July GMOTM Voting

[jamz]

Lots of talk has been taking place in the community about the GMOTM contest. We have had discussions about different classes for the contest and such. In an effort to start making the contest a little more competitive, I have taken what everyone said to heart.

Each month, we will have a GMOTM contest as always. Some months, it may be a total mix of cars for Performance. Some, a total mix for all show. Other months it may be a theme, such as Best Audio System, etc. Each month, the contest will be announced for the following month.

As a result, I have went ahead and started this for the July 2006 GMOTM Voting. This vote will run for 7 days and at the end, the July GMOTM winner will be annouced. Since I am doing this theme, you will notice 2 entries from last month that did not win are included in this poll. This is simply because there cars fall into the category and help make us have 5 finalist!

So, read about this months GMOTM theme, submit your vote, and check out what next months theme will be. As always, SUBMIT YOUR RIDE for the GMOTM contest and keep the entry up to date!

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GM PERFORMANCE TUNING
IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE
JULY 2006'S GMOTM CONTEST


BATTLE OF THE FIERO'S!

I am pleased to annouce the July 2006 GMOTM contest is the battle of the Pontiac Fiero's. We had some amazing entries for GMOTM as always and have picked the 5 finalist. GM Performance Tuning is pleased to annnouce the finalist .. drum roll ..

1.Golden86's Boosted L67 Fiero

2. Triton's Mint 1988 Fiero

3. Darth Fiero's "Not your typical fiero"

4. Finiero's Fiero

5. Hellrazor's 11 Second Fiero

View each person's submission page and cast your vote! The voting ends in 7 days!!!!!!

Brief history

The Pontiac Fiero is a mid-engined sports car that was built by the Pontiac division of General Motors from 1984 to 1988.

Once a dream originally invisioned by John Delorean in 1969 with the code name of "X-4". The Fiero, meaning "fierce" in Italian, was finally designed by Hulki Aldikacti as a Pontiac sports car. Because of a "cool" reception by GM management and accountants, it was finally sold to GM as a fuel-efficient commuter car. The public, however, had other ideas for the only mid-engined car ever mass produced in North America. The Fiero was also the first 2-seater Pontiac made since the 1926 to 1938 coupes, and until the 2006 introduction of the Pontiac Solstice. The sports car potential of this car was greatly reduced due to cost-cutting however, and came under fire from critics because its publicity did not match its initial performance. Though originally designed with its own suspension and brakes, the bean counters at GM forced the use of off the shelf components which severely limited the Fiero's performance envelope. [citation needed]

By the end of production, the Fiero had received the original suspension design but kept a limited offering of engines — the use of turbochargers or the newer DOHC straight-4 engines, never made it to production. Officially, production ended because of insufficient profits, though many claim that GM in fact made a profit during every year of production. Budget constraints on Pontiac forced them to borrow parts from other models rather than use the suspension originally designed by the engineers. For example, some of the front suspension was taken from the Chevrolet Chevette[1]'s double A-arm design, allowing the wider and low-slung Fiero to handle exceptionally well (though at a cost; the Fiero shared front wheel bearings with the Chevette, and the Fiero's greater weight, wider tires and tendency to be driven like a performance car resulted in short bearing life). On the other hand, Chevette enthusiasts routinely upgraded their notoriously undersized brakes and rotors using Fiero parts. The rear suspension and base drivetrain was almost identical to the front end of GM X-body cars like the Chevrolet Citation and Pontiac Phoenix - the Fiero even included rear tie-rod ends for alignment, though they would have been used for steering had that particular assembly been used in an X-car.

The Fiero has a strong following of owners and customizers today. Because of an abundance of replacement parts available from other General Motors vehicles, there are many upgrades that can be done to improve performance and reliability of the cars. Additionally, a multitude of different General Motors engines have been installed by enthusiasts, from the Quad-4 engine to the Chevrolet small-block V8.

The Fiero 2M4 (2 seat, Mid-engine, 4 cylinders) was on Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 1984. The 1984 Fiero was the Official Pace Car of the Indianapolis 500 for 1984, beating out the new 1984 Corvette for the honor.

A large following of owners still exists with many web pages, groups, and clubs devoted to the car, and the basic chassis is commonly used as a kit-car platform from wild custom rebodies to Ferrari F355 replicas.

[BlackJack]

nice touch, adding in the history and such. The competition looks more evenly matched this time. Off to a good start Jason.

Now, on to the voting. Damn, this is gonna be tough. I like the uniqueness of Finiero's green goblin. But I'm also a major proponent of HP, and that gives me 3 to compete in that arena. And certainly not least, I cannot ignore the clean simplicity of a mint stock Fiero in excellent condition.

Ouch, this is going to be a difficult decision....I'll hold off for a few days and think it over :)

[jamz]

The goal is to make the contest the best it can be. It will continue to improve and always be a work in progress. Thanks for the support.

[TheGreenGrandAm]

did you pick out a theme for next month?

[TheGreenGrandAm]

forget that ^^

[Pontiac Man]

I absolutely love Fieros and this looks like a great group to vote on.

Thanks for the Fiero special.

I'd like to make a couple of corrections though. Fiero actually means "very proud" in Italian. Also, the member referred to as "Triton" is actually Tinton.

Thanks again and I've got my vote in.

[HellRazor]

looks like things are neck and neck....heres a ne wpic maybe it'll sway some votes for or against my car....

[jamz]

thanks for the support of the gmotm so far. i believe having a a theme will result in better contests in the long run.

everyone!!!!! be sure to cast your vote.

[BlackJack]

ok, decision time. Good looking Fiero's, all of them....

Said it before, I love HP first, and good clean simplicity second, but Tinton's fiero took it. Clean, but not so clean that it doesn't look like a daily driver.

[Golden86]

Originally Posted by BlackJack

ok, decision time. Good looking Fiero's, all of them....

Said it before, I love HP first, and good clean simplicity second, but Tinton's fiero took it. Clean, but not so clean that it doesn't look like a daily driver.

Oh, did I mention, my car is my daily driver for the whole time I have owned it :D

[jamz]

Originally Posted by Golden86

Oh, did I mention, my car is my daily driver for the whole time I have owned it :D

wow .. a daily driver in that condition, I'm impressed.

[Marvyn741]

I'm a new member to the group, when a friend sent me a link to the contest I just had to join.

I have an 88 Fiero with a Ramjet V8 conversion. Visually, it's not in the league of any these fine cars but it would make a good showing performance wise.



Marv Harris - Tampa
88 V8 Fiero - http://www.cardomain.com/ride/466655
95 Impala SS

[jamz]

Happy to have you here! Looks like your ride packs a big punch! Keep an eye out for future GMOTM contests for all performance.

Originally Posted by Marvyn741

I'm a new member to the group, when a friend sent me a link to the contest I just had to join.

I have an 88 Fiero with a Ramjet V8 conversion. Visually, it's not in the league of any these fine cars but it would make a good showing performance wise.



Marv Harris - Tampa
88 V8 Fiero - http://www.cardomain.com/ride/466655
95 Impala SS

[BlackJack]

I'm down for a pic of the engine mounted

[ROKTMAN]

Welcome Marvyn.Looks like another tight race here this month boys.