The late 1980s and early 1990s were not good times for automakers wanting to build fast cars. Technology hadn’t gripped hold to create efficient engines capable of producing oodles of horsepower. And 1979 left a bitter taste in many American’s mouths on just how high gas prices could climb.
But, the show goes on. And General Motors decided to grace the public with a real niche: the GMC Syclone. What car guy would own a 1991 GMC Syclone? Jay Leno, of course.
Leno actually purchased the car brand new in 1991 from General Motors, and says this particular one was a testbed for future performance goodies. The company building the Syclone closed its doors in 1992, therefore only three 1992 models were built, making the car a real rarity.
We can only reiterate what a strange venture this was. The 1991 Syclone was not only the fastest GM production vehicle, but quicker than a Ferrari 348 too. As Leno points out, imagine walking into a local GM dealer at the time asking for the fastest vehicle offered. “Is it that Corvette over there?” “Nope, that pickup truck actually.” Naturally this is a very sleeper vehicle.
Check out the truck for yourself as Leno highlights the ins and outs of it in the video below.
Comments
I can only hope GM does something this cool again.
What happened to GM performance for trucks and suv’s? Corvette, Camaro, and SS sedan? That’s it? Trim packages on pickups isn’t enough. Let”s stop taking care of of the girls, Mary B., with boring cuv’s to haul their kids around.
That’s right there is a 4.3L V6 waiting for a turbo. And an LT1 for a Colorado SS.