GMC has made quite a few quality pickup trucks over the years. The one that takes the fastest truck for GMC award is one from the fairly distant past. Those who’ve been around for a while might remember the Syclone. This pickup is one that was produced way back in 1991.

With the limited number made and the fact that it’s no longer in production, we now consider this truck a classic. One that retro truck fans would love to get their hands on. But what was so great about the GMC Syclone? What made it the fastest?

What made the Syclone the fastest GMC truck?

GMC built the Syclone to be more of a sporty truck and less of a workhorse. A 4.3-liter turbocharged V6 engine, running 280 hp, propelled this little truck from 0 to 60 in 5.4 seconds, as MotorWeek claimed in their retro 1991 review. With 360 lb.-ft of torque, 35% of it split to the front and 65% went to the rear.

Borrowing pistons, port fuel injectors, and throttle bodies from the Corvette L98, GMC created a powerful engine and put it into a light body pickup. To handle the tremendous boost of power from the motor, specially made Firestone, all-season, V-speed tires were installed. With 4-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel-drive capabilities, this truck turned heads back in the day.

Why was the Syclone so rare?

For a pickup that boasted tremendous power, this beauty didn’t exactly take off when it came to sales. Back when off-roading trucks were hot, GMC built a powerful street pick up instead. A fast truck for the road sounds nice, but it wasn’t as useful as most street trucks were in the early 1990s.

The bed could only haul 500 lbs and the truck could only tow 2,000 lbs, which was significantly less than most other workhorse trucks on the market. GMC built only about 3,000 Syclones and stopped making it after that. These trucks still live on, nowadays, in the used truck market.

Does GMC ever plan to bring it back into production?

GMC has no plans to ever reintroduce the Syclone into its line of trucks again. However, Special Vehicle Engineering licensed the name from GMC, and it plans on building a version of the Syclone.

The new Syclone truck will be a modified creation from the 2019 GMC Canyon Extended cab pick up. The plan is to use a V6 engine that runs 455 hp and 425 lb-ft of torque. Because of the cost, this truck will ultimately bring, only a limited number. Only about 100 will be built for Syclone fans.

The fastest GMC truck runners ups

GMC Sierra 1500 is the next in line for the fastest trucks for GMC. Its 4.3-liter V6 engine runs at 355 hp and can go from 0 to 60 in 7.3 seconds. For a V6, this truck has decent power, with a top speed of 99 mph. For heavier hauls, you can also choose a 5.3 or 6.2-liter engine.

GMC Canyon is the second runner-up for the fastest pickups in the General Motor line. The Canyon is slightly slower than the Sierra when it comes to acceleration. It takes 7.5 seconds to go from 0 to 60. Its V6 engine runs at 305 hp and pairs with an eight-speed automatic transmission.

You can also choose a more fuel economic motor, though, because these trucks do have a 2.5-liter four-cylinder for those who are not into a speedy truck.

When it comes to trucks and speed, GMC definitely knows what it’s doing. From the fast running Syclone to the heavy hauling Canyon, the company consistently builds top of the line trucks that can outperform many of its rivals.