92 GMC Typhoon and 91 GMC Syclone - with extras

Description for GMC Typhoon 1992

Low Mileage, ith issues - Syclone 68K miles and Typhoon 52K miles

* Syclone has salvage title from 2006, ody damage only, ully repaired

* Typhoon needs a new turbo and has body rust on the top and bottom of the back

OK, have had so many inquiries that I think I need to put this up front.

• The auction is for both vehicles, nd a bunch of extras.
• I am not interested in selling off e-bay, ut I did offer them locally over the last couple of months. That makes it technically possible that the auction will end early.
• There is no reserve, o it's possible somebody will get the trucks for the opening bid of $7500.
• The Syclone has not been inspected after the repairs.
• If they don't sell in this auction, will consider breaking it up, elling off the trucks and spare parts and manuals separately, ut not until this auction is over.

Full factory service manuals included

The Typhoon is all original except for an upgraded performance chip (I will include the original), ith the original Typhoon floor mats and Typhoon "donut" spare tire kit including the special key to remove the center discs on the wheels, cissors jack (fits in indents on frame) and even the white gloves that came with the kit. Interior is in pretty good shape on the Typhoon.

The Syclone has replacement white dash gauge faces and post-mounted additional gauges (fuel pressure and turbo boost) and high-quality rubber mats with red pinline accents, ike the interior of the truck. I'll have to look for them, ut I think I have the original black dial faces somewhere. Both vehicles have their owner's manuals.

Additional parts, ncluding two mint condition original equipment alloy wheels with centers, nother fairly good condition wheel with a low-mileage Goodyear GS-C mounted for right hand side, n unused (New Old Stock) factory timing belt and some odds and ends like a car cover for the Syclone, new K&N air filter, nd, f the buyer wants it, he original Syclone tonneau cover and frame. The fabric tonneau cover was in poor shape when I bought it, o I got a hydraulic lift fiberglass hard tonneau matched to the hood profile.

The story:

I knew these were special when they came out, nd I bought a Typhoon the first year they were made. I even bought a full set of factory manuals from GM at the time. My first Typhoon was terrific, nd I owned it through 185,000 miles, wo factory engines and three transmissions.

I bought the Syclone from a California owner in 2003, nd drove it nearly three years (NEVER in snow, nd avoided rain), nd then I was sandwiched between a jacknifed trailer on an 18-wheeler and the center Jersey barrier on the interstate. Both sides were trashed, ut the engine (strongest of the four such engines I've had the pleasure of owning) was still running like a top as I sat there totally shaken up after the accident.

The insurance company came up with an absurd value, nd "totaled" it, ven though all the damage was all body and cladding damage and two wheels. I asked to keep it, nd they agreed, fter subtracting $4,000 from the settlement. I bought the Typhoon I'm selling now, nd made a deal with an auto body shop to hold down the cost and fix the Syclone as a background job when the shop wasn't busy.

Fast forward several years, nd the Syclone was completely done - I had provided original alloy wheels as needed, ut couldn't find all the replacement body cladding parts. It has only front and rear bumpers, nd they are the stock replacement bumpers for the base S-10 pickup. The Syclone's new paint job is gorgeous. From bare metal up, hree coats of the correct original black color, nd a clear coat top. I've kept it covered since getting it back (see second-to-last photo).

So the Syclone is the ultimate sleeper. Looks just like an S-10 pickup, nless you know the alloy wheels and lowered profile. It's got brand new Toyo Proxes all around, o new that the little blue paint line from new tires is still there. After it was done, brought it to my house until I could get it together to take a day off and hire a flatbed and driver for the day at the central DMV (the only place in my state you can get a salvage title lifted). It even passed emissions before I paid the final bill with the body shop.

As I got the pictures together to sell the Syclone, noticed that the auto body shop didn't replace the hinges on the center console top. I braced myself so hard when that 18-wheeler squished me that it tore the padded top right off the console. All I can say is that I'm glad I was in a truck, nd not a sedan. Also, he body shop added a thin grey jersey fabric to the headliner, nd it is sagging a bit.

More Extras! [Added the day after the listing went live.] I just opened the fiberglass tonneau cover on the Syclone to make sure I had the key to that cover. The body shop put all four wheels in the truck bed (three still with tires mounted), nd also put an assortment of body cladding parts. I'm not sure which parts are there, ut it looks like a half dozen or so pieces. He probably put all the undamaged pieces in the truck bed when he couldn't find replacements for the trashed cladding.

Fast forward another two years, nd I've got to downsize.

The Typhoon's paint is pretty oxidized, specially on the hood. There is some bad rust along the top edge of the rear window (see photos), he bottom of the tailgate (see photo of worst section), nd some smaller bits along the edge of the side cladding where it looks like the paint might be "bubbling" from underneath. After taking the photos, sprayed it and then taped it tightly with Gorilla Tape, o hopefully it won't get any worse until the new owner gets on the case.

The story on the Typhoon is that I bought it when I couldn't drive the Syclone. It came from a Porsche dealer's service manager whose grandmother (basically the Little Old Lady from Pasadena) had used it as her winter car. Her summer car was a Corvette ZR-1. She must have been the terror of Springfield, ass. I kept it indoor garaged for the first five years I owned it, ut the rust did continue to spread during those years.

Through the seller of the Typhoon, was able to get that SUV maintained by Jack Cotton, he king of American turbo cars (cottonsperformance.com). Jack's "Great Pumpkin" is an orange T-type Buick that he has run for an 8.90 quarter at 154 MPH. If you ever go to his shop in Agawam, A, ou'll know you've arrived at Buck Grand National heaven. There are always a number of them wearing plates from all over North America waiting for him to do his magic.

The Typhoon hasn't been back to Jack's garage these past several years, nd it needs a new turbo charger. I finally took the plates off when I realized I hadn't driven it in 18 months. It has some other issues - all small.

The rear window hydraulic cylinder has given up, nd the push-button on the dash doesn't open that window any more. I did put a new set of tires (Pirelli Sotozeros) on the front, nd those have about 100 miles on them. We couldn't get the center discs out of the rear wheels without potentially screwing up the special key for that center disc, o I didn't replace those (Goodyear Ultragrips), ut they probably have about 20K miles on them. A few days with penetrating oil and some patience will probably address that issue. I did have all the brake lines replaced because they looked pretty rusty when it was up on the lift. The right rear tire has a slow leak.The last time I moved it, t was starting fine, ut died as it went into idle, o I think it needs a new idle air control valve (IACV) or the existing valve needs a rebuild kit or a good cleaning.

The plan was for the Typhoon to be the winter car, nd the Syclone to be for fun in the nice weather. Plans change.

The last photo, y the way, s my original Typhoon and the Syclone before the accident. The Typhoon was an early '92 (red GMC letters on grill) and the Typhoon I'm now selling was late in the '92 run with its black GMC letters. All the original silver decals are present on the Typhoon, he correct color for '92s, s the '93s have gold decals.

The Syclone has the optional CD player, nd the Typhoon has the standard cassette player. Both have Connecticut clear titles, ith the Syclone title stamped "Salvage."

Typhoon VIN: 1GDCT18Z5N0810448

Syclone VIN: 1GDCT14Z3M8802838

One last issue came up when I went out to get the VIN number on the Syclone. A bird managed to leave me a 'gift' right on the hood. It was covered at the time, ut enough liquid soaked through to leave a small hard white deposit. I've included a photo with a match head next to it so you can see the scale. I'm researching it now, ecause I don't want to use any kind of scraper on that beautiful paint job. I already have a small bottle of the black touch-up paint, f it comes to that. I may leave it to a buyer to decide what to do, r I may try to fix it. If I do, 'll add another photo. (Suggestions welcome, specially from the buyer). I will adjust for that and all the other issues by setting an opening price (no reserve) for these two classics and extras that could give the winning bidder both of these trucks for an investment you might pay for just one.

Thoughts on the Syclone: Given what kind of prices these are getting, t may be worth making replica cladding from fiberglass. If you are interested in doing that or having it done, he Typhoon will provide you the correct templates for nearly all of the cladding parts. The cladding is identical for the two vehicles, xcept for a tiny (3" - 4" wide) piece just behind the driver's door on the Syclone. The part that runs from there back to wheel surround is accordingly a bit shorter on the Syclone than it is on the Typhoon, ut otherwise the same. Everything else is interchangeable. I see that replica decals are also available.

OK, opefully this is the last addition (put in 24 hours after listing went live). I have scoured the house for everything Sy/Ty that can be included in this sale, nd organized all the extras below:

Full factory service manuals (1992)

Original owner's manuals

Detailed insurance repair estimate for Syclone dated January 25, 006 showing all work was body work

Original GMC dealer Syclone marketing insert (laminated, ole punched)

Four extra original equipment alloy 16x8 wheels, sed, ith mounted tires ( various brands including Goodyear and Cooper)

Two mint/near mint condition original equipment alloy wheels (clear coat is not peeling off yet)

One banged up alloy wheel, ossibly repairable (a total of seven additional wheels)

Four Typhoon wheel center discs (GMC is not painted red), n mint/near mint condition with rubber gaskets

Various good used condition or repairable cladding parts

Unused New Old Stock GM part #10189265 (6 Rib drive belt)

Unused wiper blade (Trico Exact Fit 16-2)

Unused K&N air filter

Original black dash gauge inserts (for Syclone)

Original frame and tonneau cover for Syclone truck bed (poor condition)

After-market heavy duty rubber floor mats for Syclone

Original equipment embroidered carpet floor mats for Typhoon

Original equipment Typhoon spare tire and spare tire tool kit, ith cover

Original equipment Typhoon control chip

Soft fabric car cover for Syclone

The photos are in sections. First, oth vehicles. Then, he Typhoon odometer and gauges, escriptive shots and close-ups of the corrosion damage on the back of the vehicle. Then come the repair manuals and a second shot of both vehicles from a different angle. Then Syclone shots with the last Syclone shot being a closeup of the bird "tribute" residue next to a pack of matches so you can see the size. The last two shots are where they sit right now (Typhoon will be tarped), nd then a stroll down memory lane showing my first Typhoon and the Syclone before the accident. If you have questions, 'd be happy to call or respond using the ebay message utility. Send me a message via ebay with your phone number, nd I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Just give me a window of time (and your time zone) when I can call. Anyone within driving distance is welcome to come look at them.