Back in the early 1990s, GMC punched out an SUV and pickup truck that will forever have a place in the history books as two of the coolest vehicles ever to wear the brand’s badges. The rare GMC Syclone was the fastest production pickup truck for years, and it took bigger, much-more-powerful trucks to unseat it. It’s faster in a quarter mile than a Ferrari 348ts, practically useless as a truck, and looks plain villainous. How can you make one of the greatest trucks even better? Have design legend Larry Shinoda make an eye-popping red Syclone for tobacco company Phillip Morris, put T-tops on it, and then give away just 10 of them. This is the 1991 GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition, and it is a Holy Grail.
We were tipped off to the existence of this truck from X user bog_beef. It’s well-known that countless vehicles look fantastic in a Marlboro livery, but I must admit I’ve never pictured such a thing on a truck. I don’t even smoke cigarettes and I’d totally rock the 1991 GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition. However, the chances that any of our readers will ever drive one of these trucks or even see one in person is likely slimmer than their chance of being struck by lightning this year. Phillip Morris took just 10 of the 2,995 regular production Syclones and turned them into these special trucks.
Oh, and did I say that the GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition has T-tops? This might be the raddest truck you’ll see for a while.
A Sports Car With A Bed
Part of what makes the Syclone such a fascinating story is the fact that it got made in the first place, but this was an era when General Motors was having a lot of fun. Another awesome part of the Syclone’s story is just how many legitimate sports cars it was able to beat, at least in a straight line up to about a quarter mile.
As Jason Cammisa explains in a video for Hagerty, the story of the Syclone started with GM engineer and drag racer Kim Nielsen. The year is 1987 and the Buick Grand National’s production was coming to a close after terrorizing American streets for a handful of years. Nielsen realized that after the Grand National’s death, the most interesting car at GM would be Corvette, and that couldn’t stand.
Reportedly, Nielsen brewed up an idea to elevate GMC’s image while also building something interesting for the GM portfolio. GMC engineers sourced a Grand National’s 3.8-liter turbo six and fitted it into the engine bay of a GMC S-15 (later called the Sonoma). The resulting truck didn’t run, but it looked striking with a white body, white wheels, and a pink pulse-style pinstripe. The truck was rolled into auto shows, where GMC’s documentation claimed the truck could hit 60 mph in under 6 seconds and stomp out quarter mile times in the 13-second range.
The public was amazed, and the engineering team pitched the project to General Motors brass. The team ran into a problem when they found they couldn’t source any more Grand National engines. However, the Chevrolet S-10 and GMC Sonoma did have a 4.3-liter V6 that, while unrelated to the famous Grand National 3.8, would be receptive to turbocharging. Unfortunately, the team hit another wall when Chevrolet said it wasn’t interested. But GMC was, and the project was finally given the green light. Development was expected to take seven years and $200 million.
To beat this expectation, Nielsen and his engineering team decided to find outside help to get around GM’s red tape. One potential choice was ASC/McLaren, which worked on the Pontiac Turbo Grand Prix by ASC McLaren. The other was Production Automotive Services, which had its hands on the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Turbo. ASC/McLaren’s prototype sport truck was a GMC S-15 with a turbocharger. Production Automotive Services did the same, but that firm’s prototype went further, borrowing an AWD system from the then-new Chevy Astro AWD and instrumentation from a Pontiac Sunbird Turbo. Nielsen’s team tested both trucks and the Production Automotive Services prototype was a clear winner. [Ed Note: PAS was headquartered in my old home town of Troy, MI. -DT].
From there, Production Automotive Services would be in charge of developing the truck, certifying its emissions, and building the production versions. Out of the other end came a truck that stomped the competition for years. PAS added a Mitsubishi TD06-17C turbocharger and a Garrett water-to-air intercooler to the S-15’s 4.3-liter V6. Other changes came from a twin-bore throttle body from the Corvette, lower-compression pistons, a new intake, and new exhaust manifolds. Power spiked from 160 HP to 280 HP and 350 lb-ft of torque. A BorgWarner transfer case ensured 65 percent of the engine’s power fired to the rear wheels.
GMC advertised the truck’s ability to hit 60 mph in 4.6 seconds and a quarter mile in 13.4 seconds. As I noted earlier, Car and Driver figured out how to beat the advertised acceleration time, cutting that down to 4.3 seconds and the quarter in 12.98 seconds. It is because of that test that you’ll read that the Syclone was even faster than a Corvette ZR-1 and a Ferrari 348ts. Sure, the Corvette and the Ferrari had higher top speeds and could take a corner, but at least to 60 mph and often to the quarter mile, the Syclone was effectively untouchable.
It has been claimed that the Syclone held onto the fastest truck title for 30 years, but that seems to come with some caveats and depends on who is in the driver seat. Car and Driver‘s original test in 1990 claimed speeds so fast that not even the Dodge Ram SRT-10 could beat it to 60 mph or in the quarter mile. However, when Car and Driver tested the Syclone again in 1991, the truck hit 60 mph in 5.3 seconds and did the quarter in 14.1 seconds.
How did the truck become much slower? Jason Cammisa explains that in the 1990 test, Car and Driver was commanding a pre-production truck. Nielsen says the original test truck wasn’t a cheater, but was a healthy truck operating in perfect conditions. Cammisa continues that the truck from the original test had an iced-down intercooler and Nielsen, a drag racer, was the driver. The truck from the first test was also running 93 octane fuel while the second truck was running 91 octane fuel in California.
Nielsen also felt that there had to be something wrong with the second truck because Car and Driver was suddenly slower than everyone else. So, a bunch of factors worked against the truck in the second test that made it quite a bit slower. Yet, despite the penalties, the second truck did still manage to beat a Ferrari 348ts.
In other words, whether the Syclone was the fastest truck for 30 years seems to depend on who is in the driver seat, which magazine you read, and what issue you read at the time. If you take Car and Driver‘s 1991 recorded times, then the Ford SVT F-150 Lightning dispatched the Syclone in 2001. Either way, what is true is the fact that the Syclone was supercar fast for a price of just $25,970, or $59,874 in today’s money. Just don’t expect to use a Syclone as a real truck given its low ground clearance and its 500-pound payload. Oh, and the vast majority of the 2,995 Syclones were black. Leave it to tobacco company Phillip Morris to spice up an already grand truck.
The 1991 GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition
The International Syclone Typhoon Registry has preserved the story of the GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition. The registry has tracked nine of the ten trucks commissioned by Phillip Morris. We’ll get back to that in a moment.
As Hemmings writes, in 1991, Phillip Morris promoted Marlboro Racing by running a giveaway for 10 Corvettes with special wheels and that characteristic Marlboro look. The promotion was a hit, gathering 3 million entries. In the past, the company also gave away Camaros with marketing success. Phillip Morris decided to do it again in 1992 and initially, the chosen vehicle was the Dodge Viper. However, that didn’t work out and instead, Phillip Morris purchased ten production Syclones.
From there, the tobacco company hired none other than legendary designer Larry Shinoda to pen a custom look for the Syclone. Shinoda is perhaps most famous for his work on Corvettes, Corvairs, and the 1969 Mustang Boss 302. Shinoda is also associated with the Jeep Grand Cherokee ZJ. Lesser known is Shinoda’s work on the Star Trek Shuttlecraft-like Rectrans Discoverer 25 and these Marlboro-themed Syclones. I think Shinoda managed to make the Syclone even cooler than it already was.
To make these ten trucks a reality Phillip Morris gathered a slew of manufacturers together adding a laundry list of items to the truck, from the International Syclone Typhoon Registry:
- C.R. Laurence PowerLite slide-down rear window assemblyGuidon locking fiberglass tonneau cover
- Boyd Coddington “Cobra” wheels with Marlboro emblem center caps & Goodyear Eagle GS-C tires
- PPG Industries “Hot Licks” Red paint
- White “vibe stripes”, windshield decal, & Marlboro emblems provided by Graphik Concepts
- Recaro leather seats with Simpson 5-Point racing harness
- Custom Momo “Evolution” steering wheel
- Sony sound system
- PROMPaq performance chip
- Borla stainless steel exhaust, “Turbo Extractor Design”
- Belltech Rear Suspension (rear leaf springs and blocks) lowered 3 inches
The pièce de résistance of the Marlboro trucks was the contribution from the American Sunroof Corporation. ASC chopped up the Syclone’s roof, reinforced what was left, and added T-tops that were stored in a special area in the bed. You’ll note that nothing was done to the engine, but there’s no need to mess with perfection. Now, after all of those mods, the Syclone looks even cooler.
As the International Syclone Typhoon Registry writes, the Marlboro Racing ‘92 Contest was held until September. Those wanting to enter the sweepstakes were told to fill out a form, answer four questions, and explain in up to 20 words why they were fast enough for the Marlboro Championship Team. The forms were put in all sorts of media from car buff mags to Playboy.
This time, the turnout wasn’t in the millions, but over 85,000. Still, Phillip Morris did as advertised and gave away ten customized trucks to ten lucky people. In addition to a bright red truck, winners were treated to a four day, three-night trip to watch the Marlboro Indy race team and pit crew with VIP access, tours, pit access, photo shoots, and Marlboro gear. Allegedly, Phillip Morris did take pictures at the event, but some kind of malfunction meant that the promo shots were lost afterward. Since there were so few entries this time around, Phillip Morris USA also stopped doing the promotions.
The truck used in surviving promotional materials was the very first built. This truck was also driven by Rick Mears as the pace car for the Marlboro Challenge CART Indy Car event in October 1992.
The International Syclone Typhoon Registry has done a great job of keeping up with the trucks. As of today, the registry notes that seven of the trucks are in private collections. One was imported into Estonia and abandoned, California fires destroyed one, and nobody seems to know what happened to one of the trucks. At best, that means there are eight of these trucks left in America and they very rarely come up for sale.
For example, truck #6 was seen at a Barrett-Jackson auction in 2014 where it sold for $66,000. This truck then showed up for sale on eBay a year later for an asking price of $79,995. GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition number 7 was sold in 2018 for $56,100 during the Mecum Kissimmee auction. As I said, these rarely come up for sale and they seem to be so obscure that most people have either forgotten about them or don’t even know the trucks exist. But now you do.
The GMC Marlboro Syclone Edition is rarer than many of the Holy Grails we write about. Sure, it didn’t get any more power, but I cannot think of anything better than blasting down California’s Pacific Coast Highway in one of these trucks, roof open, and jamming to some tunes. It sounds like most of these shockingly red trucks are rarely driven private collection pieces. I hope whenever they do go out to play, it’s a great time.
Another great and interesting article, Mercedes. But then there’s this. “With a touch of sarcasm, the legendary racer Smokey Yunick—a GMC truck dealer himself for many years—once wrote that GMC was the only vehicle with two complete teams of engineers: Chevrolet designed the trucks, and GMC designed the hub caps and ash trays. While his salty observation wasn’t technically accurate or literally true, necessarily, he did have a point. Many GMC light vehicles were unequivocal Chevrolet clones, differing only in the names on the trim pieces”. Smokey was one of a kind. I had the pleasure of working with him some for 2 weeks in 1972. I worked for Dan Gurney and Smokey bought a new Eagle chassis. I was his gopher as he fit a small block Chevy into it. Did he tell me any of his go fast tricks? Nope. We talked about flying and mostly B17s. And we talked about women.
RIP the Chevy SSR. I’m pleading to an uncaring automotive god for the eventual release of a convertible electric Ute, but it will never happen.
Back in the day, when smoking was still healthy for you, cigarette companies were allowed to advertise on tv. I’m reminded of a Winston commercial that starred Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble. Ah yes, the good old days when cartoons used to hook countless millions of toddlers on the joys, wonders and benefits of looking cool to impress your friends with glamorous and nutritious sticks of the burning wonder plant hanging between your lips. Twas the era of no seatbelts and the two martini lunch. I’m not that old myself, but it must have been quite the time to be alive back then.
Also, I don’t smoke.
To be totally fair, when it aired The Flintstones was aimed at adults. It only became something “for kids” in reruns. Flintstones was the Family Guy of its day.
As someone who was raised knowing that cigarettes are really harmful, I just wanted to say sorry to the generation that didn’t have a chance to make an informed decision.
I want to love cars like this but the clear connection to something that has killed so many (and when those people were lied to for so long) it makes it really hard. I know there are a lot of historical connections between cars and tobacco, Phillip Morris spent a ton of money it (and even more money avoiding responsibility for all the death its products cause).
The Syclone is awesome. But the Marlboro edition is just a pep-boys up’d advertisement for cancer sticks where Marlboro collected information from people and then used all the money and power in their control to get those people to smoke their cigarettes.
This was the 90s. We already knew smoking was bad for you. The surgeon general warning was already there. One of the reasons this truck exists is because it was one of the few advertising vehicles (heh) left. Cigarette ads on television and radio had been banned for 20 years by the time this truck came out.
I get the sentiment, and personally this would not be a truck I’d want to own (though I’d happily take an unmolested Sy/Ty) but if we’re honest, anything even tangentially related to motorsports from the 90s and early 2000s is going to have cigarette ads splashed all over it.
The al unser jr indy car from the nineties sure seemed like an advertisment to me but I get what you’re saying in that actual commercial break advertisements had ceased.
The Indy Car Marlboro livery is one of my favorites. But that only makes me dislike tobacco companies (and their connection to motorsport) even more. Because that is exactly what they were trying to do. Make you like their brand all while knowing that their product was both exceptionally addictive (and they were trying their best to make it as addictive as possible) and killing people at an astonishing rate.
That’s why I’m calling this truck out. It’s not a grail, there is absolutely nothing special about. It’s an awesome truck with aftermarket parts and an advertisement for a product that killed a lot of people.
Remember, kids, smoking is cool.
The cigarette companies were masters at marketing cool. They did so much awesome stuff in the 70’s through the mid 90’s.
Every once in a while, I think “I should buy a Chevy S10 Xtreme and eBay turbo the living Bejeebus out of it, and add a Chevy Astro AWD system.” I know it’s a bad idea.
But the real question is, do I care?
How is this a bad idea? When you inevitably blow up the engine how many 4.3 engines exist in junkyards for almost nothing? This sounds like a perfect way to have a cheap fun truck! Check out Tony Angelo and his Sike Clone on Stay Tuned channel on YouTube for inspiration 😉
I am in the Canadian rust belt. I have 2 young kids. I don’t have enough space. Parts are stupid expensive here. I have too many excuses. And my son wants me to do a Jeep.
But it still kind of calls to me. I am pretty sure I could rebuild a 4.3 and add some low compression pistons, as well as little things to make the engine better. Someone must make a turbo kit for these engines. Perhaps a twin turbo kit.
But then it’s the rabbit hole. Aith that much power, I would want it to handle better. Maybe coils instead of leaf springs? It gets nuts in a hurry.
I loved these when was a kid, but at “$25,970, or $59,874 in today’s money” new (and that’s just for a regular Syclone and the bespoke Marlboro ones are only selling for $60s to $70s today, not a very good investment…OR maybe they’re still a bargain and are about to take off!
I have to admit this is a cool truck. Also, for a change, the body kit doesn’t suck!
Every few years I really strongly consider getting a Typhoon. I’m surprised they are as cheap as they are still with the general rising tide of late 80s/early 90s performance cars?
Same. I’m always stopped because I knew several people with them. Awesome trucks when they were running right, but they had lots of problems with the transfer case and other components that were just barely adequate to take the power the motor was putting out.
Well, and I’m also stopped because I already have 5 cars and only a 3 car garage. 😉
I’m not really a truck guy or a cigarette guy or a fast car guy but something about reading this article makes me say “Hell yeah brother” involuntarily.
Same!
I suppose the free-flowing exhaust and the pre- OBD chipset helped it make some more power, if they upped the injectors from stock 42lb to 60lb. Sweet rig!
It got me thinking what is the last car sold in the United States that had a cigarette, lighter and ashtray??? I have a 2006 tundra that has a completely unused cigarette lighter and ashtray. I’m sure there were some after that I would assume. Torch??? Help us
My 2006 F-250 has an proper pull out ashtray and actual lighter socket and lighter, my 2009 E-150 has a actual lighter socket and lighter, but the ashtray is one that just sat in one of the cubbies on the engine cover. The 2005 CVPI has the pull out ashtray with lighter in it. I’m betting at least the ashtray stayed until 2011 in the CVPI if not in standard Crown Vics and Grand Marquis.
This isn’t the exact/specific answer you’re looking for, but I ordered my 2022 Jeep Gladiator with the “smoker’s group” that includes the cigarette lighter socket in the dash (with a cool cover), the actual cigarette lighter push in thingy, and an ashtray with a hinged lid on it. Ashtray fits in the cup holder. I don’t even smoke lol, but for like $30 I thought it’d be cool one day to have factory accessories as a part of the rig. This is vague but I sort of remember reading about Plymouth Roadrunners????? or something like that, coming with cool factory items in the trunk, and my thinking was along those lines. A future enthusiast would like having these original items. But I do know what you mean about the last car to have the in-door, in-dash ashtrays, etc. I wonder too.
Related: I saw a meme the other day that said: I am this old (and the pic was an ashtray built into the back of the plaid front cloth seats and carpeted seat surrounds, for rear seat passengers. Talk about a fire hazard!) And I remember cars from the 70s having these. So I guess I’m old haha
My 2009 Mazda 3 (last year of the first generation) had a traditional in-dash ashtray with lighter, which is where I kept my parking pass. My guess is that Asian automakers kept those around longer than the Americans because smoking is now more prevalent there, although the biggest factor was likely how frequently the dashboard tooling was changed.
While I love the Syclone and Typhoon, I had no idea this version existed. The modifications are interesting, though I’ve had enough leaky T-tops in my life that I’m not sold on them for a truck. Still, quite interesting.
Somehow, I missed this edition (maybe I forgot it due to anti-smoking snobbery, though I always liked T-tops, or at least the idea of T-tops, so I would think I’d remember). Too bad they made so few. Kind of odd that they’re not worth more.
I must have entered that contest about a dozen times. But never won.
But the nice folks at Marlboro responded by sending us a shit load of crap and coupons.
After using said coupons for 30 years, my wife developed lung cancer and died.
Thanks Marlboro. /s
In a lifetime, one has occasion to meet characters who may be called legendary, but aren’t. The fellows behind the Syclone were guarandamnteed legendary!
I was a Detroit reporter back in the day when the Syclone was built and had occasion to cross paths with Larry Shinoda, Jeff Beitzel, the president of PAS and Heinz Prechter, the founder of American Sunroof Company. It’s not surprising the Syclone was such an awesome truck. Those guys, all gone now, were indeed legendary! They could talk the talk, walk the walk and did both! Let their names be a blessing.
Thanks Mercedes for some good memories.
I am most definitely in flavour country.
Is that country Hazelnutistan? Or Marlboria?
Both. I’m a man of Falstaffian decadence.
I want.
When the donor lungs absolutely, positively, have to be there overnight.
These kinda trucks were so cool. It’s a damn shame we don’t see anything like this anymore.
I mean…Ford just dropped the Ranger Raptor….that’s pretty damn cool
That’s not a street truck. So no, not the same.
turbo v6 and 4WD….has some similarities. And no, not same but hey, only some air suspension and a Sawzall away from being closer to it 😉
Yeah it’s more I want all these stupid offroad trucks to actually be made for what they are used for. I would love a turbo v6 awd truck that isnt jacked up and heavy af for offroading.;
My dad, who has never smoked, somehow ended up with a Marlboro duffle bag around that time. He still has it, and ironically uses it to haul his personal gear for the county hazmat team. It was obviously well made since it has survived 30+ years of use.
Many, many years ago Marlboro had a promotion called Marlboro Miles where you collected miles from cigarette packs towards prizes. Each pack was five miles. There was all types of swag available and much of it was quality stuff.
Even though I smoked another brand I was able to collect enough miles from the streets of NYC to get a Swiss Army Watch. The only indication it was from Marlboro was inscription on the back.
edit – I quit smoking over 20 years.
I used to collect my miles and then totally forget to turn them in. I knew some friends that had the bags, coats, etc. I would eventually throw away the miles, but still trying to completely get rid of the Marlboro’s.
I still have my duffle bag! It looks like new. It wears like iron. Really classes up the family vacations too.
Someone I knew well had the Marlboro bicycle, the Marlboro tent, the Marlboro all-kinds-of-stuff symbolizing healthy outdoor lifestyle and youthful good looks in the 1990s. No Marlboro cough drops, Marlboro wrinkle cream or Marlboro casket later though.
I wonder how much of the Malrboro equivalent of Camel Cash it took to get all that stuff. Enough to fund a few rounds of chemotherapy, I’d wager.
Seems like it was 2-3 packs a day worth. At the point lung cancer was caught it had turned into small cell carcinoma and treatment was pointless, it would become an aggressive brain cancer shortly. I read that each cigarette cost 11 minutes of lifetime, comparing to close-relative non-smokers and doing the math confirmed the number. Direct cost of the habit would have paid for some Hawaii trips, maybe without the Marlboro shit.
LOL. I just commented about the Swiss Army Watch i got. Very Outdoorsy.
I vividly remember how you could get a Marlboro canoe. The ads used to be in the old Car and Drivers I’d get every month.
The consolation prize in those contests was a Marlboro Penske Racing jacket. I still have mine. If somebody lets you drive one of these I’ll loan it to you.
I remember entering this contest. My intention was to win the truck and strip off all the cigarette branding. It’s sort of sad that doing so probably would have destroyed much of the resale value.
Is there even an ashtray in that interior? Seems like quite the oversight if not.
T-tops mean the whole back half is the ashtray! This pick-up hauls butt!
My original joke for the topshot was “Smoker’s Package”
This reminds me of the time I pulled alongside a woman in a pickup and started gesturing and yelling. She thought I was crazy until she finally looked in the rearview mirror and then back at the visible flames in the bed. Someone behind her pulled off with her, as I couldn’t because I was on her left side.
Torch should invent a signal for this, some type of assertive hazard light: “It’s not me, it’s you!”
There is at least one cigarette butt in my truck bed right now. I feel called out.
Game recognizes game, no judgement!
Of course there is!! This was about 10-15 years before they started phasing out ash trays. GM was putting ash trays for the kiddies in the 3rd row seat of station wagons back in the 80’s/90’s.
Anyways this is a pretty badass rig. Love the red, that was really my only gripe with the original Syclone, only availiable in black. Im more of a Miami Vice white with white wheels, pink and turqoiuse graphics type of guy. But the red is equally bitchin
I would rock a mullet in it
Don’t worry, if you sit in one, a mullet magicly sprouts from your head. And a handlebar mustache too. It sucks for women. They get mustaches too.