The GMC Syclone: An Overlooked Muscle Truck
While GMC has long been more about building tough, hard-working trucks and SUVs than performance vehicles than can hang with Ferraris and Corvettes. However, those who doubt the Professional Grade brand's ability to build a world-class muscle machine may be forgetting that for two great years in the early 1990s, GMC built one of the world's quickest and most beautiful performance machines ever made: the GMC Syclone.
Limited-Edition 2019 GMC Syclone
So how many GMC Syclones were made? Built only in 1991 and 1992, fewer than 3,000 Syclones were produced in total, with only three being shipped by GMC in all of 1992. With those low numbers, high horsepower and a corner-carving all-wheel drive system, the GMC Syclone has since become a holy grail for many collectors — even though most hardcore GMC fans have never seen one outside of a photo or video.
Based on the 1991-1992 GMC Sonoma (GMC's version of the popular Chevrolet S-10 compact pickup) the Syclone looked the part of a beast, even when sitting still. Radiating an uncompromising performance vibe, the Syclone featured an all-black color scheme, a lowered stance, model-specific alloy wheels, a front spoiler and unique aerodynamic body cladding. Under the hood was the same 4.3-liter, all-iron Vortec V6 used in many other GMC Sonomas, though the Syclone truck was packing a few important differences.
First and foremost was the same GM-produced turbocharger that had been at the heart of the legendary Buick Grand National in the 1980s. Pumping out 14 pounds of boost, the turbo's charge was fed through a liquid intercooler to chill the air before it entered the intake. Word is that GMC lowballed the horsepower rating on the Syclone to avoid scaring the bejesus out of insurance companies, but officially, the Syclone made 280 horsepower and a tire-shredding 350 lb.-ft of torque from the factory. For a little perspective, the 1991 Chevrolet Corvette — Chevy's flagship performance car, with a 5.7-liter V8 — was only producing 250 horsepower the same year.
What's So Great About Denali Vehicles?
When it comes to putting big horsepower to the ground, notoriously light-in-the-rear smaller pickups are at a significant disadvantage, as anyone who ever stuffed a small-block V8 into a Sonoma or S-10 can attest. But the GMC Syclone had another trick up its sleeve when it came to traction: a Borg-Warner full-time all-wheel drive system, which GMC engineers had borrowed from the 1991 GMC Safari minivan. Designed to send 65 percent of the engine's power and torque to the rear wheels and 35 percent to the front, the result was a small pickup that accelerated like a supercar, with none of the tendency to fishtail on takeoff.
Combined with wide, Firestone Firehawk speed-rated radial tires, the all-wheel drive system made the Syclone able to do all kinds of tricks. These included a rocket-sled zero-to-60 time of 4.3 seconds, as well as covering the quarter mile from a standing start in a blistering 13.7 seconds at over 105 miles per hour. When Car and Driver magazine lined a 1991 GMC Syclone up against a $122,000 Ferrari 348ts at the drag strip for their September 1991 issue, the Syclone smoked the Italian, beating the Ferrari by what observers said was three full car lengths.
The 1991 GMC Syclone on Jay Leno's Garage
Though the Syclone (and the later Jimmy-based SUV version, the 1992-1993 GMC Typhoon) were big hits with gearheads and critics, sales were slow, mostly due to the Syclone's then-astronomical $25,500 cost. It also didn't help that the suspension lowering and all-wheel drive left the Syclone with a hauling capacity of only 500 pounds, which made it fairly useless if you wanted to load up anything heavier than a washing machine. After the 1992 model year, the Syclone was dropped from production.
Still, the 1991-92 GMC Syclone lives on in the hearts of fans. It stands as both a beautiful example of GMC engineering ingenuity and as a reminder that GMC can do so much more than just build tough and reliable trucks. Today, a GMC Syclone in even wrung-out shape can command more than $10,000 at auction, with fully restored or low mileage examples going for upwards of $25,000.
Want to get in on your own piece of great GMC history? Stop in today at McLarty Daniel Buick GMC and check out our full lineup of GMC trucks and SUVs! You can also check out our full selection online.
Start Browsing Our New Trucks Online