When you think of ’80s-90s era of performance, you might think of the Buick GNX, Corvette ZR-1, or the first-gen Viper. But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll recall the GMC Syclone pickup, and the Shelby Dakota. While the former is certainly the darling of our eye, the often-forgotten and overlooked Shelby Dakota could hold its own for its time, too.
As similar as these trucks would seem to be on the surface, it’s what’s under the sheetmetal that matters, and where the difference lie. The GMC packs the 280hp turbocharged 4.3L V6, married to an automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive system. Although some enthusiasts may prefer a manual transmission, the torque converter and the AWD system work hand-in-hand to help spool the turbo, and hard launch the truck to low-14 second times, sometimes, faster.
Looking at the Shelby-tuned Dodge, we find a more traditional setup; a 5.2L 318ci. V8 and rear-wheel drive. It’s certainly more in-line with the muscle car/muscle truck segment, but with only 175hp. It has two more cylinders and nearly a full-liter more of displacement, but it’s running naturally-aspirated, and with a more archaic fuel-injection system.
Both trucks are part of the American Muscle Car Museum, based out of Melbourne, Florida, where there’s over 400 vehicles on dispaly, and roughly half of them have under 100 miles on the clock. The name of the game there, is ultra-low mileage, stock, classic and modern American muscle cars and trucks that can be considered collectible and valuable. The few panning shots that Dennis Gage and the crew at My Classic Car have provided in the above video are impressive. Watch the clip above to learn more about both trucks, as well as the American Muscle Car Museum in Florida.
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.
