The first model year the Fiero was introduced with a 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine. They were a whole new concept (space frame and plastic body) and prone to oil leaking onto a wiring harness causing engine fires
All the 84 cars were recalled and the engines replaced (due to bad connecting rods) and the wiring harness fire-proofed.
In 1985 a 2.8 liter 6 cylinder engine was added and neither it nor the 2.5 ever had any issue thereafter. Unfortunately the press latched onto the engine fire issue from 84 and the bad reputation stuck. Today the Fiero is one of the most popular cars from the 1980s and is estimated to rise in value considerably in the next 20 years (only 382,000 were built over five years).
The Fiero, because of it's mid engine design (like a Ferrari), was one of the best handling cars built in America until that time and was the first American made mid-engine car (until the Ford GT).
