No, this isn’t a real Ferrari F50. We probably don’t need to mention that, but just to be clear on all accounts, the yellow car seen here is a 1985 Pontiac Fiero. It’s not just any Fiero, either. It’s a GT model with a V6 engine mounted behind the driver. And if you’re so inclined to add this oddly proportioned F50 replica to your garage, it’s selling on Cars & Bids. Better act fast though, because the auction ends on June 28.
According to the listing, this faux Ferrari was actually quite the project. The donor Fiero’s chassis was reportedly stretched and widened before gaining all kinds of fiberglass body panels. The exact nature of that expansion isn’t made clear, but there’s certainly quite a step from the lower rockers to the actual door frames. The nose is considerably longer, which actually matches well with the real F50 save for those weird dual chins jutting out below corner intakes. The rake angle on the hood is off, and the rear of the car seems a bit short but frankly, it’s not the worst kit car conversion we’ve seen.
The shorter backside certainly owes to the fact this car doesn’t pack a sizable Ferrari V12 behind the cockpit. While considerable attention was paid to the outside, the standard-issue Pontiac 2.8-liter V8 engine still lives under the cover. It’s transverse-mounted, and according to the listing it’s received a rebuild at some point. There’s no mention of modifications or power output, but if all is well and rebuilt to factory spec, it’s probably close to the original manufacturer’s rating of 140 horsepower. A manual transmission was offered on the Fiero back in the day, but sadly, this one packs a three-speed automatic.
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The interior is reportedly tweaked as well, but there’s no mistaking the Fiero’s blocky dash and period-correct General Motors climate control levers. For reasons not entirely clear, the speedometer reads 15 MPH while sitting still. We’ll let you insert your own joke on that interesting quirk.
As our article goes live with approximately 24 hours left in the auction, the Fiero F50 has some fans. The high bid sits at $13,769 – considerably less than the $4 million or so commanded by real F50s these days – and it could certainly go higher before the digital hammer comes down.
While F50 proportions are a bit rough on a Fiero, the 1980s sports car is actually a surprisingly good platform for Ferrari 308 replicas. For a short time in the late 1980s, a conversion company actually built re-bodied Fieros called the Mera and sold them new through Pontiac dealerships. It was decidedly not endorsed by General Motors, and Ferrari jumped in with a lawsuit to shut the production down. To this day, however, it takes a keen eye to distinguish a Mera from a 308.
If you want to peruse some real Ferraris, jump over to duPont Registry and check out nearly 1,000 listings featuring both modern and classic prancing horse supercars.
