Pontiac was, of course, always the "sporty fun" division. The engineers wanted to create something sort of exotic and Italian type flavored. Legend has it that when they showed off their 6 cylinder, transverse mounted, 2-seat masterpiece, the GM brass said, "Fantastic! Now, if you'll make it 4 cylinder and put in a trunk, we can sell it as a family coupe as well!". That's what the world got in 1984 - an underpowered, complicated piece of engineering too cramped to do anything in.
Mine was an '86. The GT version went back to the original 6-cylinder design, but still lacked the gearing and oomph from the original. Despite the look, it was a relatively safe car with an all steel cage. The plastic body panels were glued on. With the mid-engine setup and "transaxle" (a transmission and differential built together right out of the engine), it was practically impossible to service without a lift. The weight distribution, though, was practically right through the center point of the car. Because of this, Pontiac designed it with massive understeer. Those who "corrected" this feature found themselves spinning the car exiting on cloverleafs.
They finally got all the bugs kicked out of the design around 1988, which, of course, is when they canceled the whole thing.
