Show ..... thanks to anyone getting this to me .... Danyel
Cool, I don't have much going on Saturday, I'll just drive up there... wait, it's in Pontiac, Illinois. 340 miles away.
Yea it is a small drive from Michigan. I did a dealer trade last year with the dealer in town. Had a nice chat with lady at the dealership. I wished I was the driver, I would have stopped at the museum.
I dont think the 1st Fiero made will be there. If it was I would think the article would mention it. What the article does mention is that a race used Indy Pace car #3 that was converted to the PPG pace car and used for a few years before being donated to the Museum of Science and Industry and then sold to a private collector will be there. (thanks RAREW66 for bringing it out) . Should be a great time though and the museum does have some Fieros in its collection and lots of Fiero stuff.
Hopefully I am wrong and the First Fiero made will be there, but if the GM Heritage Center is bringing down a Fiero, why not the 1990 prototype ?
[This message has been edited by mrfred8 (edited 05-17-2014).]
Thanks for posting pics. I would've loved to go but too much going on. Looks like the museum is very nice and great displays. What did they have to say about the Fiero's all lined up in the garage area?
The dusty cars in the barns were part of a tour they brought us on. They were showing us some of the large storage garages they have and some amazing stories of some of the cars that they have acquired. The barns also held cars from private owners as well.
Some of the shots, such as Tim's oil can collection and license plates are not part of the official museum, but actually on display in the basement of the museum and not open to the general public.
They also had Fiero literature out for us in their library. Again, a very impressive collection.
The amount of work they have done and the knowledge they have there is amazing. I don't think there is anyone that knows more about the Pontiac brand than Tim. It's inspiring to see his passion for the brand, and great to see someone so dedicated in keeping the memory of it alive.
Thanks for the pics! Looks like you had excellent weather.
Do you know the story on this one? Looks Indy but is black?
We did have great weather and it was a GREAT day! Hats off to the NIFE events crew for planning this trip. This car also caught my attention, as it had the early style vent covers. Tim Dye said it was a '85 GT, must have just had some parts swapped around. Overall in pretty good shape. The collection of cars those two guys have is amazing! And their hospitality really made the day. We all had a great time.
And to REALLY make a day out of it (and to further hijack the thread off-topic), stick around and see my friend's band "Strangers" who is playing live at Freakster's at 902 W. Culver St. in Pontiac starting at 9PM.
Even the band was good; the local Pontiac crowd was very appreciative. On a related note, one of the bartenders had a Fiero! Black '86 or '87 GT. Not what I expected to see when I pulled in there ("Whose car is that??"). Maybe we'll see a new member signed up here.
