GMC Syclone 4 Special Edition of the Pickup Truck
The GMC Syclone was a pickup truck that was only produced in 1991. The car was made by GMC (which is a different entity from General Motors). The GMC Syclone was produced along with Production Automotive Services (PAS), the same company credited with building the 1989 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am. The GMC Syclone was the fastest production truck in 1991. After the Syclone, the 1992 GMC Sonoma GT truck was offered as a sport package with the looks of a Syclone but without the price and performance of its turbocharged predecessor. Do you know why the GMC Syclone was only produced for one year?
GMC Syclone Editions
The GMC Syclone and some other pickup trucks were built by GMC and PAS (Production Automotive Services). The GMC Syclone was only produced for one year, though it did have four editions. At the time the Syclone was introduced, it was the fastest stock pickup truck being produced in the world. Auto magazines compared its acceleration favorably to a variety of sports cars, including the Chevrolet Corvette, and in Car and Driver magazine, a Ferrari 348.
The GMC Syclone featured a 4.3-liter turbocharged V6 engine with an automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive driveline, and 4-wheel anti-lock brakes. The GMC Syclone was the first truck to receive an anti-lock braking system. With the V6 engine, the Syclone produced 280 horsepower and 350pound-feet of torque. The GMC Syclone could accelerate from 0–60 miles per hour in 5.3 seconds and could do a quarter-mile run in 13.4 seconds at 98 miles per hour.
Saudi Syclone
During 1991 GMC Syclone production, about 150 Syclones were exported by GMC to the Middle East and were modified with a metric dash cluster, a leaded fuel chip, and a resonator in place of the catalytic converter. These 150 pickup trucks were shipped to Saudi Arabia to be sold as export sales. These 150 pickup trucks were known as the Saudi Syclones.
Marlboro Syclone
The special edition of the GMC Syclone was the Marlboro Syclone, was the grand prize for the ten winners of The Marlboro Racing 1992 Contest. To enter the sweepstakes, candidates filled out a form with a questionnaire. All ten trucks were provided to American Sunroof Company by Shinoda Design Associates, Inc., in conjunction with Phillip Morris, Incorporated, and given sunroofs. The Malboro Cyclone had ten other special features.
Indy and PPG Syclone
Three Indy Syclones were used at the Indianapolis 500 race on May 24, 1992. One of these Indy trucks was later converted into the PPG Syclone Pace Truck with significant modifications to be used on the track, including a multi-colored silver, magenta, and aqua paint scheme, and a molded in light bar in the roof, a racing fuel cell, a built-in halon fire suppression system, water-cooled brakes, and color-matched leather interior to the exterior paint scheme. Racing in the Indianapolis 500 was significant.
The PPG Syclone was retired to the General Motors Heritage Collection, where it was stored and occasionally taken out for car shows until it was auctioned in 2009, selling for a costly $66,000. The special car is now privately owned, with its last location known to be in Colorado. We are talking about one car here. That is interesting, it must have been a very special car.
Conclusion
The most important thing about the GMC Syclone was that it was fast. It was the fastest pickup truck of the time. It was so fast that it was compared to a Ferrari by the reputable magazine, Car and Driver. It also had the honor of being the pace car at the Indianapolis 500. It is worth wondering if this car is unique, being produced for only one year. Interestingly, we wrote here about only one car, in Colorado.
