So the excitement of the new mid engined Corvette is upon us.
I was shocked that GM kept the prices affordable, and was honestly expecting a 100k plus price tag.
Road & Track has a great article on how the new Corvette achieved such low production costs. It’s pretty interesting and commendable.
So it got me thinking…GM now has this mid engined platform at its disposal. What else had a mid engined platform in GM’s fleet?
Well, guessing from the post title, the Pontiac Fiero.
So now you’re already thinking, Pontiac is dead, nobody cares about them anymore, and GM didn’t even like Pontiac.
Well just about all of those assumptions are wrong, or misleading.
GM’s biggest issue was over saturation of badge engineered vehicles. Sure, this kind of worked until the early 2000s, but GM knew it had to cut back due to stiff competition and the U.S. government forcing the downsizing of GM’s unprofitable brands, i.e. Pontiac during the bailout.
Regular Car Reviews just did an excellent informational video on the entire history of Pontiac from birth to demise HERE
So during my rewrite of this, I wanted to get some more details in, and I know for better or for worse, someone would bring up the bailout as a defense of keeping Pontiac dead. I wanted to fact check this, so according to factcheck.org, GM did pay back its bailout in full with interest, but the U.S. Treasury owns a 61% stake in GM as of 2010, and I can’t find out if the government has sold off those stakes. That could be one roadblock in bringing back anything Pontiac related.
Factcheck.org source: HERE
That’s okay. Dumping those unprofitable divisions were just better business at the time. However, the loss of Olds and Pontiac left a huge void in casual and enthusiast minds. Pontiacs sold pretty well, and was also known as bringing in foreign GM vehicles as domestic models.
On top of which, Pontiac just had a huge solid legacy that stretched way back before a lot of us Reddit users were even around. That RCR Stories video really dives into that legacy well.
One such vehicle that is held in high regard is the Pontiac Fiero. Yes, it has its issues and drawbacks, but the Fiero has a diehard following. It has clubs, fan pages, forums, and events dedicated to the little wacky mid engined economy car.
Over 350,000 Fieros were sold in its 4 model year production before GM pulled the plug.
Those are actually really great numbers for something you’d think is really niche, right? It sold better than an MR2 by hundreds of thousands, and probably ranks as one of the highest selling mid engined cars. I’d have to cite a source for that bold statement, and even in rewriting this, I still can’t find anything that bested the Fiero’s sales numbers. The Fiat X 1/9 and the Toyota MR2 are both respectable, but not even close.
Well, what if GM made it again?
I know this is an enthusiast forum, so people are obviously going to misjudge sales potential of a product. I understand, and perhaps I’m totally projecting this, but hear me out.
Maybe GM doesn’t respect Pontiac’s legacy at all, but it does like money.
Nostalgia is a driving force in the sales and marketing sector, whether you care to admit it or not. (Source: I have at least a few years of corporate level marketing experience)
Here’s a great article on nostalgia in branding today, with a bunch of recognizable examples: HERE
What I see GM doing is squandering its model names in exchange for some really poor nostalgic appeal. The new Blazer is a very sad example of that.
Criticism doesn’t mean I hate them though, because there is room for improvement. GM is still sitting on the lego pieces for a few fun cars targeted towards a handful of demographics.
GM can target a lower tier priced demographic that is longing for a truly economical and sporty mid engined vehicle, while also hooking in long time Pontiac lovers.
A Pontiac badge doesn’t mean GM has to build up an entire Pontiac division again. Produce it in the Vette plant, or retool an old location. Don’t rev up the Pontiac brand as any legal/business entity either. Just call the model a “Pontiac Fiero” by Chevrolet. This may be a really nerdy example, but Hasbro occasionally has problems with naming rights of their Transformers due to how generic the names are, so they slap on the faction into the name. So Ratchet is trademarked as “Autobot Ratchet”. Well the same concept can happen for the Fiero’s model name and trademark.
This completely invalidates any counter arguments saying “GM would never reopen Pontiac”, because guess what? They wouldn’t be reopened anything, it is just simply a commemorative model name. This could also satisfy the government shareholders if they still happen to have a large stake in the company. If anyone could chime in with up to date information on that, it would be great.
The new Fiero, following this lego brick idea, can use the 300+hp LFX v6 from the Camaro, or the 4 cylinder turbo. Dare I say…electric at some point?
The materials, if you read the R&T article could probably be cheapened even further. Use stamped steel in more places, and give us a cheap cloth interior. Give us smaller diameter wheels with smaller brakes. Yes, you trade in the weight of the aluminum alloy parts, but in exchange for saving a ton on manufacturing costs.
Basically get the target price down between 35k-45k maximum. The original top end 88 model year Fiero sold for about 30k if adjusted for 2019 inflation. I get that GM could probably never hit that target, but it is just a friendly reminder to how affordable the original was.
GM could do a few things with this move.
One, is really get the most sales out of that entire platform it developed. I can’t find any development costs yet on this new platform, but I bet GM spent quite a bit.
Two, is use a Fiero model as a platform to experiment on without offending Corvette enthusiasts. I’ve already seen enough whining about the mid engined change. A Fiero could be used as a starting platform for EV or hybrid technologies while targeting a lower consumer friendly price point. Basically the possibilities are endless because it no longer has to hold onto the ideals of the Corvette name.
Three, is build up it’s reputation through nostalgic pandering. Yes, that sounds really shallow when typed out, but from a business sense, it is an excellent strategy. I already linked that great article on the power of nostalgia.
Four, is grab MR2 and pissed off NSX enthusiasts. NSX lovers kind of got burned on the price tag of the new model, and the MR2 is a fun cult classic. I think those drivers would at least dabble in the notion of an affordable mid engined car again.
Casual consumers DO trust enthusiasts for their car buying advice. That is one strong power we have.
If we say, “Hey, GM is really honoring Pontiac, the Fiero name, and making an affordable mid engined sports car for entry level buyers. That’s pretty great.”
It carries a lot of weight. I hate to say it, but we are technically the “influencers” of the car buying world. We tell our Aunt Anita to buy a new Camry instead of an Impala, if you get what I mean.
The Blazer name blunder already rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way, while Ford seems to be respecting the Bronco name.
The Camaro sales are slipping, and may even be discontinued. That is a reason to actually push forward on the Fiero, rather than back off. If people are experiencing Camaro fatigue because of looks, performance, price, etc, then give them something new to explore for a bit. I don’t understand why Chevrolet couldn’t do a “Pontiac Trans Am” by Chevrolet, but that is a whole other topic to cover by itself.
The mid engined market is non existent today. I think Alfa Romeo still has that one underwhelming and expensive 4C model, but everything else is in the six figure range if you buy new, I believe. Correct me if I’m missing anything.
So from a pure marketing and PR standpoint, even a limited production Pontiac Fiero can be an excellent move.
From a sales perspective, a mass produced lower end mid engined car can at least fill some gaps in GM’s performance lineup, while helping make back development costs. Hell, not even just GM’s line-up, but the entire industry lineup. Mid-engined cars at that 30-50k price point don’t exist today. GM can storm the world wide market with this.
Just a realistic reminder that this wouldn’t be a heavy mover. It wouldn’t dethrone truck or SUV sales. It won’t bring back Pontiac or Oldsmobile.
It’s simply a limited model release blatantly banking on nostalgia and affordable performance.
Swap out a few body panels for a more clean or retro Fiero look. Swap out for cheaper materials consisting of stamped steel, cloth, and plastics. Cut unnecessary features. Put in a 4 or 6 cylinder engine. Bam, call it a Fiero, and sell it for 20k less than a Corvette.
Will it ever happen in a million years? Absolutely not.
Are you still reading this wall of text? Maybe. I thank you if you stuck through it.
This idea is just some food for thought.
