GMC Syclone - The Factory-Built Compact Pickup That Humbled the Ferrari 348 - gallery

On the latest episode of Revelations with Jason Cammisa, the man takes us on a tour of the GMC Syclone

It was a high performance pick up truck way ahead of its time and with supercar levels of performance, it held the title for the fastest pickup truck in the world for many years

The Syclone was the brainchild of people like Bill Davis, who was GMC's chief assistant designer at the time and Ken Nielsen, who was a GMC engineer and drag racer

With the pair wanting to change the automakers blue-collar image and add something interesting to the line up, management approved the Syclone and a concept was presented at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show

But what exactly gave this muscle truck its supercar rivaling performance? Well, there were several modifications made to the Corvette sourced 4.3 turbocharged L V-6 engine

They included an intercooler, hypereutectic pistons, upgraded intake, and exhaust manifolds. As a result the V-6 engine now produces 280 hp & 350 lb-ft of torque

The engine sent power to the wheels through a Borg Warner Sourced, read biased (65%) AWD system, and was mated to a four-speed torque converter

With that kind of performance, 0-60 mph was done away with, in 4.3 seconds, enough to beat a Ferrari 348ts, which was a duel organized by Car and Driver back then

This was some truly astonishing performance for a truck that cost five times lesser than the Ferrari, coming in at $25,970 ($52k in today’s money)

As a work vehicle, the Syclone simply didn't make any sense whatsoever. Its cab was only good enough for two

It couldn't tow

And you could haul, less than 500 lbs in the bed

But then thats missing the point, because it really doesn't matter. The Syclone about nothing else but performance

Only 2995 Syclones were produced for the '91 model year, with two for 1992. The Jimny version that followed, dubbed the Typhoon was far more successful, selling over 4000 units

Famous owners include Jay Leno, Eddie Van Halen and Ziggy Marley

Nearly three decades on, the Syclone name still gets out heart racing and is easily one of the coolest pickup trucks of all time. Swipe Up to Read More.