After General Motors pulled the plug on a seriously ailing Pontiac back in 2009, did anyone really miss it? Sure, some devotees of the historic all-American car brand (in business since 1926!) gently protested at the time. But they clearly didn’t feel as strongly about Pontiac as Chevy fans feel about Chevy, as evidenced by another notable deal GM finessed in 2009. You see, that’s also the year the manufacturer resumed production on its iconic Chevy Camaro, which it had pulled off the assembly line alongside the money-sucking Pontiac Firebird back in 2002. GM said they resurrected the Camaro to appease riotous sports car enthusiasts—but did they do the same thing for the Firebird? Not a chance. (Although, to be fair, it seems Firebird fans are finally stepping up to the plate, especially those behind the custom carmaker Trans Am Depot, which announced just this summer that it would bring the Pontiac Firebird back from the dead in a stunning new 2021 model. Take that, GM!).

Poor Pontiac Firebird. The car was promising enough when it was first introduced to the market in 1967 as GM’s answer to the newly released Ford Mercury Cougar. If the Mercury Cougar was meant to be the luxury version of Ford’s muscular Mustang, which GM was so desperate to rob of its market-dominating status at the time, then the Firebird was meant to be the upscale Chevy Camaro (which GM had come up with to rival the Mustang, in the first place). Except, it wasn’t really a step up from anything—while some of the first-generation Firebirds both performed well and looked good enough to attract a healthy corps of admirers, in general, the car was just sort of…unexceptional, as something that was never quite a true muscle car but never distinguishing itself as a sports car either, nor did it ever really grab hold of the imagination the way a Corvette or a Camaro could.

And that’s reflected in the car’s current valuation. GM might not be churning them out anymore, but plenty of used Firebirds, especially the third-generation models from the 1980s and 1990s, are popping up for resale all the time, because they are affordable (and, well, maybe a little fun, too). Mechanics report their garages are full of these clunkers, and a quick Google search uncovers a veritable treasure trove of 1985 Pontiac Firebirds in particular, which in general are averaging in price around $8,650 (the original MSRP was just over $11,000); though Hot Rod magazine points out that these third-gen Pontiacs can be scooped up for as little as $1,000 (as long as you’re willing to put in more than a little work to keep it running). At thirty-five years old, an ’85 Firebird is well into its years as a vintage car, and nearing antique status by now—which might make the cheap price enticing, since soon enough it’s bound to be a collector’s item, and go up in value, right? The truth is, probably not.

However much the 1985 Pontiac Firebird is worth today, here are the many reasons why you should not buy it:

Here’s The Current Valuation

According to Hagerty, today a mint-condition 1985 Pontiac Firebird is worth $11,100, with valuation gradually decreasing down to $2,800 for a car in fair condition. That’s pretty much consistent with J.D. Power’s Nada Guides valuation, which puts the highest amount at $11,079 and the lowest at $3,850, with an average retail price of $8,650.

RELATED: 1972 Pontiac Firebird 455 HO Proves Muscle Cars Never Go Out Of Style

Reason 1: It Doesn’t Drive Well

1985 Pontiac Firebird Interior
Via: Pinterest

Ok, so now you have a ballpark idea of what a 1985 Firebird is worth in today’s market. The prices might be attractive, but the first reason why you probably shouldn’t buy one is that the car isn’t even all that great to drive. Back in 1985, there were some perks to the vehicle: the third-gen Firebirds (which first arrived in 1981) were the first to offer a 4-cylinder engine, factory-fuel injection, and 5-speed automatic transmission—so this model offered drivers a good deal of speed for a lower price than more esteemed pony cars. And we have to admit the ’85 Firebird does have that fun, thrilling race-car sound when the engine revs. But aside from all that, reviewers have reported that the car corners terribly and is disturbingly tail-happy—a car for joyriding, it is not.

Reason 2: It Is A Pain To Maintain

1985 Pontiac Firebird Engine
Muscle Car Facts

An even bigger problem with the 1985 Pontiac Firebird: its pain-in-the-neck ECM. One reviewer compared it to an ancient Atari! To be fair, this was the very dawn of the age of computerized engine management, and technologically not a whole lot was possible. Also keep in mind that the ultimate goal for the car was to be fuel-efficient, given the high cost and volatile availability of gasoline at the time—the third-generation Firebirds were conceived in the wake of two fuel crises and designed to achieve 34 mpg, which was decent gas mileage for the era. And back in the ’80s, Pontiac must have thought the Tuned Port Injection innovation it introduced in the 1985 Firebird was a great innovation, meant to increase fuel economy and horsepower by 30 percent, thus solving that fuel efficiency problem without sacrificing speed. But as the mechanics over at Hot Rod have reported, by 2020, the ECM in pretty much every TPI Firebird is inevitably bound to fail. If you buy a 1985 Pontiac Firebird, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’ll have to replace the ECM; and most drivers end up throwing up their hands and getting rid of the TPI altogether in favor of a carburetor. It takes a lot of serious tuning to keep these cars driving.

RELATED: 15 Things You Need To Know About The Pontiac Firebird Trans Am

Reason 3: There’s Nothing That Special About the ’85 Model

1985 Pontiac Firebird
Via: Mecum Auctions

So, on the one hand, the 1985 Pontiac Firebird did come with some new design features that set it apart from the field at the time. It was a more aerodynamic vehicle than its Firebird predecessors, and in terms of its look, it had a restyled nose and rear bumper, a new hood and tail-light design, a steeper windshield slope, and a significantly lighter-weight body. So back in 1985, it probably was, indeed, a more exciting car than, say, the 1982 model. But if you’re in the market for a used Pontiac Firebird, looking at the ’85 model in the context of the car’s decades-long evolution, this version just isn’t particularly remarkable. Oh, maybe there’s one fun feature: the interior does sport a little analog dial that you can scroll through to read “departures” or “arrivals”—sophisticated enough for you? Hardly. And more importantly, this vehicle has none of the iconic styling of the first-generation Firebirds from the 1960s, with their distinctive “Coke bottle” bodies, or the swoon-worthy swoopy styling of the revamped second-gen Firebirds of the 1970s (as immortalized in the classic film Smokey and the Bandit). The 1985 design, on the other hand, just didn’t age well—it’s not so much iconic as it is the look you expect to find on a dingy used car lot. Glamorous, this car is not, and unlike its earlier-generation brethren, it’s bound to keep sinking in value.

NEXT: Why The 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Was A Bad Muscle Car