The American company Specialty Vehicle Engineering (SVE) took up a daring bet last year; recreate a 2020 edition of the legendary high-performance GMC Syclone truck, popular at the very beginning of the 1990s. The bet was raised and to push the idea even further, SVE repeats this year with a 2021 edition of the Syclone which will produce 750 horsepower… according to amateurs and analysts, the result promises to be up to par.
The first GMC Syclone was marketed in 1991 as a high performance pickup truck; an improved version of the GMC Sonoma. At the time, the powerful truck offered acceleration that experts were quick to compare to models of legendary sports vehicles like the Corvette, or even the Ferrari.
To achieve such performance, the 1991 Syclone was equipped with a 4.3-liter turbocharged V6 developing 280 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque. The 4.3-liter V6 was connected to a Mitsubishi TD06-17C 8 cm² turbocharger under the hood (Source: www.tfltruck.com).
Even today, the 2,995 copies of the GMC Syclone are in great demand and still arouse the same fascination among lovers of high-performance trucks and collectors.
Reviving the Syclone
The SVE team managed to produce 100 copies of a 2020 edition of the famous truck last spring. This edition offered under the hood a 3.6-liter V6 engine seconded by a positive displacement compressor, which produced a total power of 455 horsepower (Source rpmweb.ca).
This year, to push the limits and honor the legend of the Syclone, the team will transform a GMC Canyon 2021 into a GMC Syclone 2021 capable of producing no less than 750 horsepower thanks to a 5.3L V8 engine. ''Not only have we equipped the truck with a V8, but we have also supercharged it and equipped with the strongest and fastest transmission available, and integrating all-wheel drive. Yes, you read correctly ; AWD DRIVING AT ALL TIMES ”, can be read in the car brochure.
Only 50 editions of the GMC Canyon 2021 modified to GMC Syclone 2021 will be created by SVE.
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Featured photo: Specialty Vehicle Engineering