The GMC Syclone is probably the most coveted pickup truck in the performance car realm. With a 280 hp turbocharged 4.3L V6, AWD and a seemingly unlimited amount of tunability and aftermarket support, despite its super niche place in the world, its a truck that we’ve lusted over for years.
Now that they’re pushing 25 years old (wow!), they’re treading the line of collector’s item and tuner machine. These aren’t limited to those in the United 50, either, as some of the fastest examples on the planet reside overseas. Thanks to thefts, wrecks, examples being parted out and severe rust issues, as well as one or two succumbing to the Cash for Clunkers program from several years ago, over the years, their numbers have dwindled; from the original 2,995 to an unknown, smaller number.
Those remaining examples continue to wave the flag, however, and whenever we see one representing the SyTy community in a big way, we get excited. We spotted the video of this example just the other day and seeing the infamous AWD-launch from the boosted GMC still gets us giddy like a school girl – except this is no ordinary Syclone.
This example weighs in at 3,890-lbs. and runs on E85. The boosted 6-cylinder pulls 1/8-mile times of 5.61 seconds and traps at over 130 mph! Little else is know about this particular Syclone, although if you were to convert its time into a projected 1/4-mile run, that puts it between 8.7-8.9 in the 1320.’ Not too shabby at all! J
ust as much as we hope that the remaining Syclone owners follow suit, we’d almost prefer it if they left their trucks in tact; or restored to their former glory. We don’t see GMC releasing a next-fen Syclone anytime, soon, and the 2,000+ that remain need to be preserved!
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of GMEFI Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the brand’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next modifications for his own cars.
