At $25,499, Would This 1987 Pontiac Fiero Mera Let You Fake It 'Til You Make It?

Values on real Ferrari 308s have been soft for months, but none is as cheap as today's Nice Price or No Dice Mera, which offers Italian looks with Pontiac performance. Let's see if this fabled Faux-ari is an imitation with a flattering price.

Lots of people like to morph corporate names into acronyms for the brand's most common issues. In the automotive world, that's led to FIAT earning the descriptive "Fix It Again, Tony" (or in Germany, "Fehler in allen Teilen"). Similarly, LOTUS becomes a warning of "Lots Of Troubles, Usually Serious." Here in the U.S., Fords are claimed to be "Found On Road Dead," which seems harsh considering the marque's laudable history and reputation.

That also wouldn't describe the 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac we had under our adjudication on Thursday. Described as well-maintained and looking quite solid for its age and 140K of use, it seemed to hit a sweet spot at its $5,500 asking price. That earned a super-solid 90% "Nice Price" win, and perhaps the moniker of being a "Fully, Overwhelmingly Real Deal."

Today, we're going to do a little cosplay. This 1987 Pontiac Fiero Mera might look a bit familiar to you, but rest assured, the car's luscious curves, quad round tail lamps, and iconic air intakes extending into the doors do not evoke the lines of any other car. At least that's what the Mera's original brochure stated.

The Fiero's monocoque chassis and plastic-fantastic bodywork lent themselves to reimagining. That proved obvious with complete conversions like the Mera. This wasn't a goofball backyard kit either. The only way to get the conversion was to saunter into a Pontiac dealer and buy a new Fiero, ordering the Mera bodywork as a dealer-provided option. The dealer would then have the car shipped to Corporate Concepts Limited in Capac, Michigan, where it would be unceremoniously stripped of its original RIM plastic body panels. New fiberglass pieces were installed as replacements, along with unique logos. Finally, larger-than-standard 16-inch wheels were fitted underneath.

In total, 247 Fieros were converted into Meras between 1987 and 1988 before Ferrari's impeccably dressed legal team caught wind of the cars and successfully obtained a cease-and-desist order from the courts. That order shut down CCL's production. Seems that just saying something's not a copy doesn't actually mean it's not a copy.

That makes this clean-title, low-mileage (92,100 miles) car appreciably rare. It's also seemingly in very respectable condition, as the seller claims it has been a consistent trophy winner at car shows over the three years they have owned it. That likely stems from it being reliably garaged and well-maintained. The bodywork, appropriately painted in Rosso corsa, appears to be in good shape, as do the added five-spoke alloys. That paint is a respray, and the seller advises that there is some chipping and spiderwebbing noticeable in the finish.

CCL never tatted the car up with the iconic Cavallino Rampante, so those, along with the Ferrari badging on the seat belt snoods and engine intake, have been added after the fact. Another addition is a Magnum P.I. cover creeping on the driver's seat. Hopefully, that won't come with the car.

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The rest of the interior, save for the excess of Ferrari badges and a nice alloy shift gate, is pure uncut Fiero. A dash cover protects the plastic, but does look floppy as heck. Everything else seems to be in good nick and quite tidy as long as you don't acknowledge the mismatched color of the floor mats.

It's all Fiero in the engine bay as well. Holding court there is Chevy's solid L44 2.8-liter pushrod V6, which in Fiero spec made 135 horsepower and 160 pound-feet of torque. That's claimed to have been rebuilt at some point in its history by Bob Yuhas Restoration, who the seller says was on a TV Show called "Pawn Stars." Whatever. The engine is said to run "reliably and strong," and is backed up by a Getrag 282 five-speed manual. 

The A/C has also been rebuilt with modern refrigerant and is claimed to blow cold air. In fact, there doesn't seem to be anything mechanically wrong with the car, which is a major plus as unique parts for these are not so easy to come by these days. A couple of final observations: the black painted headlamp covers are not a good look, and don't be fooled by the likewise dark roof section—this is not actually a spider. That's just more of the car's attempt at deception.

Okay, so now that we're all down to clown with a Fiero in an Italian suit by way of Eastern Michigan, we'll now need to discuss the merits of the car's $25,499 price tag. Interestingly, that's just about a grand more than what this car listed for when new. Time wounds all heels and all that.

For that asking, a new owner could take home a bit of sordid automotive history, as well as a car that, from a distance, will fool people into thinking it's a real-deal 308 that costs twice as much, if not more than what this Fiero's seller demands. That's got to count for something.

What do you think? Is this Mera a marvel at that $25,499 asking price? Or is that too much to start planning your Magnum P.I. Halloween costume so early in the year?

You decide!

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H/T to Frank L. for the hookup!

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