Pontiac Firefly With Chevy 5.7L V8, RWD Is A Mouse With A Lion’s Roar

The Pontiac Firefly was a rebadged version of the Suzuki Cultus for Canada which, in turn, preceded the Swift. Both of them had pint-sized engines and front-wheel drive, yet this 1987 Firefly will surprise you.

Acquired nine years ago in a non-running condition by a high school teacher, it has since been brought back to life in a very Frankenstein’ing way. The once mild-mannered city car underwent a transformation headlined by an engine swap with a Chevy 350 cubic-inch V8 paired to a TH350 automatic transmission driving the rear wheels, with the rear axle sourced from a 1988 Firebird and narrowed by 9 inches.

For safety reasons, a roll cage was installed and the battery, which is now found in the back, features a remote cutoff switch handle. The sports seats have a fixed position while you may want to bear in mind that this Firefly lacks sun visors, working dome light, radio and fresh air inlet. The Firebird-sourced tachometer is not functional and there are no neutral/park safety switch and reverse lights either.

Its future owner, because the car is for sale on Bringatrailer, with a British Columbia registration, 264,000 km (~164,000 miles) on the clock and and bidding currently standing at $3,500 at the time of writing, will have to take care of a few things. Among them is the fuel injection programming, which is said to require some fine-tuning.

As for the overall condition of this Firefly, it does have its issues from peeling paint and dents to rusted surfaces. Breathing new life into it is going to require a consistent budget and a steady hand. The question is, would you dare to turn it into your project?