The Pontiac Fiero remains one of the best-looking cars to come out of the 1980s and out of GM’s design studios, but it’s still quite affordable for entry-level car enthusiasts. The model shown here benefits from the updated styling and the sharp “honeycomb”-style wheels, and it also sports the preferred combination of a 5-speed stick and the more powerful V6 engine. No matter how much work you put into one of these, the end result is generally the same in terms of a final sale price, so use caution before deciding to invest too heavily. This one has some desirable performance modifications and seems like a fun weekend warrior. Find it here on eBay where bids are just over $2,000 with the reserve unmet.

The Fiero looks sharp in black with the factory tinted taillights and the dual muffler set-up (with quad pipes, if you want to get technical). The seller has done a lot of work to this Fiero to make it both more reliable and fun to drive, but I’m not sure he’s going to see his investment come back to him. Some of the enhancements are immediately evident, such as the Koni “Red” shocks and aftermarket lowering springs; the Fiero’s sporty stance looks even better here. Other tweaks include new tires with less than 100 miles on them, which suggests the seller had plans to drive it more than he did before he got the itch for something new. There’s also a performance exhaust, according to the listing.

Of course, you always wonder why a car is up for grabs so soon after the improvements have been made. Sometimes life changes, or more often than not, you decide even with the mechanical repairs and performance upgrades, you don’t enjoy the car. The seller notes that the seats need to be re-done, which is why there are covers on them, and that the speedometer is not always reliable. These seem like pretty basic repairs, and you can still find decent Fiero seats in a junkyard if you’re patient, along with most other interior components like the center armrest and door storage pockets. The 5-speed is definitely the way to go in one of these, and isn’t always the easiest combo to find with the later bodywork and far superior V6.

There’s a long list of repairs made under the seller’s ownership, including a water pump, clutch, engine mounts, timing gears, timing chain, harmonic balancer, lower intake manifold and gasket set, drilled and tapped cooling lines, coolant hoses, and much more. The 1987 Fiero with the 2.8 V6 kicked out a respectable 135 horsepower and 165 lb-ft of torque, which feels downright speedy with the manual transmission. The suspension improvements made by the seller, along with the fresh rubber, should keep it fairly well glued to the road, too. Overall, the seller is clearly losing a bit on this one, but it sounds like he’s ready for garage space and a few bucks back in his bank account.